Sheen is a separate decision from the coating, and it changes how the floor looks and behaves more than most people expect. Same timber, same polyurethane, three completely different rooms.
The resin in a floor coating is naturally glossy. Matting agents are added to scatter reflected light, and the more of them there are the flatter the finish reads. Gloss, semi-gloss, satin and matte are the same coating with different amounts of that scattering.
Durability is essentially identical across the sheens within one product. Anyone who tells you matte is less hard-wearing than gloss is describing how wear becomes visible, not how fast it happens.
Matte hides more than anything else. Scratches, dust, footprints and the small undulations in an old floor all disappear because there is no reflection to distort. In a bright Gold Coast house with a lot of glass, it stops the floor becoming a glare panel at four in the afternoon.
The trade-off is depth. A very flat matte can make a richly grained timber look slightly dry or chalky. On spotted gum and blackbutt we usually steer clients to a matte-satin rather than a dead flat.
Satin is what most homes end up with. Enough reflection to give the grain depth and make the timber look alive, not enough to turn every scratch into a white line. It is also the easiest sheen to touch in later when a floor gets screened and recoated.
If you cannot decide, this is the answer, and it has been the answer for most of the floors in our gallery.
Gloss maximises depth and makes a formal room look formal. It also shows every scratch, every dust nib in the coating and every dent in the boards, and it reflects ceiling lights straight back at you.
We still use it, mostly on hallways in traditional homes, on parquetry where the pattern benefits from the reflection, and in commercial spaces where the floor is meant to look polished. Just go in knowing that a gloss floor asks more of the sanding underneath it, and of you afterwards.
Matte, comfortably. Gloss is the worst for it. Satin sits in between and is the usual compromise.
Yes, though at a doorway where two floors meet in line of sight it can look unintentional. It works better where rooms are visually separated.
No. It shows less, so most people clean it less often. The cleaning method is identical.
That is what the free in-home estimate is for. We will look at your timber, show you samples on it, and tell you honestly what will work.
Tell us about your floor and we will get back to you fast, usually the same day, to book a free in-home look and an honest price.
Local timber floor sanding, polishing and restoration across 97 suburbs - from the Logan line and the hinterland to the NSW Northern Rivers. View all areas we service
Fine FinishedFloors
Floors worth showing off - cut back, stained and finished by Gold Coast specialists since 2010.
22 Springsure Drive,
Mudgeeraba QLD 4213
Monday to Saturday, 7am to 5pm
Servicing the Gold Coast, Logan fringe and Northern NSW to Ocean Shores. Free, no-obligation in-home estimates.