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Interiors International, Inc. No regrets! The look is worth it. The maintenance is not that bad and it is so much more comfortable than tile.

bethbevington No regrets. I love my hard wood. It's light and I wish a little darker

sam0705 We have an all white kitchen with Moroccan walnut floors. Love them!

feeny I've lived in houses with hardwood floors in the kitchens for the last 45 years and love them. Our current house has white oak floors throughout (including the kitchen) that are 90 years old and still going strong. They were last refinished 20 years ago. I find them easy to clean and, if they are in medium tones (rather than very dark or very light) they hide a multitude of sins between cleanings.

Kj Gemmill I love my hardwood floors in the kitchen. We have a medium stain hickory and get compliments all the time. For such a hard wood it does still dent, etc. so be prepared to live with those kinds of blemishes, especially from someone wearing high heels or dropping cans of food on the floor. Think of it as "character" ;) I would do it all over again in a heartbeat!

Dytecture I also like having hardwood in the kitchen, it's a bit softer on your feet and works extremely well in an open concept floor plan.

camillealbert Ok but how do you keep them shiny and clean ???

peetsoo No regrets going with hardwood in my kitchen...........

feeny Ours are mopped once every two weeks with Murphy's Oil Soap (I know that some on Houzz prefer other products, but it works for us), and swiffered (mostly for dog hair) frequently between cleanings. And if anything spills I wipe it up, just as I would with any other kind of flooring. I find it MUCH harder to keep something like white tile floors looking clean than hardwood.

Kj Gemmill I use Bona hardwood floor cleaner in a spray bottle and mop with one of those long-handled mops from Bona with the microfiber pad that velcros on. Sometimes I just use the mop dampened with water. It's very easy to clean and really doesn't show the dirt. I find it much easier to keep clean than that stupid white vinyl that was originally in there. And for the curious, we have had the floor for 2.5 years and a dog that entire time as well ;) I clean it as needed and that isn't every week.

Toni Sabatino I agree that the wood floors are a good idea. I put wood floors in many of the kitchens I design. Rich deep wood floors look beautiful with white kitchens and the maintenance is not bad as you have read above.

sdflorida I have just put wood floors in my house, dark floors in an all white kitchen, this is my third house that I have had wood floors in my kitchen, I have had NO problem with wear and tear on my floors, they are so comfortable under foot and I have really seen no down side. Good luck.

azelizabeth I am so glad that I came across this thread, I am ready to pull my 13x13, 1996 tile and put wood down, my kitchen will also have white cabinets.

Urban Oasis I have hardwood and although I love the look and they are soft beneath your feet, they are more prone to damage and wear than tile or stone. For example, we had a dishwasher leak which left all the pieces slightly buckled if you look at them in the right light. To be honest though, when I redo the kitchen floors I will probably go with hardwood again. One professional told me to avoid a floating floor for the kitchen though to avoid the buckling.

wildfan Yes, my vote goes to hardwood as well. I don't particularly care for tile myself. If you want hardwood, that's what you should go with.

taco I have had hardwood in the kitchen for 13 years.
Easy clean with a Swiffer, and they don't show the dirt nearly as bad as my tiles did.
Don't hesitate.... You won't regret it!

peetsoo The colour and finish is also a factor here. The really dark woods with glossy finishes tend to show everything and any scuffs or scratches are very apparent. We went with a medium tone wood (with a lot of variation in it and a satin finish (Mirage / Maple / Praline) and we love it and plan to live on it (not baby it). Very glad we didnt go with tile as we had originally planned. Good luck with whatever you decide.........

Lkristine If something ever happens that can't have attention relatively quickly, your wood floors could be damaged beyond repair. You could still get the look you love with tile, and not have to worry. Just my opinion. And, yes, I had wood floors in my previous kitchen, and would never choose real wood floors. I didn't choose what we had, they were there when they moved in, but the wear and tear on them over the years was far more harsh that what it would have been had I had something other than hardwood flooring. http://www.mosaictilestone.com/Wood-Look-Porcelain-TIles-s/254.htm?ibp-adgroup=ppc

groveraxle I've had hardwood floors for 25 years and have had dogs the entire time. They're probably due to be refinished, but they still look good. Chances of a spill damaging them beyond repair are negligible. I sweep the dog hair every day, mop two or three times a month with Murphy's. Don't be afraid. You will love them.

suzie1319 We have had hardwood floors for twenty years - solid oak bleached and stained a pale grey. They still look good, three children and one dog later. I recommend that you go for it!

