4. Final Coat of Polyurethane

The pre-finished tiles come with 3 coats of water borne polyurethane, colour impregnated, already on. Lightly sand the tiles either by hand or with a pole sander using 320 –400 grit sandpaper. Using a wide brush or roller, apply the final coat of waterborne polyurethane as supplied. You may choose to add a second application of water borne to give extra shine or protection.

If your client suggests a Moisture Cure Polyurethane please check with Cork Concepts before applying moisture cure as it may not be compatible with the formula used in manufacture.

Tell your customer that they will be able to walk on the floor in socks or bare feet in about 4 hours with water borne (moisture cured will need a lot longer depending on the moisture in the atmosphere – around 12- 14 hours)

Ensure that the customer does not bring in heavy furniture for as long as possible. Check that table and chair legs have protectors so that they don’t cut into the cork.

Things to Remember: Take care to inform your customer of the importance of keeping doors closed, but you will need some ventilation. Warn them they must not peek in for a look! Ensure that there is absolutely no spraying of insect repellent or cleaning products as these will cause separation in the coatings.

Ensure that you are not laying when there is any risk of silicon being applied around bath, toilets etc as these will cause rejection rings.

Keep all tradesmen out of the area especially plumbers!

Do not use pen or pencil marks on the tiles to mark cuts – you can’t sand them off!

Cork is a natural product. Colour variation and small defects are an inherent part of the product.

Order more tiles than you need. We cannot match exactly if you need more. Leave one or two tiles with the customer in case they want to replace an odd tile. Leave the touch-up paint with the customer. It is very handy for filling any dings they might make in future!

Reglazing We now have the coloured polyurethane on offer so that you can give the floor a real boost back to life if the floor needs a reglaze.