A New Beginning For Your Wood Floor With The Tover Idrolak DR 97

A New Beginning For Your Wood Floor With The Tover Idrolak DR 97

The value of wood floors is undeniable. Their high-end aesthetic look and feel, the natural warmth and beauty that they add to the space – plus the fact that they never really go out of style, remaining trendy through the seasons, makes them some of the most sought after installations. Wood itself is a highly durable material, capable of handling high levels of traffic witnessed in busy domestic and commercial environments. With the wide array of wood species available, as well as the stains and finishes that can be used on the floor, you get to have a unique result that meets your particular style and decor preferences. Moreover, wood floors are great as a long-term investment, since they increase the value of the property. Real estate agents can attest to residential and commercial spaces getting sold off faster and fetching a higher price during the resale of the property. When properly installed the shock absorbency of the wood floors ensures that there won’t be vibrations or hollow sounds as well, adding to the lengthy list of benefits you will enjoy when having this installation in your premises. However, to derive maximum value from the wood floors, they need to be properly maintained, which involves routine cleaning and the occasional refinishing. 

Factors To Take Note Of During Floor Cleaning

Firstly, routine vacuuming is needed. This reduces the rate at which dirt and debris accumulate on your wood floor. The choice of vacuum matters here, especially with regards to the attachments. Avoid working with a brush roll or beater bar. While the fast rotation of the nylon bristle rolls is effective when digging out the dirt that is buried in the fibres of the carpets and rugs, this will damage the wood floor, creating scratches all over. Turn these off, for the vacuums that have the feature of toggling the beater bar on and off when switching between surfaces, allowing you to vacuum the carpets and wood floor. Working with a unit where the bar is actually raised is preferred, to ensure that the beater bar doesn’t come into contact with the floor. Alternatively go for vacuum models and vacuum attachments that have been specifically designed for use on hardwood floors, such as canister vacuums.

For the mopping, be careful not to drench the wood floor in cleaning product. With the wood tissue being hygroscopic, it will readily soak up the excess moisture, increasing the chances of water damage. These put the structural integrity of the installation at risk. Ensure that the mop has been properly wrung out, since you should just use it when it is damp. Better still, you can work with units like spray mops, which enable you to mist out a little liquid at a time, thus minimising the risk to your wood floor. The cleaning liquid used in particular should be safe for wood floors. Harsh cleaning chemicals, especially the popular DIY formulations that are whipped up when dealing with stubborn stains – like vinegar or ammonia-based solutions, can end up corroding the wood flooring and damaging your wood floor. 

Refinishing Your Wood Floor

Over time, even the professionally finished wood floors will begin looking and dull and dilapidated as the existing treatments wear off. This can take years. Fortunately, sanding and refinishing the wood floor allows you to restore the charm and appeal to the installation, basically breathing new life into it. 

The choice of wood floor finish is key, as it will affect the aesthetics, durability and safety of the finish. Take solvent based polyurethanes for instance. They can provide very high levels of sheen and also enhance the scratch and moisture resistance of the floor. However, they emit strong odours during application, and the high VOC levels actually require the personnel carrying out the application to wear protective gear. For the VOCs that linger in the indoor space for long, getting recirculated through the vents as the weeks go by, this will be an additional risk to the occupants of the building. On the other hand, water-based polyurethanes are fast drying and have much lower VOC levels, making them a healthier alternative. The level of durability that is obtained from the treatment depends on the particular formulation, such as two-component lacquers which have higher levels of protection compared to the one-component alternatives. 

A popular water-based lacquer is the Tover Idrolak DR 97, which comes with plenty of benefits to the installation and the occupants of the building. These include:

• Abrasion resistance

The mechanical performance of this two-component lacquer enables your wood floor to ward off the wear effects that the installation is exposed to, even in high traffic establishments. From busy homes to commercial spaces, you will be able to protect the structural integrity of the wood floor, keeping it in its elegant condition for longer. 

• Chemical resistance

The formulation is also resistant to the household chemicals, that way you get to avoid issues like the wood tissue getting corroded, or the finish getting dulled by the cleaning agents that are used on it. This contributes to prolonging the life of the installation, since it reduces the number of times that a full round of floor sanding and refinishing will be required. 

• Slip resistance

Persons walking on the floor have more grip with each step they make. The lacquer is compliant to EN 13036-4:2011 anti-slip requirements, increasing the safety standards of the premises. 

• Enhances the natural effect of the floor

With the Tover Idrolak DR 97, you get to bring out that rich look of pure wood. You can also use sealants like Idrofondo H20, Mito or Fast&Full for that natural effect. If you want a warmer chromatic feel, then you can get this by first applying a Tover Tone-Up coat, then the Tover Idrolak DR 97 lacquer. The final gloss will depend on the version of the lacquer that you go with, and there are three: Semi-gloss, Matt and Extra Matt. 

The formulation is also easy to work with – from the levelling properties that enable the contractor to set a uniform layer on the floor, to the fast drying time that speeds up the job and minimizes downtime for the establishment. The treated floor will be ready to handle normal foot traffic in 24 hours.

A New Beginning For Your Wood Floor With The Tover Idrolak DR 97