KJ Tiles Artistic Did you know there's a vast array of wood look tiles available? We carry weathered, vintage, shaded, and authentic looking grains with knots! They're all maintenance free! Check out our new extra long planks (6 X 24) which minimizes grout lines even more.

Ingrained woodworking Inc Hardwood is great! Pine floors take a beating. Do 4 coats poly on the kitchen floor

Lkristine I should have added that I had a Mastiff, a Great Pyrenees, and cats as well at the time I had hardwood floors. Chances are, as said above are not that high, but still......I lived in my previous home for 12 years, and would have much rather had something with extremely high durability. It wouldn't have looked so crappy when I moved, had it been something more durable to any and all circumstances whether negligible or not. If I ever have the opportunity again, I will not put real wood flooring in a kitchen.

Ingrained woodworking Inc A lighter color will show less dirt and scratches

feeny Well, to be honest, I would not recommend hardwood floors for families with such huge dogs either. But I think for families with kids and average sized dogs (we have two aussies), hardwood floors can be a very versatile and durable choice.

designideas4me Interiors International, Inc.......................... is your wood floor float or glue down? Does it matter in terms of moisture or "feeling softer than tile"? Also what do you think about strand bamboo versus an engineered wood for the kitchen? I too am deciding on dark or light and type due to the same issues.

Renee.......... what is the floor in the rest of the house? Did you say you are just doing kitchen or whole house?

designideas4me With all those who have wood..................is the preference for glue down or float and light or dark and solid or engineered. home depot has a special I am considering at $400 for the entire house install of a floating floor. Any regrets on floating assuming good underlayment .............actually how do you know what a good pad is? suggestions?

Ingrained woodworking Inc Be very careful on selecting an engineered flooring. Find out the wear rating on it. Some are very thin. Especially in the big box stores. Go to at least one flooring place and ask questions. I prefer nail down for its ability to be refinished if it ever needs it.

jkristamagee Our first home had them and my new home had tile. Honestly, when I build my "last home/next home" I will most likely put down hardwood. Even if I wanted to change years later, I can go for it without tearing out with the mess - I do love the look of my kitchen now- it's absolutely my dream look BUT not as comfortable. If your ideal kitchen involved the wood and these are your only negatives making you think twice, go for it! I personally so jot think you will ever regret it. Just keep in mind that some people like the look and feel of tile under them more so the comments that are making you think twice are just their opinions- and well- I'm sure we all know what is said about the opinions lol.

designideas4me I have concrete so it has to be glue or float.

I dont think most people like the feel of tile..............thats your opinion. I personally find it cold and slippery.

nancyde I have Australian Cypress in my kitchen and put it in 11 years ago. I still love it, even with 2 dogs and kids. I would keep the wood, it looks beautiful. We have a summer home and we put down Marmoleum -true linoleum (not vinyl, it's the real thing) and it feels fantastic underfoot, just another thought in case you just feel you absolutely have to change it.

peetsoo .......another plus for hardwood over engineered (if it is thin) is that you can refinish hardwood many times if you needed to, change the stain if you chose to in years to come............ours is nailed down....

jrs2851 Have you considered a porcelain tile that looks like hardwood? From just looking around tonight I saw lots of pics and it looks really good. I like that it's a tile and cleanup will be so much easier. I've always got water puddles somewhere, and that isn't a concern with tile!

Renee Jalbert designideas4 me: Hard wood floor in the whole house (except for hall entrance and bathrooms)
I realise reading all you posts, my floor will be engenired and not hardwood..maybe that's where my worries lay. I know those old hardwood floors can take a beating. We have enginered wood in our present living room and it does show some wear and tear after 10 years and two young children but it doesn't really bother me. Just worrying if it will be worse in the kitchen...Thanks fo all your helpful comments everyone! (the positive and the negative!)

