Abrasion — pets, castors, heels, commercial traffic

Every floor coating fails the same way: micro-scratching from grit underfoot builds up and eventually breaks through the film. The spec question is how long that takes and how maintainable the finish is. Bona publishes Taber / SIS 923509 wear-rate figures that let you choose the coating to the traffic class.

Mechanism

Bona Traffic HD TDS (Jan 2022 version and 2025-03-25 Aus version) both publish a 'Resistance to wear' figure of 1.5 mg / 100 revolutions (SIS 923509) — this is a Taber-style abrasion test run on a cured film. The lower the mg-loss per 100 revolutions, the longer the film lasts in traffic. WS TDG-13 observes film-forming finishes can become brittle through prolonged UV exposure and break down; waterborne acrylic systems are typically more flexible than solvent-based systems, and a more flexible film resists scratch-through better.

Risk profile by species

SpeciesRiskNote & source
Janka Soft high Lower-density species (alpine ash, mountain ash, radiata pine) dent more easily under castor and point loads; coating only protects against abrasion, not denting.Source: ws-tdg-09-timber-flooring.pdf
Janka Hard low-but-finish-still-wears Ironbark, spotted gum, blackbutt, jarrah give hard substrates; the finish still wears first, not the timber.Source: tq-tds-16a-species-properties-and-uses.pdf

Mitigations

  • traffic-hdmega-evo
    Match the finish to the traffic: Bona Traffic HD is formulated for 'timber floors in public areas with high traffic intensity'; for residential refinish, Bona Mega EVO is the equivalent residential-traffic system.
    Source: Bona_Traffic_HD_-_Technical_Data_Sheet.txt p.1 + Bona_Mega_EVO_-_Technical_Data_Sheet.txt
  • craft-oil-2k
    Bona Craft Oil 2K in heavy commercial traffic: 1 x Bona Craft Oil 2K is the heavy-commercial build; moderate/high traffic: 2 x Bona Craft Oil 2K. Oil finish is maintainable (spot-treat) rather than film-failing.
    Source: Bona_Craft_Oil_2K_TDS.pdf p.4 (Treatment schedule)
  • traffic-hd
    Soft castors, entry mats and felt chair pads; Bona Traffic HD is ready for light use in 6 hrs but 'possible to cover' only after 3 days — do not load the floor early.
    Source: Bona_TrafficHD_TDS_AU.pdf p.2
  • traffic-hd
    Plan recoat windows: Bona Traffic HD can be overcoated on previously lacquered surfaces after 'cleaning and superficial abrasion' followed by 1–2 x Traffic HD — cheaper than a full sand-back.
    Source: Bona_TrafficHD_TDS_AU.pdf p.2

Bona product guidance

  • traffic-hd
    Resistance to wear: 1.5 mg / 100 revolutions (SIS 923509). VOC <5% (max 50 g/L incl. hardener). 2-component waterborne polyurethane with titanium-technology silane adhesive top speed.
    Source: Bona_Traffic_HD_-_Technical_Data_Sheet.txt p.2 + Bona_TrafficHD_TDS_AU.pdf p.2
  • mega-evo
    Residential-traffic waterborne topcoat. See TDS for spec paragraph.
    Source: Bona_Mega_EVO_-_Technical_Data_Sheet.txt
  • craft-oil-2k
    Penetrating modified-vegetable-oil finish. Heavy commercial: 1 coat; moderate/high: 2 coats. Overcoatable with Traffic HD.
    Source: Bona_Craft_Oil_2K_TDS.pdf p.4

Gaps in the corpus (no claim made)

  • Bona does not publish a unified residential/commercial 'wear class' (Class 22/33 AC-rating) for their waterborne topcoats — only the Taber mg-loss figure.
  • No Mega EVO Taber number in the pulled TDS excerpt.
Sources