Green Building - Non Toxic Wood Floor Finishes

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View Full Version : Non Toxic Wood Floor Finishes


mountain_home
02-29-08, 10:01 AM
I am looking at having some hardwood floors refinished. I live in Seattle and would like to use a non-toxic finish. I'm not sure I could do this myself, so I wondering if anyone has experience with certain non-toxic finishes for hardwood floors. I did find a company called LeBlanc Floors who uses a OSMO Professional Polyx Oil Finish. If I can't do it myself, maybe using them will be a good option? They appear to have a good reputation as a earth-friendly floor contractor in the Seattle area.


ScrewLoose
03-05-08, 08:03 AM
Anything made from tung oil or boiled linseed oil is a non-toxic, and is natural as long as it's not cut with mineral-spirits.
The best commercial available finish for non-toxic application, in that it doesn't off-gas VOC's and is even safe for wood table/counter tops; is WaterLox. A product that has been made for almost a century and has been tried and true from everything from home floors, to sea faring ship decks.
they have more info on their site: http://www.waterlox.com/
There's also "Danish Oil" this would take many coats for a floor application, but will still work the same.

Best recommendation is to stay away from any plasticated or polyethel finishes, like the ever notorious polyurethane.

Kobuchi
03-05-08, 05:08 PM
Polyurethane is toxic while it cures; the fumes are remarkable. IMHO this does not automatically make it the worst choice for our environment. How so? Because polyurethane is so incredibly durable, it requires very infrequent reapplication, and will keep the flooring out of city dumps. Think about the flooring in a 100 year context, not just the one week you're smelling chemicals.

One may have to visit homes with softwood floors built turn-of-the-century, to appreciate my message.


mountain_home
03-17-08, 03:19 PM
Thanks for the input. And I agree that you should consider the long-term impact you may have (or not have) for projects like this. Polyx isn't short for polyurethane is it? The LeBlanc Floors website seems to have some pretty good info as well - http://leblancfloors.com/wood_finishes.php