Water Based Polyurethane For Floors Dry Time

For purposes of this post this timeline is from the time the last coat of polyurethane is applied.

Water based polyurethane for floors dry time.

The drying time of water based polyurethane. 48 hrs you can walk on it with shoes. Oil based polyurethane floor finish. How many coats of polyurethane for hardwood floors.

Although it takes longer for a solvent based product to dry both water and solvent based products take several weeks to completely harden or cure. Oil based polyurethane takes longer to dry than water based poly. Require less maintenance over time. The water based polyurethanes are the first drying ones.

Hours 24 48 you can walk on the floors with socks. With water based finishes we can do 2 coats on the same day in some circumstances. Drying is the first stage but there is also curing time. Avoid shoes and bare feet.

It takes oil based polyurethane 24 hours and water based polyurethane 6 hours to dry enough to be able to walk on it in socks and proceed to the next step of the application process sanding or applying the next coat. For oil based poly it usually takes 30 days to. After just 6 hours following the application you can walk on the finished surface. Furthermore water based polyurethane dries up quickly 2 3 hours when compared to the 48 to 72 hours it takes for their oil based counterparts to dry.

That s how we can apply multiple coats in a few days. Oil vs water based polyurethane pros and cons. You should remember to have your socks on and not barefoot while walking over the surface. Our installer applied three coats of oil based duraseal and i would like an additional coat.

Don t confuse dry time with curing time which can take up to 1 month depending on conditions. Water based polyurethane a more recent development than the solvent based variety dries more quickly thus making single day floor finishing feasible. We just had red oak hardwood floors installed in two rooms and the adjoining rooms were all sanded and refinished. Water based polyurethane on the other hand mostly contains a negligible trace amount of voc thus making it safer.

Our installer did an awesome job but he thinks i am crazy to want another. What are the best brands of polyurethane for hardwood floors. In this time the floor should appear dry and not tacky at all. With water based poly can save you several days in the drying time so that you can move in faster and paint faster.

Please note that these times are estimates and times can vary especially based on humidity levels. And make sure your pets who usually have bare feet do not walk on the floors during this time.