Just about to seal some engineered solid oak flooring – it is untreated, unfinished with absolutely no varnish or anything on it at all.

I have some Osmo Uviwax (as it is going in a sun room so want to give it some UV protection). I am planning on two or three coats of that (even though it isn’t speciifically for floors, the shop said it was fine), then a final coat or two of Osmo Hardwax Oil to giv it a more robust finish.

It has been mentioned that I could wipe down with white spirit before I start but I don’t see what help that would be as it is brand new and has no other sealant on it. Would it be useful to give it a wipe down first or are there any other tips on preparation/between coats etc.

Cheers

I’ve just helped a friend out with some wood polishing, the lazy man’s way!

I think the white spirit would be to remove any possible deposits and provide a good surface to start wax application, i.e. giving you a clean floor.

I’m not familiar with that wax so don’t know if its one that makes you feel all light headed if you leave the windows closed, but I’d have thought apply the wax exactly as described on the tin, practice on a piece of scrap before hand, then buff to a finish, still not deep enough/glossy enough? another coat of wax and repeat, the stuff we did yesterday required the wax to dry.

I used a car Random Orbital car polisher with a medium polishing pad on to buff the wood, then swapped to a fine pad and carried on as though it was a car, 5 coats of wax and it looks pretty decent to me 😉

good luck 😉
JT 😉

Osmo is odour-free and natural apparently (should paint itself on for the amount it costs too). Although it is called a wax it just paints on, rather than buff it on and off like a beeswax type of polish.

Mr- we used Oslo stuff on our oak floor – IMO worth every penny. Clean floor down- wipe Oslo on with a cloth. Leave overnight. Repeat application. Buff by hand… Did our 3 years ago – in the lounge so steady traffic. Floor to ceiling bay window so lots of light and it’s o my just about needing a other coat. HTH Chris

Sorry for random spelling and grammar – fat fingers on an I-phone 🙂

Provided the floor is clean and swept well, in the past I have used a very slightly damp cloth to wipe over to remove the finest dust. Let it dry (an hour should be fine) and you’re good to go. Be wary that the smallest specks will show if waxed or varnished over, so if it is odour free, I would keep windows closed so that nothing blows in.

what sort of cloth did you use??? I was gonna brush it on.

you are eating fish fingers on an iphone?

Not a f******g clue, I just spotted the thread and thought it said ‘best way to steal oak flooring’ – I am dissapointed, to say the least.

LOVLLL!!!!!!!!!!!!!

(To both of the last two posts).

🙂

I have used Liberon floor sealer on our floor, once again used as a walkway, did three or so coats and am glad to say I have no wear problems at all (bar the sofa coaster falling apart and leaving a screw sticking out) Gave it a coat of the Liberon wax afterwards to make it extra slippy, that has now worn off but the floor still looks great. Just about to do the same again in a different room. Use a little at a time and don’t rush. Also your knees will hurt. I found that if you wet (I guess white spirit would do the same) the floor unsealed you would need to rub it down as the wood fibres seem to swell. Makes for a very smooth piece of wood. Wood floors are great.

m_f, IMO what you describe is the wrong way round. Have not done any floors from scratch, but have done a lot of woodworking.

You use oil first. It soaks into the wood and does two things:
1) It seals the top layer of the wood so that if you spill anything it does not soak in
2) It will bring out the natural beauty of the grain and make the wood look vastly better

Once you have the oil sealing, you put the wax on top. Wax does not soak onto the wood, so sits on top and provides a protective coating, plus gives a lustre or shine depending on the type of wax. I strongly suggest you use a wax that that has a matt or semi matt finish. Gloss wax on a floor will make it look like cheap imitation rather than the real deal.

When I was making things like tables I would put on a minimum of 5 coats of oil over 5 days, allowing them to dry in between. Finished by a layer of polish.

