When You Should Choose Water-Based Finish Coat

As the owner of New York Floorman, LLC, Rich Kessner has worked with countless clients throughout the New York area on remodeling and flooring projects of all sizes. According to Kessner, the two most popular types of finish coat today are oil-base and water-base.



Polyurethane is the professional name for the finish coat. When it comes to choosing between whether to use an oil-based or a water-based finish coat on a hardwood floor refinishing project in Manhattan, it depends largely on what the clients’ goals are in terms of cost, time, and overall design aesthetic.



Time: When time is a factor, water-based finish coats are almost always the way to go. That is because each coat of oil-based polyurethane can take up to a day to dry, and sometimes even longer depending on the humidity levels and weather conditions outside. Unfortunately, not all people who are renovating their homes have the time to spend living elsewhere for multiple days while they wait for the finish on their new hardwood floors to dry. For these people, and anyone else who is in a time crunch, water-based finish coats are almost always going to be the better option.



Odor: Odor can be another factor that causes homeowners to choose a water-based finish over an oil-based product, since oil-based polyurethanes can create a strong odor that can sometimes force homeowners and their pets to have to leave the premises. Water-based polyurethanes are completely odorless, meanwhile, which is yet another reason why many of our Manhattan clients choose water-based for their hardwood floor refinishing projects.



Condo Regulations: One additional factor that plays a large role in many of the hardwood floor refinishing projects we work on in Manhattan is that an increasing number of condo and co-op buildings are instituting policies that forbid apartment owners from using oil-based polyurethanes in their remodeling projects. The reason, they say, is to cut down on odor and time, since other residents in the building would prefer to minimize the days that crews of workers are traipsing through common areas while they work on a new hardwood floor.



Environment: The environmental factor has been increasing people’s interest in water-based polyurethanes as well, since these types of finishes are much more environmentally friendly than oil-based finishes. Generally, the eco-friendliness of water-based polyurethane is a good selling point for most people. In addition to the eco-friendliness, people also tend to favor water-based polyurethane finishes after they hear how quickly they dry as compared to oil-based versions. So if it is a small space, then we can sand someone’s studio apartment and apply the three coats of water-based all in one day. And that way, they can move in that night if they want to.



Projects in Stages: Another option for people who prefer not to move out of their homes or apartments during the renovation project is to finish the floors in stages. Because water-based polyurethane is odorless, homeowners do not have to vacate the premises while the polyurethane is going on the floor. Instead, we will move all of the furniture to one side of the apartment while we sand and finish one side of the floor, then move the furniture to the other side of the apartment once the polyurethane has dried—usually just 30 minutes per coat. So splitting the job isn’t quite as big of a deal as if you were using an oil-based, because oil-based would need 24 hours to dry between each coat.



On the other hand, the upside to using oil-based polyurethane in a hardwood floor refinishing project, especially for Manhattan clients, is that it typically lasts longer than most water-based finishes. The oil based is slightly more durable than the water based.



To make up for that, and to ensure that any floors done with a water-based polyurethane will stand up to spills and other household messes, we will usually put a few more coats of a water-based polyurethane on the hardwood floors than we would if we were to use an oil-based polyurethane. And because the water-based polyurethane dries much faster than the oil-based finish—typically 30 minutes to an hour per coat, compared to a day or more for oil-based polyurethanes—these additional layers of polyurethane usually do not add any extra days to the job.



In short, for people who live in condos with strict regulations, people who are in a rush to get their remodeling projects finished, people who are interested in using primarily eco-friendly materials, and people who prefer not to use any particularly odorous chemicals in their homes, water-based polyurethane is the best way to go. While the water-based polyurethane is slightly less durable than the oil-based, we remedy that problem by putting more layers of water-based finish on the floor to create additional layers of protection.



Rich Kessner is a writer for Yodle , a business directory and online advertising company. Find a roofer or more roofing articles at Yodle Local.