Bedroom Suite Floor Progress — Red Oak Hardwood Floors With Bona Natural Seal
I’m still not quite finished with the floors in our bedroom suite, but I’m one step closer to having them finished. And I’m so excited with how they’re turning out! Since I agonized over my decision about what to use on my red oak hardwood floors and how to finish them to get a natural look, I wanted to show y’all what the floors look like as of this morning after using the Bona Natural Seal on them last night before I went to bed.
First, let me back up a bit and explain the whole process. If you’ll remember, right after these floors were installed about 2.5 months ago, I decided to match them to the rest of the house. So I proceeded to stain them a dark color (a 50/50 mixture of Minwax dark walnut and special walnut stain), and then polyurethane them. They turned out like this…
Then I changed my mind and decided that I wanted light, natural wood floors. So last Thursday, I rented a drum sander and an edge sander from Home Depot, and I spent the next two days sanding the floors. I started with 36-grit sandpaper to get all of that dark finish off of the floors, and then I used 60-grit, 80-grit, and finished with 100-grit, and that’s where I stopped based on the instructions that I found on the Bona website.
When I finished the sanding, the floors looked like this…
It took a lot of work and a lot of sanding to get all of the dark stain out of the grain of the wood, but I didn’t want any of that stain left behind. Red oak hardwood flooring doesn’t have really dark grain, so if you can still see dark grain after sanding, that’s stain that has been left behind, and it needs to be sanded more.
After taking off on Saturday and Sunday (because I was so incredibly sore from that edge sander, and because I pulled a muscle in my hip and back when I very stupidly tried to lift and move the heavy drum sander by myself), I finished up with the detail sanding yesterday. I didn’t feel the need to fill in all of the cracks and gaps in the floor because wood contracts and expands throughout the different seasons of the year, but I did have some pretty large gaps, a few knots, and a few areas where the edges of some boards looked splintered, so I used some red oak wood filler (this is the one I used – affiliate link) to fill in those areas, and then I used my 5-inch rotary sander with 100-grit sandpaper to sand those down. I also used a scraper to scrape the remaining stain off the floors in the corners and around the door jambs where the floor sanders couldn’t reach.
After vacuuming the floors really well with my shopvac to remove any dust, I was finally ready to apply the Bona NaturalSeal to the floor. I watched so many videos about applying this product to determine the best way for me, a complete novice, to do it. I considered using a T-bar because that’s how most of the people in the videos I watched applied it, but all of them were also pros who do this regularly. Having never used a T-bar before, I was pretty sure they made it look so easy because of their vast experience with it. So after finding this video showing the Bona sealer being applied with a roller, I decided that was more my speed. I’m a novice when it comes to using Bona products on floors, but when it comes to DIY in general, I’m a pro at using a roller after 30+ years of DIYing.
I used a Wooster 14-inch roller with a 14-inch microfiber roller cover (both of which I found at Home Depot) to apply the Bona NaturalSeal. And just like in that video, I shook the product thoroughly before opening it, poured it directly onto the floor, and then rolled it on going the direction of the grain. I always made sure that the new area that I applied feathered into the previous section smoothly with no puddles or ridges of built-up product on the floor.
After I made my way from the far wall of the bedroom, into the short hallway, into the walk-in closet, and then into the foyer and out the music room doors, I turned around and took this picture while the sealer was still wet. I was confident that it would dry lighter, but even if it didn’t, I would have been perfectly happy with that color because I loved that warmth that it gave the wood when it was still wet.
So this morning, I was anxious to get out of bed and look at the floors to see how they looked after the NaturalSeal had dried. Are you ready for the amazingness that is Bona Natural Seal on red oak floors? Here it is!
It did lighten up a bit as it dried, and the color also evened out. The boards that looked really dark when they were wet seemed to lighten a bit after they dried, and everything seems a little lighter than it was when it was wet.
The foyer has different lighting (and not very much of it), so it looks a little bit darker in the foyer. But all throughout the bedroom suite, the floors are light but have just a touch of warmth to them. Since the Bona NaturalSeal has a little bit of white pigment in it (half the amount of white as the Bona NordicSeal), I thought the final color might be a little bit lighter than the raw, freshly sanded red oak color. But it’s actually just a bit darker and warmer. And I’m thrilled with the color.
Here’s what it looks like in the walk-in closet where I have lots of very bright 5000K (daylight) LED lights.
I mean, I think the color is absolutely perfect. I still need to apply the clear topcoat, and I have no idea if that will affect the color any. I don’t think it should. I’ll be using Bona TrafficHD in the extra matte finish, and it’s supposed to be clear with no color in it. I’m hoping it looks exactly like this once the clear coat goes on.
And here’s how it looks in the bedroom, which also has 5000K (daylight) LED lighting. So if you have warmer lighting (and most people do), the color would look even warmer than it does in my rooms.
My main concern was having these floors turn too red or orange since they’re red oak. I had originally intended to use the Bona Red Out before using the Natural Seal, but I couldn’t find a place that had it in stock, and I didn’t want to delay refinishing the floors. So I took my chances and went ahead without the Bona Red Out.
I’m actually really glad that it worked out that way. I think the slight red/orange undertone gives the floor a beautiful warmth, and I noticed that red oak floors, after Bona Red Out has been applied, have more of a yellow undertone to them.
