Our Water Based Varnishes!
Hello everyone! In this blog we’ll be talking about the range of varnishes that we have available.
We have our high quality, user-friendly Extra Strong and Floor Fast Varnishes available that come in three types of finish; matt, satin and gloss. The sheen % for these are; 10% matt, 30% satin and 70% gloss.
Our Extra Strong Varnish is a very tough, user-friendly water based varnish that is non-yellowing and formulated for use indoors on wooden and painted surfaces. Our Floor Fast Varnish is perfect for finishing floors, whilst our Extra Strong Varnish is great for finishing a variety of items including; doors, tables and cabinets!
Extra Strong Varnish
Our Extra Strong Varnish is suitable for finishing both water and solvent based stains and dyes and our Water Repellent Wax Polishes can be used after the final coat of varnish to create a soft and durable finish. But, please do not use our wax polish on floors!
We recommend that you use our varnishes when a tough and durable finish is required. But we do not recommend it for use within moist environments such as bathrooms. Alternatively, we’d recommend our Danish Oil, Worktop Oil or Titan Topcoat, as these will provide a more waterproof finish for bathroom use.
Also, if you were thinking of using the varnish on a kitchen worktop beside a sink and gas hob, we’d recommend that you use our Worktop Oil or Titan Topcoat instead, as whilst our varnish is waterproof it is not designed to have water sitting on it for long periods!
If you’d like to read more about our Titan Topcoat, please have a read about this here.
Preparation
To ensure the varnish is thoroughly mixed, upturn the bottle for a while and shake gently before use.
Application
Apply the first coat with a good quality brush working along the grain with light strokes. Rub back gently before the final coat with fine abrasive and remove dust with a dry brush, moist cloth or sponge. During prolonged use, clean your brush with cold water periodically.
Drying Time
Our Extra Strong Varnish is touch dry in approximately 2 hours. This is an approximate drying time, as there could be a number of factors that may affect this.
Perfect Sealant!
Our Extra Strong Water Based Varnishes are popular amongst our customers who undertake upcycling projects using either our range of wood dyes or a variety of paints, such as chalk, mineral and milk paint to transform those tired looking furniture pieces into modern looking items! Check out our blog here, if you’d like to read more about using our varnish on chalk paint.
Please check out some images below of where our varnish has been used to seal mineral and chalk paint.
Satin Varnish over Mineral & Chalk Paint - Living4vintage
Matt Varnish over Chalk Paint - ReStory
Floor Fast Varnish
Our Floor Fast Varnish is a very tough, hard-wearing finish that has been formulated to protect new or re-sanded soft or hardwood floors from knocks, scratches and spillages.
This varnish is quick drying, has a low odour and is non-yellowing. It is ideal for protecting flooring that needs a durable finish! It can be used on most types of wood and manufactured boards, such as plywood and MDF. It can also be used on concrete and unsealed terracotta.
If you are applying our Floor Fast Varnish over our floor dyes then it should be possible to both dye the wood and apply two full coats of varnish in a day, after an early start!
Preparation
Careful, thorough preparation will result in a far superior final result, especially when used to finish our floor dyes.
(Please refer to the floor dye instructions on the product label).
It is always a good idea to prepare a test piece or an inconspicuous area in exactly the same manner as your project. If you are dying the wood first, the final appearance will be a combination of the wood’s natural colour, the dye and the varnish. Our floor dye will appear quite dull when dry but will ‘come to life’ with colour as you apply the varnish.
Application
The varnish can be applied with a good quality 10cm (4inch) brush, applicator pad or roller. Plan your exit from the room, starting at the far side working your way to the door. Aim to work quickly and confidently, along the entire length of perhaps two floorboards at once and try to avoid overlapping.
Apply a diluted base coat followed by three full coats. The first coat of varnish (basecoat) - dilute the varnish with at least 25% cold water. This coat will act as a sealer/primer and create a strong bond between the dyed or bare wood and the first coat of full varnish. Aim to brush the base coat along the grain. Once the base coat has dried (approx. two hours) the first full coat can be applied. You can now brush across, then along the grain to ensure an even coverage. Again, when dry, the next full coat can be applied in exactly the same way - but take care to avoid applying it too heavily as the surface will now be sealed and further coats will require less varnish to achieve the same coverage. Before applying the final coat lightly sand the surface with 120 grit ‘wet and dry’ abrasive paper. Half a sheet tightly wrapped around a wooden block will work well. Then, thoroughly clean up the dust with a soft brush attachment on a vacuum cleaner, followed by a wipe over with a damp cloth, rinsing as you go along. Once dry, the final coat can be applied.
Drying Time
The varnish will be touch dry in approximately 20 minutes and can usually be recoated after 2 hours in suitable conditions. Therefore, a floor can be walked on within the day. This is an approximate drying time, as there could be a number of factors that may affect this.
Our products come complete with easy to follow yet comprehensive instructions to guide you through every step, including preparing the wood. Should you require any further help please feel free to get in touch for expert advice, by emailing hello@woodfinishingproducts.com, contacting us via our website, here or calling us on 01254 366130 (option 3).
If you’d like to read more about our flooring products then please have a read of our flooring blog here.
African Ebony Floor Dye and Floor Fast Matt Varnish
Driftwood Grey Floor Dye and Floor Fast Satin Varnish
Thank you for taking your time to read about our range of water based varnishes; Extra Strong and Floor Fast!