Finish for garage stairs.

[Stephen Roth]

I am finishing a set of indoor garage stairs. I can finish the stairs inside, but they will live in an unfinished garage. They will not be exposed to sunlight, but the garage does get below freezing.

I was going to use a Verathane product, but they told me the finish may crack in the cold.

I don't want to use a 2 part epoxy.

Any suggestion? Total Boat maybe?

[Stephen Roth]

Update: I called Waterlox. They said their finish would work fine as long as I did not build too thick a coat. I will probably go with that. I have used Waterlox in the past and like the way it lays down.

The Verathane tech said that the problem is not the finish, but that the wood will expand more in the cold than it would in a house. Varathane suggested Thompson's Waterseal, but I have heard very bad things about that product.

On a rabbit hole discussion: I thought the problem with expansion of wood was caused by forced air heating in the modern home. And that wood outside does not expand that much.

[Maurice Mcmurry]

Varathane will be fine. MinWax is also a trusted polyurethane. It is less expensive. I prefer it.

[Tom M King]

Minwax solvent based floor finish. I just used some yesterday. It flows beautifully.

[Tom M King]

It cures Very slowly, so probably don’t use stairs for several days. Only thing better would be MCU, but since you’re asking probably leave that out.

[Rich Engelhardt]

Whatever you put on, make sure it isn't slippery.
Film finishes tend to be.

A thin coat of 3# cut shellac would also work just fine. Prior to the 1920s when Alkyd resin was discovered, shellac was the go-to floor finish.