Now that the sealer is dry, I can apply the two coats of the clear coat today. And I’m hoping that by the time I go to bed tonight, these floors will be completely finished. After the last coat of Bona TrafficHD goes on, it’ll take three days for the floor to fully cure, but I’ll be able to walk on them after just a couple of hours.
I am so glad I took the time to redo these floors. It was a pain to redo something that I had only finished 2.5 months ago, but the payoff is so worth it. I mean, just look at this huge difference!
I liked the dark floor, but the light floor makes the rooms look so much bigger and feel so much lighter, and I don’t just mean lighter in color. I mean lighter in the way that it makes the rooms feel when I’m standing in them. The dark floors just had such a heaviness to them, both in color and in the way it made the room feel.
And I’m super excited about having floors with an extra matte finish on them. Y’all know I have issues with shiny finishes. Unless a piece of furniture is specifically painted to have a super high gloss lacquer finish (which I do love as long as it’s done to perfection), I tend towards very satin and matte finishes. So that shiny finish on the dark floor was really frustrating to me. That was the lowest sheen available in that polyurethane. But an extra matte finish on the floor is definitely more to my liking, and I can’t wait to get it finished!
UPDATE: The floors are finished! I used three coats of Bona Traffic HD in an extra matte finish, and they are gorgeous! You can see about 30 pictures of the finished floors here: Red Oak Floors With Bona Natural Seal & Bona Traffic HD
Addicted 2 Decorating is where I share my DIY and decorating journey as I remodel and decorate the 1948 fixer upper that my husband, Matt, and I bought in 2013. Matt has M.S. and is unable to do physical work, so I do the majority of the work on the house by myself. You can learn more about me here.
I think it’ll take me a minute to wrap my mind around the vision (to me they just look like unfinished red oak floors) but I’m always so impressed with your tenacity to get the look you’re after. It really inspires me to use my own “voice” in my own projects and go after what I love, not what’s trendy, the popular opinion, or best for resale. I love following along with your projects!
It’s taking me a minute to wrap my head around it, too, but I just know these rooms will look amazing when she’s done. We have faith in the process!
Just take it easy on your back, even though you’re anxious to see it finished.
Agree, there’s a lightness in the ambiance of the rooms! Good change, even if it was a chore redoing it.
Bravo Kristi the floors are so beautiful and well worth your hard work
Oh, Kristi! The light floors look fantastic! You must be so excited!
Wise choice! It’s awesome!
Forgot to ask – will you buff it all when it’s finished?
I’ll buff after the first clear coat before I do the final coat.
Magnificent effort.
Floors look ravishing!
Very exciting! When I think of your rooms in this home, I think of dark floors so this will really be a new look. Can’t wait to see these spaces evolve!
Great decision!
Love, love, love! So glad you did this for yourself aaaand for us! Such a wonderful process. Again, I am amzaed at how quickly you did all that! Bravo!
Gorgeous!!!! Well done you, the result is truly wonderful. Glad you went with your heart on this!!!
I liked the dark stain but I also like the lighter color. I’m glad you are so happy with the results of all your hard work. So, what’s the next step in your renovation?
I still have to finish the closet — wallpaper, trim, island.
The floors will be beautiful. I personally like the darker floors because I am Early American in style. However the white floors do make the rooms look larger and cleaner. With all your color the light floors will be better. I cannot believe how hard you work.
Looks great. I think it turned out better than expected and can’t wait to see the topcoat. Looks amazing. Be careful when lifting things, please.
Cheers to you and Matt!
Hi Kristi: The floors look great and I’m glad you followed your heart and re-stained them. They will look super with the teal wall coverings and curtains. You worked very hard and you are making fabulous progress!! So take it a little easy until you get your back and hip feeling better!
To be honest, I loved the dark floors, but oh my how I love these light floors now that I can really see them. That is the difference between me and pros like yourself in decorating and DIY. I know it’s a lot of work, but when the rest of your floors are being done, your home will sparkle. Bless you and Matt.
I love the new floors!! It’s was 100% the right call, despite all of your hard work, to go with light flooring. It’s stunning either way the closet and I’m sure the rest of the suite will look equally as gorgeous!! Take care of your injury—don’t push yourself right now!
Gorgeous! Good call to go lighter. (And just curious – aren’t both of your bathrooms inaccessible while all the floor refinishing takes place – in which case, how are you managing around that?)
Very carefully. 😃 Actually, it hasn’t been a problem. Each coat takes no longer than two hours to dry before it can be walked on.
Oh that’s quick! I thought the floors couldn’t be used for days on end! Oh – maybe I’m thinking of when you were waiting to move the washer and dryer in.
Huh. I didn’t think I’d like the lighter floors, but after seeing them, I understand why you would go to all the trouble and hard work to change from the dark. The dark floors seemed to suck the color out of your rooms, while the lighter floors enhance it. Bravo, Kristi! Take care of that pulled muscle!
Looks so good, Kristi. We got prefinished red oak with finish called touch-of-white, looks very similar to yours. Love it!
Full of admiration for all your hard work – the light floors look very contemporary. Hope you have some good rest as well!
I love natural unstained wood colors. I don’t think I could have redone my floors like you just did, but I absolutely love the lighter look! Well done!
Gorgeous! well worth the extra effort. Are you going to “color drench” your window molding in the closet with the light blue cabinet color? It looks so good on all the other molding.
I am! But I’m considering removing the trim to hang the wallpaper. I think that would be easier than trying to neatly cut the wallpaper around that top molding. If I do that, I’ll wait until it’s reinstalled to caulk and paint the window trim.