Osmo Wood Finishes & Oils South Africa

A varnish forms a film on top of the wood. It looks good until it is scratched or the sun gets to it, then it cracks, peels and has to be sanded back. Polyx-Oil penetrates the timber and hardens inside the surface fibres, so there is no film to peel. Worn areas are cleaned and re-oiled in place, and the finish is microporous so the wood can still breathe.

Satin 3032 is the most popular floor finish: enough sheen to look finished without showing every footprint. Matt 3062 is the choice for a modern, bare-timber look and hides wear best. Gloss 3011 is rarely used on floors. If the timber is pale and you want it to stay pale, use Effect RAW 3044 instead of a clear oil, which would warm the colour.

For a dining table, desk or shelving in daily use, Polyx-Oil 3032 satin or 3062 matt, two thin coats by cloth or fleece. For a worktop or any surface that meets food, Top-Oil. For dense or oily timbers such as teak, kiaat and wenge, Wood Wax Finish 1101 Extra Thin, the thin wax for wood that will not take a normal oil. All three are wiped on thin and wiped off, and all three are repaired by re-oiling the worn patch rather than stripping the piece.

Yes once cured. Top-Oil and Chopping Board Oil are tested safe for food contact to EN 1186, and dry Polyx-Oil, Top-Oil and Wood Wax Finish meet the EN 71.3 toy-safety standard. Allow the full 10 to 14 day cure before putting food directly on the surface.

Osmo Decking Oil in the tint that matches the species: Bangkirai 006 or Teak 007 on Balau, Garapa 013 on Garapa, Massaranduba 014 on Massaranduba, Iroko 011 on Iroko. A new hardwood deck must weather for 8 to 12 weeks before its first coat, otherwise the oil sits on top of the natural oils in the timber. If the deck is already grey, treat it with Wood Reviver Power-Gel first, rinse, and let it dry for two to three days. For pool surrounds and steps use 430 Anti-Slip. Two coats on a new deck, then one thin coat whenever the oil is wearing and water no longer beads.

Both contain the same UV filters and look the same. 420 EXTRA adds a biocide film protection against algae, mould and fungus, so it is the one for shaded, coastal or damp positions and for cladding that stays wet after rain. 410 has no biocide and suits timber in full sun that dries quickly, or anywhere you would rather avoid biocides. Neither is for decking: horizontal timber takes Decking Oil.

UV-Protection-Oil: 410 in full sun, 420 EXTRA where it is shaded, coastal or damp. Choose a tint (424 to 432) rather than clear if you want the colour to last, because the pigment is what blocks the UV. Oily timbers such as teak and Iroko should weather about 12 weeks first. Two thin coats, about 18 m² per litre per coat, then one refresher coat when the oil wears: Osmo gives two to three years in high exposure, three to four moderate, four to five low.

Wet the timber, brush on Osmo Wood Reviver Power-Gel 6609 along the grain (about 10 m² per litre), scrub, leave it to work, then rinse well. Let the wood dry for two to three days before applying Decking Oil or UV-Protection-Oil. It is a wood reviver, not a stripper: it lifts the grey, oxidised surface and brings the colour back without pressure-washing, which roughens the timber and drives water into it.

Two thin coats on new or sanded timber, one coat when maintaining. Polyx-Oil and Top-Oil are dry enough for the next coat after 8 to 10 hours at 23 °C, Decking Oil and UV-Protection-Oil after about 12. Allow a day before light use and 10 to 14 days before the surface is fully hardened and water resistant. Rapid dries in 4 to 5 hours and Express in 1 to 3. If a coat stays sticky it was put on too thick, or the room is cold, humid or unventilated.

Roughly 24 m² per litre per coat for Polyx-Oil, Top-Oil and Decking Oil on smooth timber, about 18 m² for UV-Protection-Oil and 26 m² for Country Colour, which is about double a conventional finish because it goes on so thin. Rough-sawn timber and end grain absorb more. Use the calculator above to size the tin.

No sanding between coats. Sand the bare timber to P120 for floors or P120 to P150 for furniture, remove the dust, apply the first thin coat, let it dry, and apply the second straight on top. Never sand finer than P180 or the oil cannot penetrate. If the first coat has raised the grain on a very soft timber you can lightly de-nib with a P320 pad, but it is not part of the normal process.

Over a previously Osmo-oiled floor, yes: clean it with Intensive Cleaner and apply one maintenance coat. Over another brand of oil, usually yes after a thorough clean, but test a patch. Over varnish, lacquer, polyurethane or paint, no: the oil cannot penetrate a film, so the old finish has to be sanded back to bare timber first.

Vacuum or dust mop, then wash with Osmo Wash and Care 8016 diluted in water, with a damp mop rather than a wet one. Do not use household detergents or soap-based floor cleaners; they strip the wax and leave the floor patchy, which is the most common Osmo complaint we hear. Every few months use Liquid Wax Cleaner in traffic lanes, and put on a maintenance coat of oil every one to three years.

When the oil is wearing: water no longer beads and the colour looks dry. Osmo does not fix a deck interval because exposure varies so much; for UV-Protection-Oil on vertical timber it publishes two to three years in high exposure, three to four in moderate and four to five in low. A deck in full Cape sun sits at the short end of that. Clean it with Decking Cleaner 8025, let it dry, and put on one thin coat of the same Decking Oil; there is no sanding and no stripping. If it has gone grey because it was left too long, Wood Reviver Power-Gel first. Never pressure-wash it.

Power Tool Services stocks the full Osmo range at 221 Imam Haron Road, Claremont, Cape Town, a short drive from Osmo Africa, the importer in Ottery. Order online and we courier anywhere in South Africa, including Johannesburg, Pretoria, Durban, Gqeberha and the Garden Route; delivery is free on orders over R2000. Oil-based finishes ship by road freight, not air.

Work out the litres with the calculator above, then buy the next size up and keep the remainder for the maintenance coat: a 125 ml or 375 ml tin for a table or a door, 750 ml for a small room or a worktop and its offcuts, 2.5 litres for a floor or a deck. Decking Oil and Oil Stain come in a full range of tints, and Top-Oil, Decking Oil and Wash and Care in 5 ml sachets for testing.

Both are penetrating oil finishes we stock and recommend. Rubio Monocoat Oil Plus 2C is a single-coat system with a very wide colour range, popular on furniture and on floors where speed matters. Osmo is a two-coat hardwax oil with more sheen options, a dedicated anti-slip floor finish, and a bigger exterior range. Bring the job to us and we will tell you which suits it.