water based poly floors and Bona mop

last year

I had my oil based white oak polyurethane floors refinished a few years ago as I disliked the orange hue that developed over the years. They were sanded down and refinished with water based HD bona for a beautiful light oak look. They came out great except for the kitchen which needed a screen and coat after 2 years. 2 months later I left a slightly damp bona mop after cleaning in the corner of the kitchen and discovered it left a black mark- apparently a damp mop with dirt can penetrate the surface. How can this be fixed? Are water based floors that fragile it can’t handle a few hours of dampness? I did this often with my oil based polyurethane floors without issue. I haven’t even paid for the recoating yet as my floor guy is so busy- he just texted me and said the whole area needs to be resanded. I’m assuming I’ll have to pay extra for this(??). I didn’t think water based would be this fragile to only a very slightly damp mop.
Thoughts?

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Comments (4)

PRO
G & S Floor Service
last year
Your installer probably didn't add the hardener into the Traffic HD. It should not stain that easily, especially with their own cleaner. You can spot fix it.
pensivern .
Original Author
last year
Is adding a hardener something that only is sometimes done? Why wouldn’t an installer add it? My floor guy is usually so conscientious.
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PRO
G & S Floor Service
last year
The hardener speeds up drying and curing time and will shorten your working window. Some installers do not have the skill to work in a small window, usually around 10 minutes.

Another possibility is, he might have installed the product to thin, not enough coverage. Some are concern with streaking and puddling or other finishing flaws. And will usually apply improper coverage. Making the product underperform.
Olychick
last year
last modified: last year
I had water finished hardwoods for many years and had that happen under the cats' water dish and something else I've forgotten. The only way to remove it was sanding down to the wood because the wood has actually stained from the water/moisture. I had a poly based finish when I had them redone and it's more like a plastic coating, more impervious to moisture, (where the water based seemed more like a penetrating finish). I'm still fairly careful with my poly finish about leaving anything wet or damp on it, but not sure if I need to be. I have it in my master bath now and I know sometimes I miss drips after a shower, but there is no issue.