Hardwood Floor Refinishing in Willington, CT: Bringing a Blackened White Oak Floor Back to Life
Sometimes homeowners look at an old hardwood floor and think the wood itself has gone bad.
This hardwood floor refinishing project in Willington, Connecticut 06279 is a great example of why that's not always the case.
The existing white oak flooring was beat-up, heavily worn and had become extremely dark and blackened in areas. It looked tired and made the entire space feel darker.
But underneath all that wear was still a beautiful white oak floor.
We professionally sanded the old surface back and finished the floor with Bona IntenseSeal followed by Bona Mega waterborne finish.
The difference was dramatic.
The dark, worn appearance disappeared, the natural character of the white oak returned, and the lighter water-based finishing system helped brighten the entire room.
Sometimes the floor isn't too old. It's just buried underneath years of wear and finish.
Bringing White Oak Back to Raw Wood
One of the most satisfying parts of a refinishing project is watching what happens during the sanding process.
At the beginning of this Willington project, the flooring looked almost black in places.
As we professionally sanded away the old finish and surface wear, the white oak underneath began appearing again.
That's when you can really evaluate the floor.
White oak has its own grain, natural variation and warmer brown-tan undertones. Once the old dark surface was removed, we didn't want to cover all of that back up again.
We wanted a much lighter direction.
Bona IntenseSeal and Mega Waterborne Finish
For this floor, we used Bona IntenseSeal followed by Bona Mega waterborne finish.
That finishing direction helped bring out the natural appearance of the white oak while keeping the overall room considerably brighter than it had been.
Waterborne products can be an excellent choice when a homeowner doesn't want the stronger ambering traditionally associated with an oil-based polyurethane system.
On this particular floor, the change was exactly what the room needed.
Dark and blackened became light and natural.
And once the floor brightened, something else became much easier to see.
Why Does Part of the Floor Look Green?
This project gives us a great opportunity to explain something homeowners don't always think about when selecting wall colors.
Light hardwood floors can pick up reflections from the colors surrounding them.
This Willington room has a very bright lime-green wall.
When you look at portions of the newly refinished white oak—particularly in photographs—you may notice what appears to be a slight green cast on the floor.
The white oak hasn't suddenly turned green.
You're seeing reflected color from the wall.
A lighter floor can act differently in a room than a dark floor. Sunlight, artificial lighting, cabinets, furniture and especially strongly colored walls can influence how the hardwood appears to your eye and to a camera.
That's worth considering when you're planning the entire room.
If you're going from an old dark floor to a much lighter natural floor, the colors already on your walls may suddenly have a greater visual influence.
The floor color didn't change to lime green. The room around it changed the way you're seeing the floor.
Wall Color and Hardwood Color Work Together
That's one reason we encourage homeowners to look at hardwood samples in the actual room whenever color is an important part of the project.
A sample viewed in a flooring store isn't necessarily going to look exactly the same in your house.
Morning sunlight can make it look one way.
Evening light can make it look another.
Warm artificial lighting can affect it.
And a strongly colored wall can cast some of that color onto a light floor.
This doesn't mean homeowners should avoid colorful walls.
It simply means the floor, walls, lighting and surrounding materials all work together.
On this Willington project, the photographs demonstrate that perfectly.
Hardwood Floor Refinishing in Willington, Connecticut 06279
Willington is a rural northeastern Connecticut community located about 20 miles east of Hartford along the I-84 corridor. The town is also only a few miles from the UConn campus in neighboring Mansfield/Storrs.
Willington's primary ZIP code is 06279.
One of the most recognizable historic areas is Willington Common, where the historic district preserves buildings representing the Colonial, Federal, Greek Revival and Gothic Revival periods.
The town also has substantial open space and outdoor recreation.
Fenton-Ruby Park and Wildlife Preserve offers hiking and walking trails, fishing and other outdoor activities. Roaring Brook Park is another familiar local destination, while the Talmadge Tract and Knowlton Preserve connect into trails associated with the larger Nipmuck Trail system.
Willington also includes historic areas such as East Willington, Willington Hollow and Daleville, reminders of the small mills, farms, shops and industries that once operated throughout town.
Willington and the Neighboring Towns
Our hardwood flooring work takes us throughout Willington 06279 and the surrounding area.
Nearby postal areas include Tolland 06084, Stafford Springs 06076, Ashford 06278, Storrs/Mansfield 06268, Mansfield Center 06250 and Coventry 06238.
That's a great service area for us because the housing is so varied.
We can work in an older rural Connecticut home one day, a newer house near UConn the next, and then move into one of the established neighborhoods around Tolland or Coventry.
And the hardwood can be just as different from house to house.
Four Generations of Hardwood Flooring Experience
At Patrick Daigle Hardwood Flooring, Inc., hardwood flooring is our specialty.
Our family's hardwood flooring tradition dates to 1927, and our Connecticut business began around 1972. Today, we're the fourth generation carrying on that craftsmanship.
We're proud members of the National Wood Flooring Association (NWFA) and proud to be ranked #1 in Hartford County and #1 in Connecticut by BusinessRate.
This Willington project demonstrates what professional refinishing can sometimes accomplish with a floor that looks like it may be too far gone.
We started with beat-up, worn and blackened white oak.
After professional sanding, Bona IntenseSeal and Bona Mega waterborne finish, the entire floor became lighter and brighter.
And the lime-green wall gave us an unexpected bonus: a perfect example of how strongly colored walls can reflect onto a freshly refinished light hardwood floor.
The old blackened floor wasn't the end of the story.
Beautiful white oak was still underneath it—we just had to bring it back.
Patrick Daigle Hardwood Flooring, Inc.
Fourth-Generation Hardwood Flooring Craftsmanship Since 1927
NWFA Member
Ranked #1 in Hartford County and #1 in Connecticut by BusinessRate
Serving Willington 06279, Tolland 06084, Stafford Springs 06076, Ashford 06278, Storrs/Mansfield 06268, Mansfield Center 06250, Coventry 06238 and surrounding Connecticut communities.