7 Things to know About the Ultraviolet Curing Process
In the world of hardwood flooring, ultraviolet curing has become an absolute game changer. This innovative process has enabled flooring professionals to completely redefine their installation and refinishing timelines, allowing them to provide customers with gorgeous site-finished floors without extensive downtime.
What is Ultraviolet (UV) Curing?
Ultraviolet (UV) curing is a process that involves applying a specially formulated ultraviolet water-based finish to a hardwood floor. Once this finish is applied, a UV floor curing machine is pulled over the flooring area, essentially “zapping” the floor with concentrated ultraviolet light. This instantly dries and hardens the liquid UV coating, transforming it into a diamond-hard, exceptionally resilient finish.
Why UV Curing is a Big Deal
Although UV curing technology has been around for decades, it was only previously available for large-scale commercial applications due to prohibitive costs. As technological advances have been made in the fields of lighting and power supply, new UV curing equipment has been developed that allows for smaller-scale applications. Using this new technology, a floor can be UV treated and cured in just one to two hours. Considering the fact that it normally takes up to 28 days to cure a floor to full hardness using traditional methods, UV curing represents a much quicker and far more efficient approach that can save homeowners and businesses tons of time and productivity.
7 Things to Know About the UV Curing Process
1. The typical UV curing process has three main steps:
- Prepping – The surface of the floor is shot-blasted, and then debris is vacuumed up
- Coating – The UV liquid coating is applied
- Curing – The curing machine is pulled over the surface of the floor, instantly drying and hardening the UV coating
After this, the floor is ready for immediate use!
2. Not only are UV-cured floors just as strong and durable as hardwood floors that have been cured using traditional methods, they’re actually stronger, harder and more wear-resistant due to the UV curing process.
3. Common applications for UV-cured flooring include residential homes, retail shops, warehouses, manufacturing facilities, schools, food processing plants, and hospitals.
4. UV-cured floors produce near-zero VOC (Volatile Organic Compounds) emissions, so they are an ideal choice when you’re looking to meet green building standards.
5. You can apply a high gloss to a UV-coated floor without increasing its slickness
6. UV-cured flooring is exceptionally durable, making it a perfect choice for high-traffic areas.
7. The UV curing process requires no mixing of components, is solvent-free, emits very little odor and works well in both cool and warm temperatures.
Perhaps you’ve been thinking about refinishing your hardwood floors, but the time that it would take to wait for the flooring to cure would pose a major challenge to your busy schedule. McSwain Carpets & Floors offers the UV curing process explained above, enabling us to bring out or restore the natural beauty of your hardwood floors without causing any major interruptions to your daily household activities. We have extensive experience installing and curing hardwood flooring in Cincinnati, Dayton and Northern Kentucky, and our speedy UV curing process is the perfect fit for your busy lifestyle. You don’t have to worry about waiting days or weeks for your floor to be ready – contact us today to see how we can bring your hardwood floors back to life, in very short order!
