some coating on a plywood subfloor?

[dablack]

We are building a 1 1/2 story right now and the wood flooring for the upstairs is going to have to wait.  I was hoping to get down some polyurethane that would make the floor glossy and easy to clean.  This is 3/4" T&G ply that is very smooth.

So, I bought a couple of gallons of minwax from the depot.  It is supposed to cover 650 to 700 sq ft.  I've got 1400 sq ft to cover.  I thought if I'm careful I will be able to get at least one coat down.  I started putting on a coat yesterday after work and it was instantly sucked into the wood.  I kept going and my 1st gallon was gone in 150 sqft.  So I wait two hours and open up the next can to see how two coats would look.  Again, it sucked it right up and it took 3/4 of a gallon to cover that same 150 sqft.  I figure it is going to take at least four coats to even come close to get some gloss.  At $40 per gallon and needing 3 or 4 gallons to finish 150 sq ft, we are looking at more than $1/sqft for poly.  For that much money I could do something much better. 

Is there something better I could be doing?  This is just a temp fix.  We will be putting real wood floor up there in a year or two.  Would deck paint cover better?  Anything else?  I'm taking my two cans of poly back to the depot for a credit.  That was crazy!

thanks
Austin

[clww]

What about putting on a coat or two of sanding sealer first?

[Axe Handle Hound]

I'd go with glue size if it's just temporary.  http://www.wisnofurniturefinishing.com/2010/04/glue-size-in-wood-finish.html

[dablack]

I looked up the sanding sealer and it looks like it is $40 per gallon and covers 500 sqft.  So that means I will need 6 gallons for two coats.  $240. 

Then lets assume that with the two coats of sealer my poly goes from 150 sqft of coverage up to 500 sqft of coverage.  Then I will need another 6 gallons of it as well.  $240. 

That is more than $500 (with taxes) for poly on a subfloor. 

Surely there is something else I could do that would work just as well and not cost as much.  If not, then that is fine.  I will do what I have to do, but I was hoping someone might come up with something better. 

thanks
Austin

[Tree Feller]

What about some cheap linoleum?

[Jay C. White Cloud]

Hi Austin,

I have 3 suggestions, ask what you will, of them. 

1.  Do nothing, you are going to cover the wood anyway, and the glues they use to manufacture plywood is pretty tough stuff.  A little citrus oil clearing and and/or some floor wax (not silicone based!!!) will keep it spiffy till you are ready to do something with it.  Note: if you plan on gluing anything to it in the future, stay away from waxes and oils---or prepare yourself for some sanding.

2.  Oil it with tung or linseed oil, but again remember if you are going to glue something to it later, the floor will have to be rough sanded to create a descent bond surface.

3.  What AHHound suggested is close to this suggestion.  Take one gallon of glue (aliphatic resins), I like titebond III and dilute with clean warm water 1 gal glue to 6 gal water.  You can dilute this glue to 5% and still use it as a glue, passed that and you get a sealer.  I would use two coats. Mix well with power mixer on a drill.

Choice #1 is what I would do, but then again is seldom use plywood.  I would use wood just off the mill green as the subfloor... :D :D :D ;)

Good luck.

jay

[dablack]

Thanks guys. 

The cheap sheet linolium was temping at around $.70 per sqft but I would have to have to try and pull that stuff up later. 

I'm trying to put something down now because we are about to put up walls and it sure ie easier now when everything is wide open. 

I wish I had the coin and time to go ahead with the wide plant floor but we can't wait.  Paying for rent, the property and building is killing us. 

I think I'm just going to leave it as is unless the boss insists we put something down.  I might try some deck / porch paint too. 

Thanks
Austin

[jueston]

this depends on how temporary you are planning on, but you could paint it with latex paint pretty cheap, as a matter of fact, I believe where I live there is a paint recycling place where you can get half full cans for free, then you just need to get a lot of semi-similar colors, mix them all together and then paint the subfloor.... now wall paint might not be durable enough to hold up for years, but for 6 months I think it might look better then just plywood.... and it wouldn't pose any problems later....

[SPIKER]

Maybe some Thompson water seal?   not sure what you are protecting but they have half dozen different types and 35 or 40 bucks for 5 gallons.   should work well they have it for decks siding and patios rock.brick ect.

Mark

[Jay C. White Cloud]

Hi Spiker,

Thompson is silicone based and can be an issue inside a confined space.  I would suggest reading the MSDS before using inside a structure. It also will interfere with other adhesives that maybe used at a later date. 

Regards,

jay

[m wood]

hi dablack, I was thinking a prime and paint job too for temp work.  But jay had a good idea too and just leave it be, throw some area rugs up there and keep a small shop vac in a closet :D.  Let us know what the inspector says if you go that way and do nothing to the ply stuff
mark

[Ocklawahaboy]

I used some finished birch plywood for a floor in my house.  It's been down for 3 years with barely a scratch.  The room is about 140 sf and I got three coats with less than a gallon of minwax.   The floor looks fantastic and we get tons of complements.  The whole room cost about $150 for the plywood, fasteners, glue and clear poly.  We had a 1" plywood subfloor and just put the birch over the top of it.