Limewash flooring

3 years ago

I'm looking to limewash/lightly whiten my floors. The old section is Baltic pine and there is some staining from the older boards I'm hoping to even out with liming. New section is spotted gum.
Question is what's the best product for this? Our flooring expert had planned to use loba 2pk duo matt/satin on it. If I used a whitener, is it better to go with a matt finish rather than matt/satin? Also should I ask him to use loba supra or bona traffic, is that superior product compared to the duo?
Also is it ok to limewash spotted gum?

Featured Answer

Keen B

3 years ago

@Emma Why This is what the bleaching did to Red Alder. Wonderful. I have also done it to antique doors of various woods to remove old dark stains and reddish wood tint of fir with great success. There are affordable and effective recipes for this in online wood forums (other than expensive products.) But be very careful. The issue with bleaching a floor is that it takes someone very experienced, who knows how to do it; foamy pools of the bleach can really mess up the look that cannot be easily fixed, if at all. With some types of wood, it can also bring out a yellowish waxiness. If you go this route, test over and over in closets or hidden areas.

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Comments (6)

PRO
User
3 years ago
It is already pink. More white will only accentuate the pink. Exactly the wrong choice.
Emma Why
Original Author
3 years ago
Oh no. Is there anything I can do? I like the of the freshly sanded floors. Do I need to bleach it
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PRO
Celery. Visualization, Rendering images
3 years ago
You might want to check this video
Emma Why
Original Author
3 years ago
They've filled nail and holes already with timbermate putty. I read that's a problem with bleach. Is it too late for me to go down the bleach path. It does look very nice
Keen B
3 years ago
That putty product, if I am correct, can be scrubbed away with just soap and water before it is coated with poly. Since the bleach formula (food grade lye and very strong peroxide) is basically like a soap, I would expect it to alter the putty one way or another. There is a more expensive product called Pink Blocker that might or might not harm putty, but my experience with it is only on samples (that I did not like for they were then impossible to stain.) Plus, I expect PB is some formula similar to the DIY bleach recipes...

Again, you can try this in closets or areas that will never be seen first. If it does alter the putty, perhaps the putty can be refilled? Again, ask your professionals. If they have to oversand putty, then they might sand off all that fresh bleached wood, too.

Another thing to consider is that some of your boards are already light and blonde. If you bleach those they will be almost white. If you want to bleach the reddish boards, you may need to wipe them individually..

Instead, consideration a Ciranova product Hardwax oil in ECRU. There is just enough green in that color to balance reds. They sell samples on their website. Even though they are a wax, I THINK they can be covered in a Ciranova poly (but understand many companies formulate their products to work only with their products, so Loba might not work on Ciranova.)

And finally, I have also had a little luck with using dyes in very watered down amounts to tone down reds before I poly the wood. A very light green-yellow mix may work. Just enough to alter tone, not enough to make the wood green.