Varnished floors - but when we spill water on it it goes 'dark'

[me]

Hi Guys,

We have newly laid oak restoration floors.

I gave this the proper 3 coats of varnish (Ronseal Diamond Hard) with a 2 hour wait in between each coat as recommended. This was about 3 days ago.

We notice now that when we mop dust up from the floor, a dark stain where we 'mopped' remaind for a while, and then dries. I would have thought any water would just 'rest' on the top of the varnish and not soak in like this. The worry is when this is not water, but a glass of red wine it will permanently stain the floor - any ideas? Is this normal?

Thanks

[dom]

I've had great results with Ronseal Diamond hard and never seen that effect, from occassional spills. Mine was 3 rooms, all pine boards, but tended to vacuum only. I'm very surprised at the effect you're experiencing, could it be an optical refraction effect or simply dirt suspended in the water? What happens if you wipe the surface dry - still visible?

[Stuart Noble]

Reclaimed stuff is often more porous than new (if that's what you mean by "restoration"). If the discolouration goes when it dries, it's unlikely the water has penetrated the varnish. You can get all sorts of optical illusions where wood and water are concerned. Why does an old fence post look black when it's wet? etc FWIW Rustins 2 part floor varnish really is a total seal. I've used it on old floors and you can't see a puddle of water unless you look along the surface at an angle.

[me]

Thanks guys - actually this is new wood - restoration is solid oak with a plywood base

It does seem to 'dry' after a while, the effect is almost the same as when theres no varnish there at all!