Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1895-07-16
FLOORS.
A WAVED FLOOR.

1 WAVED fLOOh.
The most beautiful floor IL made with
wax. But It Is hard to keep looking
nice II there is to be much walking on Il.
In Europe waxed floors are renovated
two or three times week by servants
wearing shoes made purposely for pol
ishing the Wax.
Taking clean or new hardwood floor
the first thing to do Is to "fll' It. Get
can Of "paste filler" at the store; re-
duce 1t to a working consistency with
turpentine spirits; apply literally with
a stiff brush, rub 1t we'll into the wood,
let 1t remain on say half an hour or SO,
then wipe off the surface with coarse
rag, or, better still, remove this with a
piece OF stiff leather, rubbing the filler
well into the wood.
In few hours the floor will be dry ;
and IL Is then to be rubbed with fine
ssndpaper, finally busting Off the work
and removing every particle OF dust and
dirt.
Now procure some Of Butchers Boston
Wax Polish, or dissolve some wax by
heat, and pour into turpentine, making q
stiff paste. Add a teaspoonful OF best
liquid drying Japan TO hasten the dry
ing. Painters buy the prepared polish,
and it Is probably the best thing for an
amateur to do.
Apply the wax at a temperature which
will maintain fluid state Of the wax.
Apply evenly with stiff paint brush.
When dry apply second coat; third
coat will not be amiss. Polish with a
stiff scrub brush using plenty OF elbow
grease.
| There are other methods of applying
the wax. A good way is TO mix the
wax with alcohol and apply hot. The
alcohol evsporstes, leaving only the
wax.
A vARNIsHED FLOOR.
IL YOU do not care for waxed floor
YOU can use varnish. Fill the wood as
previously advised, and apply coat Of
good spar varnish. When dry, give a
| good second coat. A dull surface is OBJ
tanned by rubbing the varnish with pull
verified pumice stone and water, or rot
ten stone and oil, the latter cflecting a
''dead polish"
Another finish is made by using shell
lac varnish. Give the floor two or three
coats of this. Light woods require
| white shcllsc. and darker woods orange
shellac. Shellac dries fast as applied.
Hence, be quick Of movement while put
ting Il on, and take only two or three
boards at time. No filling" Is re-
quired for shellac.
Az OIL FINISH FOR FLOORS.
An excellent floor finish can be had at
1 Ia l.h nr NIT al
seed oil. Apply quite hot, let IL soak
well into the wood over night, rub well
with cloths, and give another coat. Do
this once or twice year and the floor
will increase In beauty aud durability
AS time goes by. This Is quite the best
treatment known for kitchen floor
finish. Lead paint softens the wood and
shows marks readily.
do not advise staining floors. The
stain destroys all inherent natural
beauty OF wood, and looks worse the
older II gets, while the converse is true
Of natural flashes.
HOW TO TAKE CARE or POLISHED
FLOOR.
DO not permit servants To- abuse the
| floor by careless and excessive use al
soap and water. Don't put soap or soda
on the floor. Use cold tea grounds for
Vanished surfaces. Use little Pearl
ue in the water il the surface is some
what dirty. II the wsxed floor looks
dingy Iewax il and polish.
II there Is bad spot on the floor get
dow n To the bare wood and build up
| ngain with varnish or Wax. Stains are
often caused by water getting through
la thin, worn place in the varul-h, and
acting on the fannie acid Of the wood.
| The spot may have bath Of oxallc acid
diluted 10 about the strength OF good
cider vinegar, applied hot, and left on
say three hours. Then remove acid
carefully--with clear water.
Now put on thin coat OF shellac var
nish; ssndpsper clean OIL and put on a
coat of good elastic varnish, or wax, II
desired.
Muriatic acid and vinegar are both
used 10 remove spots, but the oxslic Ia
safest and best of all.
Floors that are not in very bad condi-
ton may be renovated with mixture Of
equal parts raw linseed oil and turpen-
tine spirit, using channels skin or soft
woolen rag To rub with.
Vanished floors are not adapted TO
constant service. Shellac varnish gives
moderately good wear, tut an oil finish
is the most durable, most economical
and easiest 10 keep looking well.