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Keeping Your Wood Floor Looking Better For Longer

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Given the kind of abuse that the floor receives on a daily basis – people walking up and down the premises, grinding dirt under their shoes against the floor surface, pets running about digging their claws into the floor, those miniscule movements when the furniture is being used, the occasional spills from foods and drinks – it all contributes to the gradual wear and tear of the floor. Sure, the wood tissue itself has a high durability – but this does not mean that it is invincible. Without proper care, it will deteriorate fast, dragging down the rest of the décor of the premises with it. This is not a fate you want for your installation especially after you spent so much time and money to have it set up in the first place. Protect your wood floor by adding a high-quality lacquer to it, and you can find that with the Bona Traffic HD.

Superior Protection

With this 2-component lacquer, you get enhanced durability that can withstand high traffic be it in shopping malls, train stations, airports, or even schools. The polyurethane topcoat forms a barrier on the floor surface, increasing its wear resistance and protecting the underlying wood tissue – thus enabling it to last for long. To treat your floor with the lacquer, simply mix it with the Bona Traffic HD Hardener, using a 1:10 ratio (10 part Traffic HD, 1 part hardener), then proceed to apply it onto the surface.

Here are the application steps:

1. Shake the lacquer in its container, then add the Traffic HD Hardener to it. Shake this mixture well for one minute and give it 10 minutes for the required reaction to occur. This will be the catalysed mixture that will be applied onto the floor. 

• Note that this mixture should be used within 4 hours. Also, you can’t ‘reharden’ the lacquer – so if you want more solution, you’ll need to mix another round of lacquer and hardener.

1. Spread the mixture over the floor using tools like a Bona roller. Here, use a smooth and flowing motion, alternating between following the wood grain and going across it. Maintain a wet edge in order to avoid overlaps. The exceptional build of the Bona Traffic HD enables it to have enhanced flow and levelling properties, which is key in achieving that uniform coat. 

Extra tip: If needed, you can dilute the mixture with solution, 4% Bona Retarder in order to increase the open time, like when working on a large floor and you want to even out the treatment on the surface before it dries.

1. Allow 2-3 hours of drying time.
2. Lightly abrade the surface using 180 to 240-grit abrasives, and vacuum away the sanding dust.
3. Apply the second coat 

While you can proceed to add a third coat, especially for the environments that have very high levels of traffic, it is recommended that you apply a maximum of 2 coats per day. 

Once you’re done with the process, clean the tools that have been used with water. This is a fast-drying product, and the floor will be ready to handle light traffic after 8 hours. For full usage, this will be possible after 2 hours – another trait behind the popularity of the Bona Traffic HD since it minimizes downtime. 

For the curing, the whole process will take about 3 days. It will have already cured 80% after the first day, but 100% curing will occur by the third day. Within this time, do not cover the floor with items like area rugs. 

Accentuate the floor

You get to protect the floor and enhance its appeal at the same time. The Bona Traffic HD emphasizes the hue and character of the wood grain, and you can end up with varying sheen levels depending on your décor preference, be it matt, silk matt or extra matt. 

The Bona Traffic HD is compatible with different wood stains and sealers from the same brand. However, the results will vary depending on the wood species that is being treated, especially when working on the oily and resinous species. It’s always recommended that you carry out a test on a hidden section of the floor to determine the end result from the treatment process that you want to follow. 

Note that you won’t need to apply a sealer over a floor that you have applied a wood stain on. 

GREENGUARD Gold Certified

With the impact of the floor lacquer on the indoor air space being a key factor to consider when making your purchase, GREENGUARD certification comes in handy to ascertain that the product in question will be safe for the persons on the premises. For a product to have obtained the certification, it is proof that it has met industry standards on low emissions. The products – from electronic equipment, cleaning and maintenance products, all through to medical devices used for breathing gas pathways – are placed in dynamic environmental chambers. Here, they are analysed for hundreds of chemicals coming out of them, and the rate at which this happens. The duration in which the products are kept in these chambers varies from a few days such as for the electronics, to weeks like with building materials and furniture which range at around two weeks even though they emit most of the chemicals on the first day, with the levels decaying over time and the items achieve a steady emissions rate after a couple of weeks. 

Formulations that are to be used in an education setting or kid’s room, and even healthcare facilities, need to meet even stricter standards. This is because of the higher susceptibility of children to indoor air quality problems, since their smaller sizes cause them to breathe in more air per body weight – so they will be exposed to a larger amount of whatever is floating about in the room. Here, the GREENGUARD Gold standard is used. With products such as the Bona Traffic HD obtaining this certification, you can use it to treat the floor in your establishment while ensuring that the occupants of the premises will be safe.

Keeping Your Wood Floor Looking Better For Longer