Before the buffer, there was the weighted floor brush. The bulky, 20-pound tool was recommended by the major hardwood flooring manufacturers at the turn of the century for polishing the era’s ubiquitous parquet floors to make them, as one supplier put it in 1889, “almost indestructible.” The brushes ranged from $3–$5 (over $100 in today’s costs) and were recommended for use 30 minutes after wax finish was applied to rub first across the grain and then with it. “A piece of dry cloth, felt or carpet placed under the brush will give the finishing gloss,” a 1908 brochure by E.L Roberts states. As technology advanced, the weighted brush faded away, but one pro, René Caran of Karlovy Vary, Czech Republic-based Parquet Renspol, is keeping the technique alive and offering others the opportunity for a brush with the past. “We are doing a seminar for the National Institute of Monuments on the topic of parquet waxing and historical techniques of surface treatment and care,” says Caran, who runs WorkCamp Parquet, a popular wood flooring masterclass in Europe. “We are demonstrating how to use the tool practically.”
