Tips for Staining and Finishing Walnut Flooring

Walnut flooring adds beautiful detail to your home and takes stains and finishes well. Black walnut is ideal for kitchen flooring, and applying finish to it will increase the lifespan of the flooring and protect it from damaging elements, such as water.

Here are some tips for staining and finishing walnut flooring:

• Floor cleaning – Start by using warm water and phosphate to clean your floor well. Be sure to rid it of all grease, dirt, debris, and dust. Let the floor dry for a few minutes.

• Check the floor for protruding nails – Sink all protruding hardware back into the wood of your floor, and if you find any cracks or holes, use wood putty to fill them in. Then allow the wood putty to dry.

• Sanding –Use a drum sander with a 36-inch piece of sandpaper to sand your floor, and if you miss any sections, you can fix them with an edger.

• Staining – Black walnut colors range from dark brown to grayish white. Lighter colors should be treated with a lighter stain and darker colors with a darker stain. Water aniline stains are the best type to use with black walnut due to their transparency. Coat your floor with the stain using a brush. You can also use clean pieces of cloth or rags to apply the stain. When applying the stain, make sure to follow the grain of the wood. Because black walnut is so dense, it takes several coats of stain to complete the job. Three coats of stain with a 12-hour dry time are recommended.

• Finishing – Once the wood is properly filled and stained, the piece is ready to finish with two coats of varnish. Black walnut is usually finished with a polished glass varnish that is applied by hand with a soft cloth. Use a cloth that will not drop lint pieces into the finish. It is important to apply the finish evenly to ensure a uniform look. Make sure the finish dries before you bring your furniture into the room and place it on your new walnut flooring.

Search online for flooring professionals who can assist you with staining and finishing your wood floors. You can also find professional hardwood companies that can also provide you with walnut flooring that can be installed in your home before you begin the staining and finishing process.

Finishing a walnut floor takes time, but the results are worth it. A finished walnut floor will give your home a warm, rich feeling and may increase the home's resale value.

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