So we had reclaimed 200 year old heartwood pine floors installed. The installers layed down the sealer which was a Bona product and then 2 coats of Bona Traffic in Satin.

What they can't figure out is why it took 2 gallons less than the directions. They have used this same Bona products many times and so I am wondering if anyone has an idea of what may have caused this. The sealer was an oil-based as suggested by the Bona seller due to the fact that some fo the wood was oily and the finish was water-based.

Temperatures were in the mid to high 70's and humidity was 70%.

I believe the total used was 4 gallons for around 2000 sqft. but it should have been closer to 6 gallons.

So at this point I am wondering if I should ask them to to lay a 3rd coat. The other potential issue is that the floor is a tiny bit dull when viewed at an angle, would it be good to buff it once after it is cured to shine it up?


Thanks for any suggestions!

Traffic's reccomended spread rate of 350 sf per galloon is near impossible to achive. 500 sfper gallon is pretty normal. water based products are always a little more dull than their oil counterparts. If you havent moved all you junk back in the house yet I would put a third coat down just because I think two coats of water especially on pine leaves the floor a little thirsty.

Thanks for the reply Kevin! That makes me feel alot better to know that is normal behavior.

So is there any negatives to a 3rd coat, any chance it will dull the floor? I am also wondering if buffing it after it is cured would be a good idea to make it look nice? Maybe something the installer could do but if not maybe something I could do.

I want to treat these floors like a piece of art and so anything I can do to make them look better I am down for

If you want a higher sheen then you need to put a semi gloss coat on the floor. Buffing it after will just introduce swirls into the mix even if you use a white buffing pad.

So putting a semi-gloss coat on top of Satin is an ok practice?

It is not a problem to put one sheen over the other but we occasionally use two coats if changing the sheen just to be on the safe side and avoid any uneveness. If it looks good after the first coat is dry skip the second.

No reason to be apprehensive about changing sheen levels. I generally use gloss all the way through the finishing process and switch to the desired gloss level only for the final coat.