Bona Traffic HD Second Coat?

2 years ago

Hi. We got our original 60s red oak refinished by a professional. The floors were in fantastic shape because they were hidden under carpet forever. But they did have that honeyed polyurethane sheen. No flaws or scratches etc. Pristine! We wanted to a more “natural wood” feel with that yellowness/redness tamed as much as possible. We picked Bona Nordic one coat and then Bona HD Satin. BUT, we have our own reservation in believing that the guy we hired used two coats of Traffic and if it the sheen he picked was satin because it literally looks like nothing on the wood. And we would have been all over the look that the new Traffic HD Raw provides but ours is guaranteed just Traffic HD. Even though that is not the look we initially asked for (a complete bare wood as opposed to just lighter wood with a satin finish), we did like the natural look of it. So we didn’t raise much concern with him. A month later, we are finding that the floors scratch easily, dirt and dry stuff just stick to the floor as if chewing gum under a desk 🤢. We even have Tineco S5 and even that doesn’t help get the funk off the floor on daily. I’m tired of having to get down on my knees and scrub every inch of dining and kitchen when I’ve paid top dollars for dang Traffic AND Tineco S5 Pro. Also, I do not believe the guy did a good job of smoothing out the surface before putting Nordic which perhaps is the reason why things stick so easily and not probably so much to do with Traffic HD and it’s low sheen finish.

So now the question part: Is it too late to add yet another coat of Traffic HD in perhaps shiner finish? Do I need to re-sand it now that it’s been a month since it was actually refinished? I certainly don’t want the high gloss sheen that Rejuvenate polish seems to leave behind. What other choices do I have? We do not have too much furniture nor any rugs. So we can totally take down on a project if it only involves mopping, pouring and spreading.

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Comments (9)

PRO
G & S Floor Service
2 years ago
Definitely not smooth enough. Looks like they skipped grit or they stopped at a low grit like 80.

There is no Nordic seal on those floors. If, there is, a single super thin coat was applied. Should be at least two coats minimum to prevent tannin bleed through.

Can you apply additional coats at this stage - yes. You will need to decontaminate with Bona remover and rinse, then buff and re-coat with Traffic HD.

You floors look thirsty. It doesn't look like the proper coverage was applied. Maybe the reason why it scratches so easily.
Abc Def
Original Author
2 years ago
Agh… what a waste of time and more importantly, ruining our expensive floor. How do I buff?
If not Traffic HD, what other products can I opt for to prevent the floors from deteriorating further?
Thank you for your help.
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Abc Def
Original Author
2 years ago
A look at the floor at an angle. We are pretty clean people. So to have this grease stain appear on the newly finished floor confirmed the fear we had that the guy we hired doped us and never used the expensive product he promised and also didn’t polish the floor properly.
Abc Def
Original Author
2 years ago
The same section from up top. I do have recessed lights on. So kind of hard to get the exact sheen/color. But you can see that it looks fairly dry and devoid of any proper protective finish 😞
Abc Def
Original Author
2 years ago
Scratches like these appear everywhere.
PRO
G & S Floor Service
2 years ago
last modified: 2 years ago
The scratches are sanding marks. The grease marks will need to be chemically removed with Bona remover and bona rinse. Buffing is just a abrasion process. You are sanding the floors with 220 or 240 grit sand paper. This helps your new finish to mechanically bond to the existing one. It will also, smooth out any rough spots you may have.

Your finish is fully cured. You can put any water base product on top if, you do not want to use Traffic HD.

If, you just got the floors refinshed. The contractor owes you a warranty. Call them back to answer questions and fix the issues
Abc Def
Original Author
2 years ago
Meaning I’d need to rent one of those floor buffers and deal with the awful sawdust. 😭. More importantly, the hardwood will be thinned out even more if that thief only went super hard with 80 and didn’t bother smooth it with finer grit… I risk really ruining the floors then.

And we already tried calling him and texting him. He doesn’t answer. Classic bad contractor story. I sent pictures of our crappy job to the “referral” I had from FB. She is from a town over. She said the guy did a better job at her place. So who knows if the referral was all fake too. Consider it sunken cost. 😡

In theory, if I clean the floor properly and just lay another layer of Traffic HD on top, since the floor is already abrasive from the previous botched job, will the new coat at least adhere to the floor without having to buff again? At this point, my biggest worry is to protect the floor from this continuous damage and stain from every small accidental food spillage or water droplets leaving rings from doing dishes etc.

Is there any other product like Rejuvenate Restorer that can salvage the situation?

Sorry for so many questions. Knowing our hardwood is naked and we have guests coming over for TG is literally making me lose my sleep.
PRO
G & S Floor Service
2 years ago
last modified: 2 years ago
In theory, if I clean the floor properly and just lay another layer of Traffic HD on top, since the floor is already abrasive from the previous botched job, will the new coat at least adhere to the floor without having to buff again?

No - the finish is passed it's curing period. Which is the 72 hours from the last application. It will not chemically bond. It can only mechanically bond. Which means you need to do a light sanding with 220 grit just to scuff up the finish.

Is there any other product like Rejuvenate Restorer that can salvage the situation?

Rejuenate is a polish. Do not use it on wood floor finishes. You will ruin it.

You do not need to rent a buffer. You can use a random orbital sander. It's a little more work but, will get the job done. You won't have to worry about cutting through the finish onto bare wood. I would address the high traffic areas first.

So who knows if the referral was all fake too

Beware of fake reviews. There are companies out there that provide service for fake reviews. I get these sales call everyday. 50, 100 plus reviews - You will need to wonder how many of them are authentic and organic. Plenty of homeowners here hire contractors with good reviews onl;y to end up with a renovation nightmare.
Abc Def
Original Author
2 years ago
Thank you so much for addressing all my concerns. Much appreciate.