Kj Gemmill For everyone else who reads this thread looking for ideas, I'm sure the quality, color, finish, etc. all make a big difference. With anything. In our case our hickory, medium-color floor is 3/4 inch thick, nailed not glued, very little bevel on the edge (I wanted as small a crack as possible,) satin finish (not glossy,) and it does have a lot of grain. We wanted to put down one floor type on the entire first floor and our open floor plan includes our family room connected to the kitchen. The builder originally used 5 different floor types on the first floor!!! So wood was our choice this time and we love it. But I did want something really good that would stand the test of time, just as the old factory floors you see. Of course mine looks newer than that but I hope that no matter the beating it takes ours will look at least that good in 50 years. I mean, people use those reclaimed wood floors from old factories to put into their homes today. I was obsessive about every little drop of water when I first got it but over time I've realized that they don't seem to hurt the floor at all. I wouldn't want to have a major spill such as the dishwasher leaking while we are away, but so far none of the water has damaged it at all. I just see water spots that wipe up.

We do have tile in our master bathroom and I love it for the bathroom or laundry room, etc. And the new tiles that look like wood, stone, etc. are really cool. But for the kitchen I was worried about how many things we would break dropping them on the tile. Including the tile ;) I would still go with real hardwood in my kitchen. And I think real hardwood is an investment. My sister-in-law had some kind of wood floor installed where they sanded it after it was installed. Very messy. But they didn't have any finish or stain put on it. They used tungsten oil or something like that. She mops it with water and it looks great! Of course it is a more natural look, not 'fancy' but very easy to care for and definitely doesn't show scratches and dents because there is no 'finish' to scratch/dent. Just something to think about.

Cancork Floor Inc. Designideas...watch out for strand bamboo - they are held together with UREA FORMALDEHYDE! They off-gass heavily! They smell for the first few months and they dent easily, are difficult to repair and when scratched (if they are finished with aluminum oxide) they are almost impossible to refinish. They also stain with water and pets!

Just a little FIY on bamboo!

redesign-gallery Wood......go wood not laminated products. Too many have water/formaldehyde/urine from pets problems. I use old sub-flooring from old houses after I rip the finished flooring off, sand it down with 36 grit, one total coat of polyurethane, screw it to the floor then two more coats of poly. These are lifetime floors, durable, easy to fix if you have a disaster and look like a million bucks!!

redesign-gallery And......unlike the photo at the top of this thread, run the wood toward the light and you won't notice the variations in height quite so much.

peetsoo I agree with redesign gallery on the ideal direction for laying the hardwood but this also depends on the direction that your floor joists run. The hardwood should run in the opposite direction as the joists (or accross them) to properly support the hardwood. Its possible to build up your subfloor for additional support (or to reinforce the floor joists from below / by installing blocks between them) but be careful that you don't void your warranty by laying them improperly with insufficient support built in - I only know this because of a ton of research that we had to do sorting this issue out in our open concept home where the joists run in different directions in different areas of the home. You menioned you are on cement so I think making sure your area is level will be your main concern (and that moisture is not an issue)

orgle We'll be carrying on our dark hardwood into the kitchen as well. BTW, what's the source for your picture? I love everything about it!

Urbana ~ Designer Ellen Crystal careful on too dark a floor, every fleck of salt, sugar, bread etc will show up on it! if you are on concrete will have to go engineered floor. Some is designed for at least one refinish in the lifespan of floor. pre-finished means less mess and off gassing in your home, but not sealed at joints so chance of water infiltration. I had solid walnut in my kitchen. Loved it, pretty easy maintenance, all went well, til the DW leaked. as it was solid, not too much trouble to refinish. about 10 days of sanding & filling & sealing. Went to heated tile more recently when I did a complete reno. Very easy maintenance, but have to wear footwear as too hard on my legs if standing long. as many have said, there are some porcelain tiles that are wood grained & look amazing. Keep in mind nothing is fool proof. Just be informed & make the decision that works best for your installation requirements & lifestyle.

mkeck1 ok...I am going with white kitchen and hardwood flooring in my tiny, but adorable house. Can't wait.

daverohr We have had wood floors in kitchen for 20 years. The maintenance is not bad. They have a few nicks but nothing real noticeable at all

senja77 This picture looks like it may have tile that looks like wood floor. If you love the look of wood in the kitchen, go for that. A friend of mine has wood floors in the kitchen and has had them redone twice in ten years due to water damage and everyday wear and tear.

legwork I have had hardwood floors in two kitchens .they are easy to clean and easy on the legs .The dishes that slip to the floor bounce rather then crash. Big bonus for a clumsy cook.

