| The effects of humidity on the
drying and performance of a floor finish is very
important. High humidity retards the evaporation
of water from the polish film, leaving the film
soft, incompletely dry, and very Scuffable.
Floor finish films, like latex paints, dry
(harden) from the surface inward towards the
flooring. Thus a floor finish which appears to
be dry and feels dry to touch can in fact be wet
and soft down close to the floor. Adequate
ventilation during and after applying a floor
finish is very important. If the air in the area
being finished is high in humidity, close the
windows and run the air conditioner to lower the
humidity. In the winter, turn up the heat to dry
the air and also warm-up the substrate
(flooring).
Problems
caused by high humidity are:
1. Excessive scuffing and
black marking from traffic until finish dries
hard.
2. Poor detergent and water resistance due to
the delay in finish cross-linking.
3. The threat and reality of gluing furniture
to the floor.
4. Streaking and mop drag created by the coat
being applied biting into preceding coats.
(this phenomenon is caused by the applied coat
re-emulsifying the previous coating that has not
yet cure.) Another important aspect in the
drying of floor finish is the correlation
between drying time and solids of the finish.
Higher solids results in a thicker film
developing on the floor and thus, a greater
period of dry time being required between coats
(sometimes in excess of one hour).
|
