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https://www.askthetrades.co.uk/cgi-bin/yabb/YaBB.pl DIY Forum >> Carpentry Questions >> Floorboards varnished... but wrong colour! https://www.askthetrades.co.uk/cgi-bin/yabb/YaBB.pl?num=1376344053 Message started by mellis8 on Aug 12^th, 2013, 10:47pm

Title: Floorboards varnished... but wrong colour!
Post by mellis8 on Aug 12^th, 2013, 10:47pm

We've just had 100+ yr old floorboards sanded and varnished (clear) throughout the house. Sadly half the boards in main rooms are about 30 yrs old - they were put in because of previous damp problems and were treated so have come up greenish! Quite a bad contrast to the rest of the victorian flooring. We were on holiday otherwise we'd have had them stained to approximate the rest of the room.

We don't have time or energy to stand a re-sanding... but I know I can't apply stain over varnish. BUT is there a way I'm not thinking of? Would a tinted varnish (eg again from Ronseal) work? If so, anyone any ideas of which tint when mixed with greenish will look more like antiqued pine? ;-)

Many thanks!

Title: Re: Floorboards varnished... but wrong colour!
Post by big_all on Aug 13^th, 2013, 11:28am

heeelllooo and welcome mellis8 ;D ;D ;D

unfortunately you cant go back green is a mixture off yellow and blue if i remember my primary colours rightly

you would need something perhaps with a brown colour to reduce the green but it will never cover it as its just an opaque colour wash to allow the grain to show through
something like dark oak perhaps but whatever happens try on a hidden area or offcut

Title: Re: Floorboards varnished... but wrong colour!
Post by woodsmith on Aug 13^th, 2013, 5:33pm

Red added to green makes brown, so if you pick a coloured varnish that is at the red end of the spectrum, cedar perhaps, it should help to offset the green tinge. I have never tried this though so definitely try a small unobtrusive area first. If it doesn't work then I would do as BA suggests and pick a very dark oak colour to obliterate the green tinge.