Allyson Hansen Love my wood floors. They are warm, which tile isn't. They are more forgiving than other hard surfaces. Throw rugs help freshen up the look in different seasons. Love rugs in winter and in spring and summer we go bare! You won't regret your wood kitchen floors.

redesign-gallery The floor joists are well under the subfloor .........which should be at least 3/4" so any direction of the finished flooring should be fine.........unless you are putting t & g 1 x 4 over stringers with concrete in between (floated). MOST of the time this concrete has shrunk to below the exact tops of the stringers. When this happens you eventually get a washboard affect. So in this case you have no choice but to run perpendicular with the floor joist stringers.

Renee Jalbert Orgle, I'm pretty sure I got the picture in my post from this site. It is beautilful!!

megmci I can't imagine having anything other than wood. Tile is cold, and grout is impossible to clean. We love a tung oil finish, which penetrates the grain and hardens.

orgle Thanks, Renee, I'll keep looking :)

Edit: Found it! Google's image search is pretty awesome.

redesign-gallery Orgie......I have a warehouse full of 10 different species of native wood planks from 6" to 20" widths, 3/4 to 5/4 in thickness plus lots of floor and sub-floor salvaged wood if you need wood for your new floors. It is great ofr ceilings too and trim. This comes once through a planer and once through 36 grit sander and either cut to dimensions or with one straight edge for onsite cut/fit. I am in the Iowa Falls, Iowa area. 515-231-1872. Prices run from $2.50 to $10.50 per board foot.

ssmile I chose dark hardwood floors and a white kitchen as well. My biggest complaint is keeping the dark hardwood floors clean...they are very high maintenance and look like they need to be cleaned once they have just been cleaned; thus, be careful where your natural light is coming in!

Rachel Jane Just bought a house with hardwood in the kitchen. I love it. Glad for this thread and all the ideas for cleaning / maintenance.

designideas4me megmci

what kind of wood are you using that you put the oil on as you mentioned. I like bamboo but have heard some negative comments on here about it.

megmci Our floors were pine but it could be used on other species.

Debra Hallberg-Palmer I have a white kitchen and hardwood (oak flooring) and would not have it anyother way. I am going to have my floors redone to a darker finish though. White kitchens with wood is my favorite. I am a Realtor and it is also a favorite of most of my buyers. Ceramic/tile etc is very hard on the legs and cold. You are right on track.

melsol We have a dark cherry engineered wood floor in our entire house except for bedrooms. They have been so tough and durable through 2 kids as babies, toddlers, and now school-age, as well as a puppy. I don't use any chemicals on them. I use a Haan steam mop and they turn out beautifully clean & looking new every time. Although we didn't choose the floor, I have been very happy with its durability. I've been told that you can sand & refinish an engineered floor 2-3 times but we haven't needed to yet and they have taken a beating.

aniluap2 I have had hardwood floors in my last 2 kitchens. I love them since they are easier to stand on. My only advice is use an oil based finish . If your floor person tries to talk you into water based look for another refinisher since it does not hold up as well as oil. I just mop once a week with a little vinegar in water and they look great.

olgahicks We have the engineered wood floors. Installed on concrete, plywood layer with a moisture retarder paper, then nailed. Live in south florida so decided on the engineered. If we lived up north then I would have selected hardwood. I am happy with what we selected. It can be refinished 2 times. Have fun and enjoy your new floors!

Ironwood Builders Yay! From a wood guy and hardwood flooring lover..and a green builder, I love this post! One thing I'd like to clarify...about the kitchen image at the top of the post...is a prefinished product with a hand scraped look. Engineered or not, it has those ripples for the effect of being hand done. Of course it isn't...too regular and none of the scraping goes across a seam (like we would do in the real world). I think the designer intentionally played up the light across the material to highlight the product. Just my two and half almost cents.

Cancork Floor Inc. Water based finishes are moving quickly into the "tougher than..." category. A water based polyurethane - that is a two part professional grade - which are often considered "commercial grade" can rank much higher than oil or solvent based products...but no one uses them because they are expensive. The "oil" based products are often solvent based. These are being regulated and are on there way out (CARB rulings).

A water based URETHANE is not as high functioning as a water based polyurethane. An "off the shelf" product (one part) is not as tough as a two component "professional' grade water based polyurethane.

I've seen a urethane, polyurethane and a water based urethane protect poorly. I've seen high end polyurethanes out last many products. It is all about what the owner is allowing into their home. If you are looking for a very hard wearing product, be prepared to pay upwards of $150 - $250/gallon! A gallon of Varathane for $75 is not going to have the same performance as my corks German "Loba" (regularly retails for $185/gallon) finish. If you are spending $10+/sf for the hardwood floor of your dreams, make sure you are NOT SKIMPING on the finish.

