Can old heart pine floors be bleached?

[Anonymous]

We are about to refinish our 100-year-old heart pine floors. They are currently a very orangey/yellow and I want to get rid of that color. I'd like them to be lighter/whiter to the extent it is possible. Any recommendations? Can heart pine floors be bleached? Or is that a bad idea?

[Anonymous]

That color is the natural color of the wood.

[Anonymous]

Test an area by sanding. Our old house had these floors and the finish was super orangey. But when we had them refinished most of that came off - it was a stain combined with oil-based poly that "ambers" over time. With no stain and a water based poly, they were beautiful.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Test an area by sanding. Our old house had these floors and the finish was super orangey. But when we had them refinished most of that came off - it was a stain combined with oil-based poly that "ambers" over time. With no stain and a water based poly, they were beautiful.

Exactly this. Get them refinished.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Test an area by sanding. Our old house had these floors and the finish was super orangey. But when we had them refinished most of that came off - it was a stain combined with oil-based poly that "ambers" over time. With no stain and a water based poly, they were beautiful.

Exactly this. Get them refinished.

+1 They'll be beautiful!

[Anonymous]

sand off the finish, all the way to natural wood. it should be much less orangey.

if you still want to make it lighter, use TWO PART wood bleach. not to be confused with oxalic acid. it will be a slightly messy process. do your research.

for refinishing coat, use water base poly. oil based will make it yellow again.