The Invisible Wood Finish.
Product Review: Skylt UltraMatt
Whenever you seal wooden floors, worktops or joinery with clear oils, varnishes or finishes, you alter the end colour of the wood. It will darken, and generally it will yellow. You will lose that raw, natural, organic look of wood as soon as you seal it to protect it from everyday life; dirty footprints, water stains, spilt drinks, etc.
There are some products which yellow less than others, Osmo Polyx Oil (Satin Matt, Semi Matt and Matt) is a fantastic product i have used for nearly 10 years, and that has always been the least 'yellowing' i have found (at one time i only ever used Danish Oil, but that tended to turn oak floorboards virtually brown). The Matt Polyx has hardly any sheen, but still yellows the wood. There are ways with the Osmo range that you can avoid this; first coat with Polyx Oil White, followed by a top coat of normal Polyx. The white tint adds a tiny amount of colour which helps counter act the natural yellowing of the plain oil, and it is really effective. You can go steps further and use the white wood wax first followed by the standard Polyx, which slightly limes the wood - particularly good on oak flooring.
There is now a product on the market which protects the wood from all sorts of spills, dribbles, saliva (nice thought!), and all sorts of wear and tear and it is invisible. It does not change the appearance of the wood at all. In fact it does, but in the most minute way - and unless you have sealed the wood yourself you would not know. It very, very, very, slightly blurrs the definition in the grain. You have to look at the wood from about an inch away, which in truth you would not do. And lets face it, if you were caught on your hands and knees, with your nose virtually pressed against the floorboards, your friends would think you a little wierd, and probably never ask you round again (although they will be relieved that the floor finish was saliva proof!).
So just accept the fact that it is Invisible.
Have a look for yourself
One side of the oak board has had three coats of Skylt Ultramatt, the other side of the board has had nothing.
The answer is: the first photograph.
Skylt is an amazing product. It is essentially a water based polyurethane. But it has absolutely no sheen, or colour at all. It is a two part product with a small pot of hardener that you add to the bigger pot 1:20 (you get enough hardener to mix the whole pot). It comes in either 1 or 3 L pots and has a coverage of about 10-12m2/l with one coat, depending on porosity etc.
Application: Add the Skylt component B, with A, ratio 1:20. Mix well and leave for 10 minutes for the two to react. Apply to the wood with a fine natural bristle brush or short pile roller (it takes no special skill either, just work with a wet edge). It starts off slightly cloudy at first, but this disappears as it dries. Leave for a minimum of 5 hours before applying further coats. You can sand lightly with a sanding pad between coats. Apply 3 coats in total. After about 12 hrs after coating it is safe to walk on, and is fully cured after 7 days.
You need to be aware - The mixed product will not keep for more than 2-3 hrs once reacted, so only mix what you need.
Areas of use: Hardwood floors, Kitchen Worktops, Internal Doors, Internal Joinery - eg: staircases, furniture etc. It is hardwearing enough for commercial application (it says so on the website), so is an exceptionally hard wearing finish.
Useful Links:
Stockists:
London: Ray Munn: http://www.raymunn.co.uk/
Eastern England: Paints & Interiors: http://www.paintsandinteriors.co.uk/
Other useful info:
Polyx Oils - Osmo UK: http://www.osmouk.com/osmopolyx.cfm?chapter=29