BTW do not use a polisher or sander before using the oil. The finer the finish, the more difficult it is for the oil to penetrate. Also, before the oil is completely dry, wipe of any excess to get a good finish

Yeah that seems to make sense – when it dries the grain will ‘tighten’ and give a smoother finish. It is pretty smooth already though so not sure if I want to make work for myself…

C’ptn – although it is called a wax, it is actually a paint on oil. Daft I know!

m_f, mmm both oil and wax can be painted on. If it’s called wax it probably is wax. If put wax on first it will not soak into the wood to seal it. This will work OK but will need a lot of maintenance and the wood will be very susceptible to marking and absorbtion. Cetainly do not put oil on top of wax. It does nothing and is likely to create a sticky mess.

I would be concerned that the wax you are using is not specifically for floors. Floor wax like Johnson’s Traffic Wax is specifially very hard to take foot traffic and the rigours of grinding dirt on the bottom of shoes. Ordinary wax is much softer and only designed to provide light protection.- you will be recoating every month, especially if you have not sealed the floor first.

TBH it sounds to me like the guys who sold you the stuff know nothing. Firstly they sold you wax that is not for floors, then told you to put oil on top of wax which it total rubbish. I would suggest you take the stuff back, get your money back, and hunt out a Liberon stockist who will know what they are talking about HERE

Hardwax Oil for top coat

uviwax for base coat

Hmm, fair point well made. Obviously good products designed for the trade. Have not seen this kind of dual purpose stuff before. Perhaps I am just an old fashioned kind of guy, but I would suggest one or two coats of just oil first to really penetrate the wood and bring out the grain, then the Hardwax oil on top. IMO, nothing with wax in it will penetrate and bring the wood out like pure oil

Yeah – they are expensive ‘trade’ products and both let the wood breathe naturally – I did get the floor and was recommended the stuff from a specialist flooring outlt, not some B&Q spotface.

Will be doing the two coats of the UVI before the hardwax definately.

The Osmo stuff is fantastic – best stuff out there.

It goes a long way, easy to apply, lasts well and is good environmentally (remember ‘natural’ is not always ‘good’….)

We used to sell Biofa stuff, made at same factory / started off as partner company to Osmo. Really impressed with both companies and their products.

The hardwax oil is a great finish – really nice, easy to keep clean.

I also am a huge fan of their outdoor ‘stains’ rather than paint – really lasting well, easy to put on again and incredibly vapour open.

Well I just spent the weekend sealing… two coats of Uviwax which went on a treat, then a single coat of Hardwax Oil but that is taking quite some time to dry (should be 8 to 10 hours but it is now 24 hours and still tacky).

Looks great though – just bought an emulsion ‘paint pad’ for £7 and stuck it on an extension pole and walked up and down with it. Sorted.

🙂

As a slight hijack here – I’ve got a really nice oak table and sideboard – it’s about time I put some oil/protection on it to stop it splitting and keep it looking nice – any recommendations or does this Osmo stuff work on furniture too?

yarp, Osmo or Biofa.

The Osmo hardwax oil can take several days before it fully dries out. The colour can remain patchy until then too.

As a joiner I wouldn’t use anything other than Osmo now for higher quality work. Worth every penny.

I was surprised that it is still tacky (went home at lunchtime) after 24 hours though – it is not even approaching being dry yet and my wife had to carefully walk across it after our new (and not fully tested yet) electrics flipped an RCD 🙁 So I will have a bit of patching to do when it does finally harden.

Probably more qualified than most on this one: Osmo Hardwax Oil is a dispersion of a mixture of waxes in an oil carrier. The oil soaks into the surface of the timber giving it a certain resistance to water, and the wax hardens on top giving it a protective layer. It is pretty much the industry standard for hardwood floors (though Karl’s from Bona would also be around the same quality). The best method of application is to use a floor brush. Osmo sell these and though they’re expensive, they’re the best way of application – especially for the first coat which you need to apply as thinly as possible. Beware though, the wood is more susceptible to dents than with a lacquer but is more maintainable (sp?) by the end user over time.

What I suspect has happened m_f, is that you’ve applied the first coat a little bit thickly…it takes ages to dry especially if there’s not much heat or ventilation in the room. No need to panic though, it will dry eventually but the most important thing now is that you don’t, under any circumstances, apply the second coat till the first is dry, otherwise, you could be waiting days for it to cure.

If there are some marks where mrs m_f has walked, don’t worry too much, you can rub them back either with very fine sand paper, wire wool or even a scouring pad would do it to be honest. Don’t be too concerned if where you’ve rubbed them back looks lighter, as the next coat will cover it up just fine.

