Any Way to Protect American Cherry Wood Flooring?

I want to buy an engineered wood floor that uses plywood in the middle and a veneer of American Cherry on the surface. I have been warned by everyone that the American Cherry is very soft and will not take hard use by kids or animals, or the occasional dropped object. Is there any clear finish we can have someone paint or spray on the floor that would greatly strengthen the surface and protect the wood?

Reply to
W
Loading thread data ...

"W" wrote in news:2PqdnYNfjfzgE37LnZ2dnUU7- S snipped-for-privacy@giganews.com:

IMHO you shouldn't even be thinking about using veneered plywood for flooring. One of the great advantages of hardwood floors is that when they become dented, scratched, or worn -- and all wooden floors will, regardless of species -- they can be sanded smooth and refinished.

You can't do that with veneered plywood.

And this has absolutely nothing to do with how hard the surface veneer is. It's a function solely of how thick it is.

Reply to
Doug Miller

flooring. One of the

scratched, or worn --

It's a function solely

So there are pluses and minuses to solid wood flooring. The plus is you can refinish it many times. The negatives are that it will tend to warp over time and might warp faster after a water spill. Engineered wood tends to lie flatter and will take water spills better. A thicker veneer on an engineered plywood can be refinished about three times as well.

In any case, this thread was supposed to be about hardening the surface of whatever product you do install, and more generally about the suitability of American Cherry for any kind of hardwood flooring.

Reply to
W

It does not tend to warp over time. My floor is not warped.

You are warped.

Reply to
woodchucker

If it is quality engineered hardwood it will be as hard as it will ever get. They use very hard, durable finishes. I put some in the family room over a slab. After 10+ years there is only one barely noticeable ding.

The only coating that will help is a couple of inches of concrete, but the finish does not show as well.

Reply to
Ed Pawlowski

A water "spill" isn't going to affect hardwood. Anything that will affect hardwood will completely destroy anything engineered.

There isn't anything that can be done to make it "harder" against dents, and such. The finishes that are typically used on higher end pre-finished flooring products are "hardened" in the scratch resistance sense. You won't put it on with a brush, though (the finish is generally UV hardened).

Reply to
krw

flooring. One of the

scratched, or worn --

It's a function solely

If I go with American Cherry whole wood planks, how does this change my question in any way? American Cherry is a soft wood. If children play on it, or dogs jump on it, or I drop a heavy object on it, there will be permanent marks. The fact that I could someday refinish it does not change the fact that I have to live with that damage until I refinish it.

The point of my question is to find if there is a way to provide extra hardening on the surface of a soft wood.

Reply to
W

Well, that's sad, because I simply dropped some car keys onto planks of very high quality 1/2" thick engineered planks with thick american cherry veneer, and the planks dinged. You would think that someone would come up with a way to put a hard polymer coating on top of the wood that could protect the wood better.

Reply to
W

The only way you are going to get a very hard, abrasion resistant finish is to apply it yourself. NO finishes are made to be applied over the factory finish. Factory finishes are very specialized (and usually proprietary) a nd engineered to prevent things from sticking to them or penetrating them. That rules out a top coat.

American cherry is a poor choice for flooring. There is a reason you see o ak, hickory, ash, and certainly a plethora of South American hardwoods on f loors. They are hard woods to begin with (as opposed to the softness of ch erry) and their grainy surfaces hold finish well. American cherry is soft a nd tight grained and does not hold heavy, "engineered for flooring" finishe s well.

How soft is cherry compared to most white oaks? IIRC, the Janka scale show s oak to be anywhere from half again to almost twice as hard. That should be easy enough to look up, along with any other woods you are interested in using for flooring.

Robert

Reply to
nailshooter41

If it dinged from car keys I'd avoid it. I'd also question the quality of it. My engineered floors have had many a drop like that an no marks at all. They use some sort of aluminum oxide finish that is very durable.

Reply to
Ed Pawlowski

"W" wrote in news:PNmdnRWce9aHCX7LnZ2dnUU7- snipped-for-privacy@giganews.com:

Not true. My home was built in 1955, and the hardwood floors are not warped. My parents' home is even older, some time in the early 1920s, and the hardwood floors are still nice and even. In fact, I don't recall *ever* seeing a home with warped hardwood floors that had not experienced some sort of *major* water problem.

Do you own a mop?

How many times can solid wood be refinished?

Pointless. *All* hardwood floors, regardless of species, will be scratched by pet claws, abraded by dirt stuck to the soles of your shoes, and dented by dropped objects if hard and heavy enough.

Veneered plywood will dent much more easily than solid wood.

*Solid* cherry is fine for hardwood flooring. Among commonly used flooring woods, it's not as hard as hickory, hard maple, or any of the oaks, but it's a lot harder than pine.
Reply to
Doug Miller

"W" wrote in news:pqudnWKW1PWtIH7LnZ2dnUU7- snipped-for-privacy@giganews.com:

No, it is not. Who told you that?

It's not as hard as hard maple or oak, no, but by no means is it a soft wood.

This is true of *all* hardwood floors, regardless of species.

This isn't really relevant, since cherry isn't a soft wood, but ... no, not really. Varnish is only a few mils thick, and won't provide any significant protection from impact. I suppose you could coat it with epoxy...

Reply to
Doug Miller

Epoxy won't prevent the damage. There's really nothing I know of that would prevent damage. It's all a thin coating. It's really the wood that is resistant.

Even steel would show wear, so what is being asked is not really available. See if you can get a force field made :-)

Reply to
woodchucker

The manufacturing process of the engineered flooring lessens the softness, ( compressed in a huge press with tons of pressure ). If you are really concerned do some actual research on the product and manufacturer.

Reply to
Markem

...and there is a *lot* of SYP flooring around.

Reply to
krw

On 03/12/2016 12:54 AM, W wrote: ...

...

Well, cherry isn't _terribly_ soft but it is on the softer end of most hardwood flooring, yes...

As others have said, there's really no magic film that can be put over the surface to stop denting from a hard, heavy object being dropped on the floor; the manufactured floorings use very good finishes for abrasion and scratching albeit again there are levels of quality there depending on the price point and manufacturer of course.

If you're really concerned and are selecting flooring, the obvious answer is to go with a species on the harder end of the scale or perhaps you'd be happier in the long run with another material than wood entirely.

The latter shows a wider variety that places cherry more in the overall scale of woods rather than on the more restricted scale of the previous.

Reply to
dpb

Did you receive my e-mail?

Reply to
Leon

Yes, but it does not hold up well. My son's house has it, built in

1750, and the wear in spots is visible. Out of warranty too.
Reply to
Ed Pawlowski

;-)

The wear is a feature.

Reply to
krw

if you do not like how wood floors wear than you really want a different floor

wood floors tend to take on character as they age from use

that is why people pay a premium for repurposed barn wood for floors

go with grade a solid oak it will outlive you

Reply to
Electric Comet

HomeOwnersHub website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.