It's like asking a "Firefly" to compete with a Ferrari! Two different products with two different purposes and yet both hold the title of "car".

If you choose oil, remember: you are choosing some heavy smells and long curing times. Check the "off-gassing" of those oils. They are often VERY HIGH! And that oil smell can be months before it gets out of the house. Many people can't handle that.

If your flooring specialist suggests an expensive water based product, make sure you think about it. As for the MSDS (materials safety data sheet) of both the oil based and the water based. Check the ingredients against European lists of "known carcinogens". Europe has MUCH HIGHER standards than the USA and they list EVERYTHING that has a possible link to death. USA won't list it until the scientists PROVE it causes death. Canada doesn't see what the fuss is all about and just wants people to stop asking all these hard questions (we have very few industry standards...heck, we still sell asbestos!!!).

azelizabeth This has been great as I am ready to have my floor installed. It all started with "I want to put wood in my living/dining room" to now I am getting ready to put it in hallways, kitchen and family room, in addition to the original idea of the living room. I selected a nice maple hard wood. I am in AZ and will be installing on a slab. I had half the contractors saying I had to get engineered wood and the other half saying if I use the 4 in 1 glue it will be fine. That was the biggest hurdle. Now I hope to survive the tile demolishing event... dread that.

eagle846 Just came across this discussion. I am second generation in the hardwood flooring trade. You have received a lot of great advice. May I offer some more. First of all please DO NOT USE oil soap to clean the floor. It is an oil and a soap and over a short period of time builds up and will cause a film on the floor. When we received a call complaining that the hardwood floors were looking dull, first question we asked was "what are you using to clean your floors". The answer was always some kind of oil soap . Bona Kemi was mentioned----an excellent product. Another favourite of mine is Woodpecker. Both are water based, non toxic products. And I always told my customers something they loved. to hear....less is better. Less washing and more vacuming, DRY swiffering , dry mopping etc, to keep the grit off the floor. And of course the use of felt pads under all hard pieces of furniture. Unfortunately larger dogs do cause indentations in the wood---------so do ladies in stilettos!!! It does cause dents in the wood, but does not usually affect the wearability of the urethane. Keeping the dogs nails clipped and filed helps that problem. (asking ladies to remove the stilettos works too LOL!)

A good quality engineered floor is quite stable and, depending on the species of wood, pretty hard. It is ideal for areas, such as Florida, as mentioned, or below grade application ,or over concrete. Many of the better engineered products have enough of a wear surface that can be refinished again (some even twice).
We used a commercial grade ,oil based urethane for decades, but that said some of the water based urethane on the market today are absolutely excellent and can be very comparable to the wearability we came to expect from our oil based urethane. Ask your flooring company to look into Loba water based urethane. An excellent product !

Good luck with your project.

laineygirl I've had hardwood floor in the kitchen of two houses for the last ten years but just moved to a new house that has slate in the kitchen. It is beautiful but oh how I miss my hardwood! It is so much softer and warmer on bare feet. We are considering pulling the slate and replacing with wood.

eagle846 Sorry, I was typing as Cancork 's comments came through. More excellent advice. I didn't mean to duplicate it.
Prices for Loba are much less in Canada, but still about 3 times what we paid for our commercial oil based urethane from a very reputable US company. We were just as particular about the stain products. Makes a world of difference!

I am biased, but couldn't agree more with Iaineygirl, the house we are renting, while we are renovating our house, has a ceramic floor in the kitchen. It's indestructible, but it's so cold!

aniluap2 We had our entire house refinished with oil based finish about 6 yrs ago, did not experience the smell that Cancorkfloor mentioned above. About 4 yrs ago when we renovated our kitchen we installed white oak flooring to try and match the rest of the house . The kitchen company's flooring sub used water based finish and assured me it was very tough and what was used on basket ball courts. 3 yrs later it was wearing off and they claimed it is normal to put a coat of finish on every few years and it was because the kitchen is used so much. I showed him our stairs that are trafficked even more and they were in perfect condition. I'm not saying that there are not water based finishes out there that may be more durable, but in my last 2 homes I have been sorry every time they have used water based finish. If you know exactly which product they are using like Cancorkfloor suggested then maybe it will last.

designideas4me azelisbeth.....................what is 4 in1? you said "I am in AZ and will be installing on a slab. I had half the contractors saying I had to get engineered wood and the other half saying if I use the 4 in 1 glue it will be fine."

