Floor and parquet varnish - traffic resistance and everyday wear
Hallway parquet takes 20 footsteps a day. Bedroom parquet - maybe five. That's the real difference between heavy and light traffic, and it drives which varnish you need.
Hallway, living room, kitchen (heavy traffic) - polyurethane varnish with at least 4H-5H pencil hardness. Single-component acrylic is easier to apply but shows wear faster in a hallway. Two-component polyurethane is harder, more demanding to apply, but lasts years.
Bedroom and office (light-medium traffic) - water-based acrylic gives good results, low odour during application, dries fast. Fine for renovating in an occupied flat.
Matte vs satin vs gloss. Matte (GU 10-20%) hides small scratches and heel marks better. But harder to clean and traps dust. Satin (GU 30-50%) is the balance: easy cleaning, looks good, marks less visible than gloss. Gloss (GU 70%+) looks dramatic but shows every mark. In a high-traffic hallway - rarely the right call.
Surface prep matters as much as the varnish itself: sand worn or scratched parquet, vacuum dust, degrease. On old parquet with worn varnish - full sanding to bare wood, otherwise the new coat won't bond. On new parquet - check timber moisture first.
In stock: Caparol, Sadolin, Tikkurila.
Three minimum on bare wood: first coat diluted (sealer coat), next two at full consistency. Sand at 120-150 grit after the first coat, 180-240 after the second. Full cure before moving furniture in - several days.
No. New varnish doesn't bond to old without sanding. If the old coat is in good condition - fine sand and recoat. If worn or cracking - strip to bare wood. Skip sanding and it peels in 6-12 months.
Polyurethane or acrylic with hardener - resistant to water and grease. Avoid plain acrylic without hardener in a zone with varying humidity. Satin or semi-gloss for easier cleaning.
Alkyd yellows, especially in rooms without direct light. Water-based acrylic and polyurethane don't yellow. If you have light-toned wood like natural oak or ash - water-based only.
Depends on the product - check the technical datasheet. Generally, after touch-dry you can walk in socks after a few hours. Full hardness and furniture placement - several days. Exact figures are on the product label.
