Ronseal floor varnish for steps - solvent or water based?

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Plevier

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I need to re-varnish the companionway steps.
Several people in previous threads have recommended Ronseal Diamond Floor Varnish for this.
What I'm wondering is whether they are talking about the currently available water based product, or the previous solvent based one that I don't think you can get now.
Is the water based one as good?
I've tried the water based Dulux equivalent and it was rubbish!
Is there anything better? (Satin rather than gloss.)
 
My personal experience of Ronseal Diamond floor varnish (water based) is don't do it.
I contacted Ronseal before I varnished the sole boards. They said it wasn't suitable. I went ahead anyway. I'm now redoing the sole boards.
 
I've done my boat with Black Friars Acrylic Water Based Varnish throughout . Applied with a sponge not a brush. Absolutely no problems and has done the job. The water raised the grain in the veneer so it's also non slip.
 
Another for the don't do it vote.

Used it on previous boat. Looked good to start off with but degraded within a couple of months and had to do it again the following winter. By the end of the summer it looked awful.
 
I think that those who have failed may have brushed it on too thick and not enough coats. What works is to apply with a sponge with minimal varnish and spread. Apply next coat when it is touch dry without sanding and then do four or five coats on top. It's not hard to do as it is touch dry on a warm dry day in 40 mins to an hour. Then leave for a couple of days for it cure/dry. I don't use it outside on decks etc as it does not have UV. Protection and degrades quickly. Also I use satin and Matt as high gloss surfaces in the med environment are distracting and irritating. The best thing is that the post paint clean up is so quick and easy. Ten minutes over the sink.
 
Oddly, I DID use the Ronseal water-based "diamond hard" floor stuff on Avocet's sole boards and have been incredibly impressed. Yes, you don't get a fantastic "cabinet-style" finish, but boy has it been durable! Not only that. Avocet's been out of the water for about 7 years now, and about 3 times, has collected enough rainwater for the sole boards to have been FLOATING in the bilges. They go milky when that happens but when I take them out and leave them to dry for a few days, they go back to heir original colour! I've really been very impressed by it.
 
Just used it. Assume solvent base as described as medium VOC. Went on well and good satin finish. Don't know about durability yet.
 
I used it on Douglas fir sole boards internally, it has had four years regular use and still looks like new. It was 6-8 very thin coats applied in a day.
I would not reckon on it lasting as well on companionway steps though due to higher incidence of wetting, did mine in 4 coats Coelan also still looking like new.
 
My sole which was done with Wilkinsons water based varnish which I assume is very similar to the names, still looks good three years on even in the heavy traffic areas. The satin is not terribly non slip though.

Applied with a jenny brush.

One problem is that if you decide that you don't like the finish it is an absolute sod to remove.
 
Well very mixed opinions there but thanks everyone!
My experience with Dulux water based was not good and I can't believe Ronseal water based is hugely different. Very difficult to get a good finish - doesn't flow nicely - and a tendency to go milky white. In some places when it got wet it peeled in a rubbery film.
Back to a traditional type I think for me.
 
Troubadour said:
Well very mixed opinions there but thanks everyone!
My experience with Dulux water based was not good and I can't believe Ronseal water based is hugely different. Very difficult to get a good finish - doesn't flow nicely - and a tendency to go milky white. In some places when it got wet it peeled in a rubbery film.
Back to a traditional type I think for me.
Click to expand...

Try Ronseal Satincoat. I have used it professionally for many years on all sorts of boats. Only use for interior work though as it has no u/v barrier. Easy to get a good finish but as always, use a decent brush and preparation is the key.
 
Talulah said:
My personal experience of Ronseal Diamond floor varnish (water based) is don't do it.
I contacted Ronseal before I varnished the sole boards. They said it wasn't suitable. I went ahead anyway. I'm now redoing the sole boards.
Click to expand...
Have used Ronseal water based varnish on floorboards just inside the front door in the house - works OK there, inside a porch, but it's not nearly as "often wet" an environment as the companionway steps on most boats, though if for example you have a wheelhouse and the companionway stays mainly dry it might work. I'd use a solvent based varnish - I am going to do this job this winter using Ronseal solvent stuff.
 
I used the DiamondHard stuff in my kitchen, about 6 years ago.
It has worn quite well, but for a couple f months it was prone to marking. It would show where water had been splashed on it.

Personally, I would use Johnstone's white spirit based products, which have performed well both on cabin soles and on floors and furniture at home which get fairly heavy wear.
 
Troubadour said:
Is there anything better? (Satin rather than gloss.)
Click to expand...
Hot air gun stripper, sand and then Epifanes. I've very nearly tried them all. Epifanes is a nice thick solid coating. It is the most expensive of the lot. The German stuff, Ronseal, etc all seem to have an inbuilt desire to be laid upon perfection in near perfect air moisture conditions otherwise the stuff buggers off in a huff; Epifanes is just no fuss and it's on and sticks.
 
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