refinishing an oak floor

[david.tamlaght]

I put this in general as unsure where to post it .
i have a large living room that requires the oak floor refinished.
Its in good shape and was wanting to varnish it after a light sanding.
the issue is it was supplied with an oil finish originally around 15 years ago when i built the room and i,d like to be certain the original oil finish wouldn,t cause a problem with the varnish taking to it.
Any advice appreciated

 

[Bingy man]

I’d be tempted to try a varnish in a corner somewhere and see what you reaction if any you get . What does the floor manufacturer say about re finishing their product. The potential issue is some parts of your floor will have been subjected to high traffic, other parts ultraviolet rays and other parts protected by furniture etc . These areas can all re act in different ways to many of the finishes available imo of course.

 

[Jake]

Solvent varnish should be OK so I assume you mean water based. If there is a problem a solution would be Pallmann Allbase, which is a shellac based primer (and therefore a great intermediate layer between oil and water based finishes). It stinks, as alcohol based, but is otherwise easy to use. Sit down before pricing though.

 

[Cabinetman]

Can’t comment on putting it on over an old oil finish- sorry, but I can definitely recommend Johnstone’s water based floor poly varnish, 15 years now and still hardly a mark or sign of wear.
They do two sorts, it’s the one for floors you need.
Ian