While finish sets, it's best to get clients out of the building. But Mid-West Floor, while refinishing 100-year-old maple floors inside the "Old Cathedral" (formally the Basilica St. Louis, King of France) in St. Louis this summer, wasn't allowed to keep anyone from the basilica while the finish set. Even with a full-scale renovation going on, mass took place every day.
So did the team at Mid-West go at it on a wing and a prayer? Not a chance. Some of Mid-West's most experienced finishers—the least experienced had 18 years with the company—knew it was possible. The basilica did its part by cordoning off the wood floor and moving parishioner seating to the tile floor surrounding the altar, but the team had to time the application process just right.
The idea was to put a coat down as soon as mass ended at 8 a.m. If the finish didn't set enough overnight, dust kicked up by parishioners would spell ruin. The team inspected the floor the next morning and were relieved to see they wouldn't be in finish purgatory. They completed the second coat and walked out at peace—thanks be to God! (The Old Cathedral is located at 209 Walnut St., 10 blocks from the Edward Jones Dome and adjacent to the Arch.)
