Nearly two years ago we laid a Douglas Fir floor in our own shop at Logie Timber Supplies. Since then, it has carried an average footfall of around 50,000 visitors a year — boots, dogs, prams, timber deliveries and daily trade, seven days a week.
We finished it with three coats of Treatex Hardwax Oil (Satin) and have maintained it only with their standard floor care products. No sanding. No refinishing. Just routine cleaning and the occasional refresh.
Two years in, here’s the honest verdict.
How It Has Performed
Surface wear
The hardwax oil has worn naturally in the main traffic lanes, but in a way that looks honest rather than tired. There’s no peeling or flaking — just a gentle matting where feet pass most.
Impact resistance
Timber boards have been dragged, dropped and stacked on it without causing structural damage. Minor dents have blended into the grain over time, and the brushed finish on the boards has helped disguise day-to-day knocks.
Movement & stability
The boards have remained stable through seasonal changes. No unexpected gaps or distortion beyond what you’d expect from a natural material responding to humidity.
Character
If anything, the floor looks better now than the day we laid it. The traffic has softened it rather than ruined it.
This isn’t a showroom floor that sees light use. It’s working timber in a working shop.
Hardness Ratings — How Do These Species Compare?
When people ask whether softwood flooring can handle traffic, the real question is usually about hardness.
Below are typical Janka hardness ratings (a measure of resistance to denting):
- Douglas Fir (European / UK grown) – approx. 660 lbf (≈ 2,900 N)
- Larch (European) – approx. 830 lbf (≈ 3,700 N)
- Scots Pine – approx. 540 lbf (≈ 2,400 N)
For context, many commonly used hardwoods sit between 1,000–1,300 lbf.
Douglas Fir sits comfortably between Scots Pine and Larch — firm enough for commercial-style traffic when properly finished and maintained.
(As a note: Western Red Cedar is significantly softer and not recommended for flooring.)
Hardness matters — but finish, thickness and maintenance matter just as much.
Finish Matters More Than People Think
The floor was finished with three coats of hardwax oil in satin. That choice was deliberate:
- Hardwax oil soaks in and protects from within
- It allows localised refresh without full sanding
- It wears naturally rather than failing
We’ve maintained it simply by cleaning and occasionally refreshing high-traffic areas with compatible care products. No heavy intervention required.
That ease of maintenance is one of the biggest advantages of oil-finished timber flooring.
What We Do Differently Now
When we laid this floor, we used a knot filler that we no longer use. The colour match wasn’t perfect.
Since then, we’ve refined our system:
- Improved filler formulation
- Better colour matching
- A more flexible and durable finish
It’s a small detail — but it reflects how we’ve developed and improved our flooring offering over the last few years. We test in our own space first.
We’ve also installed a new kiln, improving both the speed and accuracy of our drying process — resulting in better quality boards and more consistent moisture control.
The Bigger Point
Timber flooring isn’t fragile. It’s not just for quiet bedrooms or low-use spaces.
When specified properly, laid correctly and finished well, Douglas Fir, Larch and Scots Pine can comfortably handle high-traffic environments — including a busy retail shop with tens of thousands of visitors each year.
Our own floor is proof of that.
If you’d like to see it in person, you’re welcome to walk across it — 50,000 people a year already do.
