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How to finish wood with Ceramithane

Ceramithane is water-borne acrylic-urethane finish that cross-links to form a very hard durable coating. It is very durable and can be used on all types of wood such as woodwork, doors, kitchen cabinets, furniture as well as all types of floors including wood, terrazzo, concrete and resilient floors. It passes the tests of the Maple Flooring Manufacturers Association as well as the Kitchen Cabinet Manufacturers Association Tests. It can also be coated over faux finishes to protect them. A small area should be tried first to observe the difference in appearance the clear coat will have on the existing finish. The product is a high build formula that applies very well with a brush, applicator or spray. A brushed finish will leave no brush marks and looks like a sprayed finish. Roller application is not recommended. The high build formula allows the applicator to apply the finish in heavier coats so fewer coats are needed than with conventional water based clear finishes.   Surface Preparation For bare wood: Sand wood. If the wood is rough, sand first with 100-grit sandpaper. Remove dust with a rag dampened with water or vacuum. DO NOT USE A TACK RAG! Tack rags leave a thin coat of oil on the surface, which will adversely affect adhesion. Note that steel wool is not recommended. Tiny bits of the steel wool may remain on the wood and rust when the water based finish is applied. The rust will cause unsightly brown spots on the surface. Sand again with 150 grit sandpaper followed by fine 180-220 grit sandpaper and remove dust.   After sanding, apply water to the wood with a rag. Just use enough to dampen the surface. The water will lift the wood fibers and you will see little "fuzzies". Lightly sand off the fuzzies. Wipe off sanding dust. This step will prevent the "fuzzies" from forming when you use the water-based stain.   Staining Apply either a water based stain or an oil based stain. Allow to dry thoroughly. Note: Unlike many water based finish coats, Ceramithane will adhere tightly to oil based stains. However, the oil based stains must be thoroughly dry. Many oil based stains will dry thoroughly in 48 hours, but not all of them will. Some require more time. The stain must be dry hard and all the solvent must be released from the wood. Water based stains differ from oil penetrating stains in that the water based stains dry more quickly. For this reason, it works better if relatively small areas be applied with the stain and then wiped off with a clean damp rag rather than applying the stain to a large area. For example, with a paneled door, do the small panels first, one at a time. Then do the horizontal and vertical pieces one at a time. If the stain is not deep enough in color, a second application will darken the color somewhat.   Application Using synthetic bristle brush, applicator or spray, apply a coat of 810-28 Ceramithane Gloss. Allow to dry for one hour and sand lightly with fine sandpaper. Remove dust. Apply a second coat of 810-28 Ceramithane Gloss or 810-29 Ceramithane Stain or 810-29 Ceramithane Matte Flat. Dry for one hour. Sand lightly with fine sandpaper. Remove dust.   Allow the finish to flow on; don't brush too much Generally, two coats is all you need. Allow to dry overnight before using. To achieve the highest gloss, allow to dry overnight and apply an additional coat of the gloss Ceramithane.   If you are using the matte finish or the satin finish, we suggest you put on the gloss finish first and apply the Mattte Flat finish or Satin finish as the last coat only. The Matte Flat and Satin contain a small white pigment that gives them the reduced gloss. When several coats of these finishes are built up, the pigment particles exhibit themselves as a cloudy appearance over dark colored stains and a muddy appearance over light colored stains.   New Wood Floors New wood strip floors require a sealer coat to prevent side bonding or panelization from occuring when a finish is applied to the new floor and the finish acts like glue and bonds the edges of the strips together. Then, contraction and expansion of the wood causes the wood strips to move creating cracks between the boards. Since some are glued tightly together, some of the cracks can be quite large. This effect can be minimized by sealing the wood before applying the finish coats. Reduce the Ceramithane 1 parts Ceramithane to 3 parts water. Apply to the floor before any sanding has occurred. Allow to dry overnight and then sand. All of the sealer coat should be sanded from the floor. The sealer which runs down into the cracks between the boards will deter the side bonding and panelization. Apply as many coats as needed of Ceramithane at full strength.   Floor Care After the finish coat has aged for a few weeks, it may be maintained like any other finely finished wood: furniture polishes may be used, floors may be damp mopped but should not be wet mopped, and furniture and woodwork can be dusted. Use the creamy type polish on furniture and woodwork; do not use oils such as teak oil. When dusting, you can use dusting helpers such as Endust. Spills should be wiped up as soon as practical. Prolonged soaking with water may soften the finish. If this occurs, simply blot up the water and the finish will recover and harden back up.   Ceramithane Gloss Finish can be used outside, but not the Satin or Matte Flat finishes. The white flattening pigment will cause the finishes to turn cloudy prematurely. Use on decks is not recommended.   If repairs are necessary due to burns, scrapes or gouges, the damaged area can be repaired and feathered in to blend in.   High humidity will slow the dry time of Water based products. Low humidity will speed the dry of Water Borne products. Do not apply Ceramithane when the temperature is below 50ºF. All products should be stirred before and occasionally during use.

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