We painted our floors again! If you missed our original posts about painting our floors you can check those out here & here. So the biggest question I’ve been getting since we announced we were looking for a new color for our floors is why we are painting them again! The answer is that I just felt like trying something new.
Why did we repaint the floors?
The new paint color on our floors is a bit whiter and brighter than the old color. There wasn’t anything wrong with our painted floors, I just wanted to try out a new color!
What was the first paint color on the floors?
The original paint color was Benjamin Moore tapestry beige and was sealed with Pro Finisher Polyurethane.
What is the new paint color on the floors?
The new paint color is Benjamin Moore feather down and is sealed with Pro Finisher Polyurethane. We did 3 coats of the paint and 2 coats of the sealer!
How long did you wait before moving furniture back and walking on the floors?
As soon as it was dry to the touch we moved everything back, but it recommends 24 hours. We didn’t notice any problems with moving back sooner!
Where are you repainting?
For now, we decided to repaint the floors on the main floor only & we will decide if we want to repaint the upstairs later! Our upstairs is all painted floors as well, but the original paint color still. The thing I love the most about our painted floors is that we can change them up at any time.
Will you repaint the upstairs?
Yes, we plan to repaint upstairs as well as our staircase! We will get to that eventually & I will share photos and updates then.
What do you do to protect your floor when you move furniture?
We use furniture dolly with casters HERE. We also use sliders for moving furniture HERE. We are pretty laid back with our old floors, we’d drag furniture around, everyone wore their shoes in our house, and I really just wanted them to get the worn-in look to them.
How do we clean the painted floors?
I’ve found they are easy to clean by sweeping, swiffering, vacuuming, & spot cleaning with water and diluted vinegar when needed which hasn’t been much. You can use a mop & your favorite cleaning solution for deep cleaning the floors!
How do you clean the cracks between the boards?
We vacuum the floors and use attachments that can get dirt out of the cracks super easy! You could also choose to seal the cracks if you want to, but we didn’t feel that it was needed for our floors.
Do you paint between the boards?
No, we did not paint in between the planks. Just make sure you put the appropriate amount of paint on your roller. If you put too much paint on the floors it could get in the cracks but we haven’t had any problems with this!
Does air come up through the cracks between the boards?
No air does not come through the cracks, we have subfloor which prevents drafts from coming from the floor.
Did you sand the floors before painting them?
When we first got our floors we started with raw unfinished floors so no, we did not sand them. If you are starting with stained/sealed floors you will want to sand for sure! This time around we just painted on top of the paint that was already on our floors. We cleaned them really well but we did not sand the paint off the floors.
Did you hire someone to install your floors or install them yourself?
Yes! We found a local company to install the pine floors. Best decision ever.. they were so quick & we were able to work on other things while they did that. They basically just nailed each board down to the wood floor below to secure them. They did leave a slight gap for any movement over time that may happen & they also put a lot of nails in to prevent against cupping. They sunk the nails in the boards so that they were not sticking out which is great for so many reasons, but it also adds a lot of charm to the floors as well.
Could you paint engineered hardwood?
We’ve never done it before, but you definitely could. I would sand and prime before painting engineered hardwood, it would be more prep work than our floors were.
Can you get the floors wet?
Yes the floors can get wet. We walk on them with wet shoes, we’ve spilled on them, and we get them wet when we mop or spot clean!
Do the nails hurt your feet when walking barefoot?
No the nails are sunk into the wood so you cannot feel them when walking barefoot.
Will the floors get scratched? Are we worried about them getting scratched?
Everyday use (walking, pets, kid toys) has not scratched up our floors. Moving furniture or other heavy objects can scratch the floors. In our experience, it just puts a scratch into the paint, it does not remove all of the paint off the floor. We are not worried about them getting scratched, it just adds to the character of our home!
Since this new paint color is a bit whiter than the old color, these may show more dirt. I’ll keep you guys updated on the new paint color & how it wears over time!