Probably best not to do any more than two coats for now; but you’ll get a really nice patina to develop if you re-apply a coat of compatible but lower solid hardwax oil (they’re nearly all compatible with one another) such as Fiddes.

Any other q’s, let me know.

Oh yes, and if you buff it between 1st and second coats, it makes the second coat much easier to apply and gives a nicer finish.

Cheers Darcy – got up this morning and it is still tacky! That is 54 hours and counting! I certainly won’t be putting another coat on until this one is thoroughly dry (in fact I may leave it with just the one coat as there is already two coats of Uviwax on under anyway and this was just a sealant to protect the less robust Uviwax). We are venting the room as much as possible (but aware that we don’t want dust blowing around and sticking to the tacky surface) and have a couple of portable radiators on the job.

I have since treble-checked and there are plenty of places confirming that Hardwax oil is okay to put on over any of the other Osmo wax finishes. I just wish it would dry as we have had to cancel the glazer who was going to fit our brand new spangly double glazed units into our lovely new custom built oak frames today. 🙁

BTW – I don’t recall it taking so long to dry last time I used it but that was onto untreated wood, not something with base coats of another product on under.

Ummm…I used some on some Ipe (a wood with a shedload of it’s own oil) on top of a layer of Osmo thin oil. One of my bigger mistakes…took 2 weeks to dry! A bit embarrassing that one… 😯

Osma!

Photo removed.

Darcy – I need to hear more from you, if only to stop my nagging panic! Back to the facts – I used two coats of Osmo Uviwax (a microporous product) onto unfinished solid oak which went on great and dried as per instructions. The top coat of Hardwax Oil (which says it is suitable for application over Osmo microporous products) went on fine but is STILL tacky after 3 full days of windows open, fan blowing air across surface and extra heating. I assume it MUST eventually harden? At the end of the day I can put up with it taking a while to dry – I just need to have my mind put at rest that it won’t actually just remain tacky forever!

Well, well, well…

Been onto Osmo UK and they contacted the German Headquarters and have confirmed that

a) I should never have been told that Uviwax was suitable for floor

b) I should not have put Hardwax over it because one is water-based and the other is oil-based.

Armed with this I went back to my suppliers and it turns out they had contacted Osmo as well and had been told exactly the same (although they claim they were advised by the Osmo rep. that they could use the two together). Anyway, they have offered to replace the entire floor free of charge and pay for the cost of having it professionally relaid (as it was originally).

A bit of a pain, but ultimately we have at least got a result in that the floor will eventually be right!

erk … MF

sorry to hear your hassle!

Good customer service from that firm though!

jt 😉

‘kinel mastiles – how much bad luck can one person have! 🙁

Yeah – I was all ready for the stand up argument with them and they just came out with it and said they would replace.

Well – I have just spent another weekend sanding and coating the new floor and the result is stunning (after using JUST Hardwax Oil). The colour is lovely and golden and on an evening it offers a lovely warm glow under the downlighters. The difference between this and the first effort is about 1,000,000 miles!

Hurrah, sorry dude, I didn’t see your later posts. Had never heard of the Uviwax stuff and I probably should have looked it up at the time. Anyway, sounds like the supplier did the right thing and you’ve got the result you wanted. Hardwax oil is indeed a lovely finish and Osmo is the benchmark product, much higher solid content than any other floor. Remember, it can be patch repaired but in the first few years, you could do a lot worse than give it a re-coat every six months or so – this will build up a good wear layer (it is only a wax, not a lacquer, so is more susceptible to dents) and give a rich patina to the floor that will in turn repay you with lasting longer….kinda like the oiled worktop thing i.e. the more you do it in the early years, the less you have to do it in latter years if you get my drift.

In a blatant bit of willy-waving, here’s a floor I did recently with a (wet, hence the sheen) topcoat of Osmo:

Nice – will have to take some pics of my floor as I am very pleased with it too. 🙂

If I am gonna put more coats down, I had better do them soon – Mrs Mastiles is due in June with twins so the house will be upside down forever after then… 🙂