White Oak Finish Options – What Suits Your Floor & Furniture

White Oak Finish Options

Suppose you bought a new house. You’re thinking of decorating it. Do you know what people observe first when they enter a home?

Well, they observe everything from floors to furniture! Thus, you should choose wisely about the types of furniture you will use.

White oak is the best option if you want your home to look comforting and subtle. Therefore, it is getting tremendous admiration from people nowadays.

But there’s a catch! You have to put effort if you want durable hardwood objects. There are various white oak finish options you can choose from.

Hear our insights about some of the finest finishes you can apply to your white oak. No time to waste! Let’s dive right into it.

Why Do People Want To Buy White Oak Hardwood?

You may wonder why you will choose white oak as your hardwood for your furniture or floor as there are red oaks. Though red oak is a great choice, white oak slightly gets more preference for several reasons.

Let’s see the reasons, shall we?

Futuristic Look

White oak looks stylish and up to the mark because it has low grains. In addition, it gives a modern vibe to your home. Your home will look appealing and rich if you choose to use white oak as your hardwood.

Durability

White oak lasts longer than any other wood. White oak is darker in color, but it doesn’t lose its colors over the period.

Therefore, you don’t have to worry about your wood for a great deal of time.

Hardness

One of the critical features of white oak is its hardness. It comes from a long-lived tree. As a result, white oak is rugged and robust compared to red oak.

Water-Resistant

White oak is resilient to water because its pores are filled with tyloses. It is why white oak is a good call for outdoors and floors and kitchen top or tabletop.

Although white oak is resistant to water, still it’s not waterproof. You still have to apply a solid finish to white oak. We’ll talk more on this topic later on.

More Color Option

You can choose any color you want with your white oak, and the oak will provide you with that exact color. In addition, you can choose a darker or lighter stain to apply on the white oak for its grey nature.

It’s up to you! White oak offers you a broad possibility of shades.

Easier To Apply Finish

You already know that you need to apply a strong finish over your white oak. Then, you can smoothly sand and apply finish over white oak.

Because of the wide range of color options, you can apply the darkest to lightest shades of finish as you, please. For example, white oak will stick to any shade whatsoever.

4 White Oak Finish Options – Know Them

We have discussed why you can choose white oak. But you have acknowledged that white oak or any kind of wood is not waterproof.

You need to take good care of the wooden object. Therefore, you have no choice but to apply a solid finish to your wood.

Stay with us to know about various finish options for your white oak furniture or floor.

Danish oil

Rust-Oleum Watco 65751 Danish Oil
Photo: Amazon

 

Danish oil can penetrate the white oak to produce a natural look. This blending of varnish and tung oil finish can provide an outstanding look on your white oak.

Applying this finish will bring out the soft nature of your wood rather than the glassy surface. This finish produces a soft gleam appearance on your furniture or floor.

One of the key advantages is Danish oil finish can be quicksand. So if the wood is damaged, you can repair it smoothly without calling a professional.

Danish oil is resistant to water and has the feature of durability also.

The downside of this product is that you cannot put Danish oil over another finish such as lacquer or poly.

Nitro Lacquer Spray

Sprayed lacquer sticks to the wood thoroughly. For this, it creates a protective layer to your white oak.

This unit of finish produces a shiny and bright look on your furniture. It dries faster compared to the other finishes. Additionally, it can be sprayed rather than a brush.

However, there are cons to using lacquer. It can be easily scratched or damaged. Therefore, it requires high maintenance.

Beeswax

Beeswax
Photo: Amazon

 

This finish can be applied to every type of wood. It works as a natural finish to your wooden material.

Beeswax produces an extraordinary finish with a sheen glance. In addition, it protects your wood from damage as beeswax provides layers to your white oak.

Beeswax doesn’t contain any hazardous chemicals also because it’s a natural product. Thus, it is safe to use for your home.

You don’t have to put plenty of beeswax on your hardwood because only a handful amount of this finish is enough to produce your anticipated outcome.

Beeswax can quickly mend your damaged and scratched furniture.

On that account, we suggest that this can easily be your go-to finish for your white oak.

Polyurethane

Polyurethane

 

Poly is another example of a finish that seals the wood. You can comfortably apply poly on your white oak.

Nevertheless, there are more cons than pros for polyurethane finish. As it can be easily damaged by UV rays or sunlight, you cannot use poly on outdoor furniture. Instead, you have to use poly in a room without any windows.

It can be a challenging situation for novice people to repair the damages caused by poly. So we don’t recommend applying poly on your white oak.

How To Apply White Oak Finish – Effective Way

You have acknowledged the use of white oak and its finishes. You can apply any of these finishes based on your taste and choice.

However, we researched and found some steps to apply to finish your white oak. You can go through the steps to have a more clear vision to make a decision.

  • Firstly, you can apply Danish oil to your white oak. It gets deep into the wood to protect the oak from damage. Next, use a soft clean rag to wipe the oil on.
  • Sand the wet finish to provide an extraordinary finish.
  • Wait for the Danish oil to dry.
  • Provide a topcoat as you like. For example, you can use lacquer if you want a polished look on your wood.

There are various ways you can apply finish to your wood. It’s your choice what process you think is the best.

FAQ

How Can You Tell Red Oak From White?

White oak appears darker than red oak. White oak is also harder, more substantial, and more modernistic than a red one.

Is White Oak Expensive?

White oak tends to be more expensive than red oak. However, the price depends wholly on the length and size of the wood.

Final Words

There are different finishes you can apply to your white oak. Choose the best one that goes well with your choice.

If you want a warm and pleasant-looking wood, you can pick beeswax or a Danish oil finish. Nonetheless, you can use lacquer for a sophisticated and glossy appearance on your white oak.

The rest is up to you. You should always go over all the side effects of the finishes before applying any to your furniture or floor, as many finishes can cause harm to your wooden material as well as to your home.

Better safe than sorry!

We hope you found this guide on white oak finish options helpful. You can always re-read if you still feel confused.

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