Return to the Kitchens Forum
| Post a Follow-Up
Should I get semi-gloss finish for hardwood floors?
| | |
Posted by sweetd313 (My Page) on Tue, Mar 3, 09 at 19:44
| Well, my granite dilemma has been solved (sort of), so its time to move onto the floors. My neighbor has the semi-gloss hardwood finish on his floors, and they look great. On the one hand I like the sheen, but on the other, I don't like that it's the first thing you notice when you walk in the door. Will I get tired of this finish after a while? Any body with semi-gloss experience? Pros or cons?
Thanks!
d. |
Follow-Up Postings:
RE: Should I get semi-gloss finish for hardwood floors?
| | |
| I love the look of high gloss hardwood floors The trouble is gloss shows every piece of dust and every ding and scratch. It can make you crazy. Low sheen or satin hardwood floors in a light color stain are the easiest to keep up. |
RE: Should I get semi-gloss finish for hardwood floors?
| | |
| I have both semi gloss and matte finish Cherry in my house...We chose a matte 5 inch plank Brazilian Cherry in my whole house (except the kitchen) about 5 years ago. When I redid my kitchen 2 years ago, my husband got plank 5 inch semi gloss Braz Cherry. When we first installed it, I loved the semigloss because it was so pretty to look at compared to the matte floors. Two years later, I hate the semi gloss floor so much that I will be tearing it out as soon as I can afford a replacement. The shiny surface shows every footprint and every scratch much more clearly than my matte floors. They require daily mopping to look good. Since I don't mop daily, they really look good only once a week. I only mop my matte finish floors monthly and the upstairs even less than that. Although the semi gloss floors are 3 years newer than the rest of the hardwood, they actually look much older because the scratches show more clearly with the semi gloss finish. My experiences may be different from others...but think about how you live, i.e. pets, kids etc. The more matte the surface, the easier time you will have keeping it looking good. I have pets, kids and a lot of traffic in and out of my house, so keeping the shiny floor looking good is a challenge. Good luck with your decision! |
RE: Should I get semi-gloss finish for hardwood floors?
| | |
| I would recommend Satin finish as well if you don't want to see every scratch and ding. Much more low maintenance. |
RE: Should I get semi-gloss finish for hardwood floors?
| | |
Thanks everyone- you all have really good points. I didn't even think about the high maintenance of semi-gloss! I love the sheen, but don't know if I want to deal with the dings and scratches. I have to decide soon, because I'm getting the floors done tomorrow!
Any other experiences? |
RE: Should I get semi-gloss finish for hardwood floors?
| | |
| Ditto the satin finish - that's what I've done in three homes and several remodels, and I love that's it's low maintenance and very forgiving. I did semi-gloss in our first home, and it looked fabulous until it got scratched from normal wear and tear. Scratches really show up on the semi-glass, whereas I don't notice the scratches on the satin. The satin still has a bit of a sheen to it; now I prefer the look and would choose it even if maintenance was not an issue with the semi-gloss. |
RE: Should I get semi-gloss finish for hardwood floors?
| | |
| We have oil based high gloss on our floors. I know every state has different laws on whether or not they can use it in your state but I love our floors and the high gloss...so easy to clean ..almost like plastic and we always get positive comments about it. If you drop something though it does show more but we love it |
RE: Should I get semi-gloss finish for hardwood floors?
| | |
| I love the satin look. A little more understated. I went with satin and am so glad...epecially with dog and kids! There were a lot of decisions I made about our kitchen and went with look over what was practical, and in many of those cases I'm sorry. You think you won't mind all the cleaning, but you will (at least I do). That being said, there are some things that were worth being impractical! So, I guess you need to decide how much you really like the sheen and whether it's worth the extra mopping and more visible scratches. I'll be curious to hear what you decide. Good luck! |
RE: Should I get semi-gloss finish for hardwood floors?
| | |
| I swore that I would never ever get semi-gloss again. I also swore that I would go with light coloured floors, but fell for dark again. But at least they are extremely matte - UV oil finish. And, they are handscraped. They are so forgiving, I simply love them. Wish that they were in the kitchen too, but our builder finishes with ceramic. |
RE: Should I get semi-gloss finish for hardwood floors?
| | |
Thank you all for the feedback! You guys are great! I decided to go with the Satin finish. The floors are being redone as I type. Keep your fingers crossed that all goes well! I will let you all know how it turns out.
Thanks again!
d. |
RE: Should I get semi-gloss finish for hardwood floors?
| | |
| What kind of wood are your floors? Shows pics when you're done, please! |
RE: Should I get semi-gloss finish for hardwood floors?
| | |
I have the satin finish. I think it looks nicer and shows less dust, scratches and dings....you will get them!
Best of luck.
Melanie |
RE: Should I get semi-gloss finish for hardwood floors?
| | |
| Hi there - gald you decided to go with satin. Of course it is personal preference - but for me semi gloss is a little too "bowling alley shiny" for my taste. Here's a before and after of our floors. The GC knew that I wanted a satin finish and assured me the semi gloss would not be shiny. They were a redo... 
Eliz |
RE: Should I get semi-gloss finish for hardwood floors?
| | |
| I'm late to the party, but I would like to add I refinished my Douglas Fir floors in my bedroom with gloss, and they are VERY SLIPPERY when wet. So if you are in a high-water-spattering area, you might want to go with matte, or put DOWN a lot of mats (ha ha), to keep from suddenly being in a skating rink. Carla in Sac |
RE: Should I get semi-gloss finish for hardwood floors?
| | |
| Hi there I went with the satin finish and could never be more happy It has plenty of the sheen yet not too much. I don't have to mop and polish every week . Its like you put it down and forget, This is real hardwood we're talking about in a light oak color I do use a large area rug and some small ones since this is in my kitchen, Works perfect. |
|
|
|
|