I too am installing on concrete and live in so cal. similiar climate. I dont quite understand what your saying nor what the woman inFla said about using engineered. Do you mean you used that as opposed to solid wood which is nailed to a wood subfloor?

I just wish I could figure out which wood to use. It wont be laminate. Either engineered or solid bamboo.

Cancork I left you a message to orger some samples of the cork but got no response. How can I get a sample from whats in your ideabook? thx

designideas4me So did you say you are going to float or glue the engineered wood Renee? Did you decide what type of wood species?

azelizabeth I plan to put solid wood on my slab. The 4 in 1 is the type of glue that has a moisture barrier.

Cancork Floor Inc. Designideas,

I've tried to send you our contacts on multiple threads.

Saleswebsite: www.icorkfloor.com
Sign up and order samples OR
Call: 1-888-988-2675
Email: info@icorkfloor.com

You can order samples any time from anywhere in the USA.

sallyyacques We have hardwood running seamless in every room on both floors of our house. We love it. It's been 4 yrs but the floors are much older than that. We moved from Florida where we originally had white tile, repealed it with the larger natural ceramic tiles and would not go back. LOVE the wood. Warmer she cleans it with a old floor cleaner &ever so often I clean it with diluted white vinaiger the day before she comes.

motherofdog I have had hardwood floors in my kitchens for a long time and the kitchen floors wear the same as the rest of the house.

hazeldazel I just bought a new house in December 2012, and I can say is... for the love of gawd do NOT install floating wood laminate flooring in a kitchen! They people who owned the house before us did, and a leaky kitchen faucet and refrigerator later it is peeling and buckling badly. And this is a concrete slab house in sunny California.

I think that's always going to be the Achilles Heel for wood in kitchens - the potential for moisture issues. Solid hardwood will withstand an occasional spill quickly wiped up, but what about leaks and bigger spills? Plus, it's a big expense and you want it to last.

Also, we've realized once we moved from our carpeted apartment to our nearly all wood floor home, that wood floors are hard on your feet. And I guess tile would be the same. So not much fun to stand and cook on. So I'm wondering if cork might be a better replacement flooring option when I get ready to replace the floor. Just a thought.

Ironwood Builders Hazedazel, Your base is concrete. Nothing you put over concrete has give, so, of course the laminate was not soft. Catastrophic events, as I believe I talked about earlier in this or one of many other posts are not "normal". In 25 years of doing this, it has happened on two floors, one laminate and one solid maple...both because of frozen pipes. Tile over wood disguises issues at the subfloor level. How many times have contractors pulled toilets that were leaking below the tile and torn out rot not visible to the homeowner until the floor starts to give? LOTS!!! Cork flooring is resilient flooring, but it is about the cushion you put under it, not the cork if you are thinking the floor is like a wine cork, not so much. Hard equals durable for flooring material.

Carm Longo - The Kitchen Planners All my client whom put in hardwood floors have said they regret doing so! I think they look amazing....but not the best choice if you have young children or pets, especially dogs, in the home. If you do put in hardwood flooring choose one that is distressed so you are not so worried about it scratches...the repair is simple!

woofwoof From a practicality point of view, you could damage tile just as much as wood, so if you like wood, get wood. Just wipe up spills quickly with a slightly damp cloth and don't drop your LeCreuset pots on the floor, no matter what it's made of ; ) But to the people who say they use Swiffer products, I have been told by more than one floor professional that Swiffer cloths have something in them that can damage finish. (at least on newer engineered floors like mine.) We have to sweep our wood floors at least once, maybe twice a week, as you would with any kitchen, and mop only when necessary, which isn't very often. Only Bona on my floors.

sunmoon I have real would floors in two rooms. My husband first surprised me by doing my bedroom in blond oak. Then later we did my living area in a medium oak. So now I want to do redo my kitchen and add a room out to the pool. I love the wood but am unsure do I have to match one of the other roomsto keep the flow? The hardwood that we laid down are small planked. Now I love the wide planked floors just not sure if I should use what I love or what I already have down.

Linda Cancork - Yikes, those finishes are expensive! I thought the Streetshoe I've been using was expensive enough. I certainly agree on the two part water base finishes. In my opinion, the odor of the 2part finish does dissipate faster than the regular oil but both are pretty horrible.