Osmo Sample Sachets

One of the issues with Osmo products up until now has been the issue associated with tester pots.

The brilliant Osmo Polyx Oils, Wood Waxes etc have only been available in the small 125ml tins and these are meant to sell for £9 each. Now this has been a tad steep, especially if you wanted to compare a couple of colours and finishes, however, now there is an answer.

The new 5ml sachet samples. These are ideal for trying Osmo products on a small section of timber. At present they are only available in the internal finish range - Polyx and Wood Wax etc, but soon the exterior range (Wood Oils, Country Colour etc) will be launched.

The new 5ml is a much more realistic £1.20 RRP, but we shall be selling at £1 each.

Polyx Oil range can be found here
Woodwax range can be found here

Osmo White on White

Getting a lovely white finish to a floor can be a bit tricky and so here is a little tip that I gleamed from Osmo last week.

If you are wanting to get a 'pure' white finish on a floor it is better to use 'White on White' rather than 'Clear on White'. What this means is that it is better to use a white base colour and then top it with a white tinted top coat. If you put a clear on a white base then it can turn it slightly yellowy due to the oils in the clear.

So the recommended type of formula would be:

Osmo 3111 White Wood Wax  - Base Coat

Osmo 3040 White Tinted Polyx Oil - Top Coat

Note that it would be one coat of each maximum!

This combination will produce a lovely clean white finish and also quite a whitened effect.

Osmo solve 'oil treatment' problem

As you may be aware there is a major choice to make when treating wood with a natural protector. An oil based or a water based solution?

Oil based treatments are harder wearing and last longer, BUT they do change the colour of the wood and enhance the grain (see above)

Water based treatments do not change the colour as much, but they do tend to lift the grain of the wood.

So what if you want to keep the colour of your wood, but want the longer lasting protection etc? Well up until now it has been a problem, but those clever people at Osmo have now produced Osmo Polyx RAW. This is a new product that has some white tint in the mix to counteract the enriching effects of the oil, plus they have done away with the matting / satin agents that produce the finish, so that the wood is left looking as close to its original state as possible. (Note that 'Red' woods will be enhanced with the reddiness of the wood and so the white pigment in the RAW might turn this pink.)

So if you love the look of your untreated floor / worktop / furniture etc and want to give it the all the protection you associate with oil treated products then there is now an answer!

Eco Home Centre is selling this new product and you can find it in our Osmo Tints product range

Anti-slip treatment for wood flooring

Recently I had a query from a commercial company who had been having trouble with people putting in claims against them for injuries caused by slipping. So after a bit of research I found that slip resistance has a scale. The majority of domestic floor finishes have a rating of R9. Even many commercial products are a R9. Osmo Polyx Oil and the Osmo Pur fall into this category.

A bit more digging and I discovered that the insurance industry requires a R11 rated floor finish in order to cover injury claims against slippage. So the hunt was on to find a suitable R11 rated floor finish from an eco-friendly manufacturer.

Thankfully we are an Osmo stockist and despite a R11 rated finish not being available from Osmo UK, we managed to get a shipment across from Germany of the 3089 Hartwachs-Ol Anti-Rutsch Extra! This is a R11 finish and also based on natural oils (a la Polyx Oil). Unfortunately the paperwork that accompanies the product is only in German, but it is applied in the same way as the Polyx oil.

Water based or Oil based clear wood treatment?

Wood is a great natural product, but to get the best out of it it is often necessary to protect the surface from wear and tear. In order to maintain its' beauty we often want a clear treatment, but treatments do alter the way that the wood acts.

There are a few options here with regards to suitable products. The basic choice though is down to whether to use a water based or an oil based solution. Your choice will ultimately depend on a variety of factors, but the main points to understand which each choice are:

A. Oil based solutions.

Here (in an art work) the difference that an oil treatment and the bare wood is clear to see

1. Change the colour of the wood and make it a much richer finish (this depends on the wood type as to which colours are more pronounced).
2. The create a harder wearing surface
3. Need to have a solvent in order to deliver the oils into the wood (this tends to be petro-chemical based, although Auro do have an orange oil based product)
4. If using a Hard Oil then it will need to have a wearing layer (generally a wax) unless a Hard Wax Oil combination product is used. Osmo and Auro have such products.
5. Take time to dry - around 12 hours unless a more volatile solvent is used.

B. Water based solutions
1. Do not change the colour of the wood
2. Are not as hard wearing
3. Are very quick drying
4. Lift the grain of the wood
Most people tend to err on the side of oil based products, especially where hard wear is expected (floors, work surfaces, furniture). If you are looking for more natural products, then Osmo and Auro only use natural oils in their products, although the Osmo use debezenated white spirit for their solvent. Blanchon produce a good water based Hard Wax Oil for those areas where quick drying, low wear applications are required.

For more information it is worth using our Paint Chooser on the Eco Home Centre where you can explore the wood treatment options that are available through the Eco Home Centre.