Rental Property and Old Wood Floors

Recently, we started a new business venture with our 19 year old son, C. At his request we became partners with him investing in rental property.

The new business looks like this; He has the youth, motivation and inspiration…good looks, too. We have the DIY experience, attention to details and good credit history. And he must get his good looks from somewhere, right? Okay, so the good-looks part doesn’t really have anything to do with this…just an inside family joke… thanks for humoring me.

Our latest fixer-upper has original hardwood flooring. The floor’s finish was completely worn, but the flooring was in surprisingly good condition. So, off I went to google some instructions on a relatively quick, inexpensive way t0 ‘freshen-up’ the floors. What I found was confusion!

Some folks swore by Murphy’s Oil Soap. But the ‘professionals’ said it was a very bad idea. Some folks said this oil or that oil…again the ‘professionals said you would be causing more trouble for yourself by using oils. A few folks stated that they learned a hard lesson and that you definitely should not use furniture polish on floors. Apparently it looks pretty, but you have to be very agile to stay upright after the Pledge treatment, similar to ice skating.

Then I went on to see what the professionals do recommend. Well, it was not so simple. First I have to know what kind of original finish was put on the floor. Then I need to know what treatments were used later? How am I supposed to know what kind of original finish it had?

Some of these articles gave instructions on how to test for shellac, polyurethane varnish, etc. Much of it was complicated and or time consuimg or as stated by the authors, would still not be definitive! Arggh!

So finally, I came across this product. It sounded the best for my needs. It is a semi-transparent stain formulated to seal and color bare floors. Since it is an oil-based product, I concluded that it should be compatible, no matter what type of finish had once been on the old floors. I highly doubted that any new-fangled, water based stains or products had been used since the finish was so worn. All we had to do was sweep, brush it on and wipe it off. Easy-peasy. The best thing is, you do not have to use a sealer. Of course they recommended sanding, cleaning with specialty products, etc. But I took some shortcuts… since I am all about a one step process…kinda like my one-step, one-pot cooking.

Before, during and after

We experimented with the living room, waited a couple of days for drying and went back to see our handiwork. It was great!

oooh...pretty

This is after the living room dried. Don't you love the rich color and satin sheen?

So, we did the entire house excluding the baths and kitchen. Left it for four days and found much to my dismay that the floors are still tacky. Not cheap or tawdry….you know, slightly sticky. I cannot figure out what has caused the difference. The rain? Change of temperature? Too much old finish still on those floors? Well, we will check back in a day or two. I think I found the quick and easy miracle…but maybe not. I will let you know. Hopefully, I won’t be elbow deep in the mineral spirits trying to remove the tacky-ness of it all.