One of your main concerns when redoing your floor should be what type of finish you are using on your floor. A finish can dictate how long your floor will last between each coat and ultimately how long your floor will last for in its entirety. A finish combination that is sub par will last 5 years while a top quality one will last to 15 years. On an average floor you will get around 4-5 re-sands. We will use the 4 re-sand number for this example. 4 re-sands x 5 years is 20 year life – this is really low and gives you very little lifespan for your investment. A good finish will last 15 years so, 4 re-sands x 15 = 60 years. You can see that top quality finishes can triple your floors life and why it is important to know what finish your contractor is using and if it will be the best for your floor.
So, before we go any further you need to know that there are two parts to each finish, a sealer and a finish. First, we will go over sealers. Sealers are what protect your wood from moisture and other harmful elements. There are two primary sealers in the Boise, Idaho hardwood market are catalyst sealers and waterborne sealers. The main difference of makeup is that one has a catalyst and the other does not.
Sealers
Sealers protect the floor from moisture and other elements. You will get 1 coat of sealer.
Catalyzed Glitsa Green – A catalyst (in easy to understand terms) is an agent that mixes with the main liquid and creates a bond, almost like an epoxy. Usually there is no solvent for a catalyzed finish. Glitza Green is an acid cure product.
- Longest durability
- Best protection of the wood
- Adds depth to the wood
- Brings out the color
- Higher VOC
- Two components
- 50%~ content build
BonaSeal – A water-based sealer made by Bona.
- Waterbased
- 36% Build Content
- Great Durability
Glitsa Waterborne TruSeal – A mixture that is only 1 component and has low voc’s
- Low VOC
- Not as strong as a catalyzed sealer
- 20% content build
Finishes
Finishes are the part of the floor you will actually be walking on and cleaning. There are many finishes on the market, the most common companies for finishes are Glitza and Bona. You will get 2 coats of this.
Bona Traffic
- Water based
- Low voc
- #1 rated finish on the market
- Great durability
- 2 parts – hardener and traffic itself
- 1-2 coats recommended
- 40% solid (durability)
Glitsa Gold Seal Finish
- One component / pre-catalyzed
- 1 coat recommended
- Good durability
- 20% solid (durability)
At A-Max over our 15 years we have been using the best sealers/finishes. Currently, we are using the catalyzed Glitsa Green Sealer. This is by far the best sealer on the market with the best durability and yet still brings out the woods characteristics as customers’ demand. For our finish we are using Bona Traffic, Traffic is by far the best product on the market giving customers the same qualities as Glitsa Green of durability and looks. Traffic beats the competition with over 2x the build, this is important as it signifies that it will outlast the other products durability. For Bona Traffic there are 3 sheen’s Gloss, Semi-gloss and Satin. We recommend that our customers get a Satin finish since it will hide scratches and other flaws in the floor created by foot traffic to be hidden.
Our methods have been tested and proven for over 15 years. We have seen repeat business only in the last few years and on average our customers have been getting 12-14 years out of their finish that we put on their floor. A-Max Hardwood guarantees to only use the very best sealer and finish on the market, this is why we have chosen to use Glitza Green and Bona Traffic the combination is bar-none the best on the market. If you get a hardwood floor installation or refinish from us you can be assured you will get 1 coat of Glitsa Green Sealer and 2 coats of Bona Traffic.
