WOODEN FLOORS

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume LXXXI, Issue 18785, 19 May 1923, Page 14

WOODEN FLOORS

staining and varnishing, practical advice. Since it is -"onu’tin'.cs difficult to jrct ! a carpet to ex.ictly cover the floor of ; , a room ri<rlit up tc the skirting hoards, many pc'-mlc have a fancy for staining and varnishing the uncovered portion ot the wooden floor. Some good hou. -o- ; wives who have a special dread of dirt and dust, prefer to have the entire floors stained and v.” ni.-hed, using instead of carpet l - small rugs, which tan be removed each day to allow of Jhe floor being thoroughly denned i.l.i> method seems to he specially favoured in the ca-se of bedrooms. FLOOBS MUST BE CLEAN. Before anything is done to a wood-i ph floor in the way of staining and var- { nishing. it '-herb* be thorouglny clcanecT. particularly if there is ary uiea.-o on it. The host thing to de is to first scrub the floor with hot s-ula water, going over it a .‘-ecoiid time with dean hot water to remove as much soda as i>o.ssib’e li there are any ink ci rust stains < hoy will bo best removed with a solution of oxalic acid. If the floor boa r< Is are rot absolutely dose together. the cricks should be caret '.illy lilled \yilh one ( f the special crack and i seam fillers that arc on the market. ! i All nail holes should also be fitted with j the same maieriai. and all this filling must, of course, be done when thel floor is hone Iry, It should he allow-d two or throe days to harden, hofoa’e the floor is surfaced or smoothed off. SL R.FACING THE FLOOR. Once the. fitting is thoroughly hard, the surface of th< floor should be wdl rubbed down with glass-paper Na H will be suitable for most timbers. I . e a cork rubber, and be sure to i uh in the ilirection of the grain of the w ood. STAINING THE WOOD Tlie next thing to do is stain the floor. Do not use combined varnish- ] stain. It does not penetrate deeply ! into the wood, and in a comparatively ! short time, if there is any wear and i tear on the floor, the bare boards will show through. Use a good oil stain. This can be obtained in any desired shade from an oil and colour merchant. Before applying it. see that the lioor is thoroughly dusted. In order to bring out the grain of the wood, use j the oil stain of a darker shade than. \ou require the finished floor to he. Put it on liberally, and allow to soak in for at least a quarter of an hour, l iter which any superfluous stain standing on the surface can be wiped ofl with rags. One-advantage of using , a special “crack-filler ’ is that it takes ( i the oil stain very i'loely. and if the I work is properly done, no cracks or 1 nail holes Xvill show in the finished ! floor. If putty is used for stopping the nail holes and cracks, instead of the “filler,” it is advisable to make this the exact colour that you intend your floor to be, by staining the putty with your oil stain before you use it (the putty) for filling. APPLY THE VARNISH. When the stain has properly dried in (two or three days), the varnish may he applied. Before applying the varnish, again nib (hoxn the floor with glass paper, using No. 1. CarefuGy lemove all dust from tlie floor, and have your ro mi as warm as uossible when varnishing. Use a 4in. flat varnish brush, and make the varnish warm (about blood heat) by immersing the tin containing it in warm water. Have two tins, so that, whilst vou are using one. the other is being warmed. You will find that your varnish will go mu h further for being used warm, will flow more readily, and you will get a much better job at the iinis-h. Allow this coat of varnish to thoroughly harden (two or throe days), then rub down with No. () glass paper or steel wool. Apply a second coat as before, and repeat for a third coat, if you wans a job that will kst, and of which you will be proud. A two-coat job, if properly done, will give a very good result, but three, coats will have a result I that will stand for years. It is advisable to allow the floor to stand lor three or four d'ays after the final eoat before it is used.