I'd by a roomba ;-D

I looooove dark wood floors - and i would have put them in the house we're renovating now, except that it's a victorian and I thought it wouldn't go with the age. But if I did, I'd resign myself to buying swiffer stock and a roomba.

Maybe try to get the fam to get in the habit of taking shoes off at the door.

I'm afraid the footsteps might tell the story...

I love the colour!

And taking off shoes at the door is a great idea, not just to keep the stairs clean. See WebMD link below...

Here is a link that might be useful: Leave Dirt at the Door: How Taking Off Your Shoes Can Improve Your Health

What about getting a satin finish? I've heard that might help. By the way, I love dark floors and wanted them, but got persuaded out of it. I'm sure it will all look great and be worth it in the end.

Beautiful! Who the heck wore a shoe on your newly stained wood?? Actually, it may simply be dust from other parts under reno? The unfinished parts of my basement need a good cleaning, so when I've been down there, in bare feet, I track dusty foot prints onto my dark hardwood.

Here's a poor photo of my hardwood. I have invested in a swiffer vac (the best of both worlds), though I find that a good old broom works well too

Is that drywall dust? It's the worst stuff. You won't normally get it that bad. You're gonna need some area rugs strategically placed.

If possible, you should lighten it up to match your original choice. It's beautiful, but it'll be a little more work. You could keep the stair parts dark though--in my 20s house, the floors were medium oak but the trimwork throughout was almost black. The treads on the stairs were oak, but the risers and stringers and railings were all dark. I mean that you can mix and match a bit and it won't NECESSARILY be bad...

And if you keep it dark, it's pretty enough you just might not mind adopting a Roomba.

sara m: great link. it reminds me of something i saw on qvc, or was it hsn(?)--the haan steam vacuum. i'm thinking of investing in one now that i read your link!

Only you can know if you can live with the footprints. They are an indication of what will show up on your dark floors. You must decide if you will be ok with that kind of upkeep. Personally, it would be too dark for me, but you are hearing from a lot of people who love the look enough that they are willing to clean up after the dirt on a daily basis.

Dark flooring of any type will eventually get dusty, even without shoes, even if the room is not entered.

Of course the worst for me was when something actually made a mark in the dust! Now, it would show and I would need to get out the dust mop. That's my experience.

(we had a dark-ish laminate wood look in last house)

Personally, I love it. I accidentally went "medium" (thought it would be darker but couldn't bear to have it re-done after all the remodeling - was tired of the whole thing) and I wish it were darker. Mine does have the satin finish which is supposed to wear better - sometimes I think it looks a little dull though.

Lastly, hardwoods require near daily sweeping/swiffering anyway I think, (especially if you have kids and/or pets) so unless you are really inclined to let them go, I think you'll probably be sweeping them a lot no matter what color. And we do shoes off in the house.

Again, I think your floor looks great! Hope you end up happy!!!

I think they are SO beautiful! I wanted chocolate-y colored floors and settled for a medium mahogany (we have a white basset hound that sheds like a cotton candy machine). Like Katmandu said - hardwoods probably need to be swept every day. I recently updated my sofa table to a very dark wood - I love, love, love it, but every morning, I get up, make my bed and dust the sofa table - it just shows too much hair and dust! But if you get the right equipment to make daily cleaning a snap, it makes it livable.

PS. Roomba, oh, I want one so bad... the pricey one got a thumbs up for pet owners! although, that probably won't help with the stairs. Unless it's a jetsons-roomba!

I LOVE my dark hardwood floors for over two years now. We got a large "gym mop" dust mop at a cleaning supply store and a dusting spray that goes on the mop head. The floors look like furniture most of the time. If i have a sticky mess ( i do have children), i use the micro-fibre mop pads from target and a solution that i also get from Target called Method Wood For Good planet friendly floor cleaner. Works beautifully and leaves no streaking or weird residue behind. Embrace them, you will love them too.

Redrune, tnkitchens and katmandu, you are telling me what i want to hear. I don't think I really want to change them. I think the color is lovely and will be neat in my house. I think the floors themselves will look just a bit lighter--apparently, the stair treads look a bit darker. Plus, the stairs don't have much light on them. Thanks everyone for chiming in, even those of you who didn't tell me what I wanted to hear ;)

Last question--does it matter that my dining and pool table (I have a "billiards room") are cherry? They will both sit on rugs. I assume wood floors are neutral. I have wood floors now that are pretty golden (stain is Early American, I think).

Also, I am feeling like a bad housekeeper b/c I don't clean my hardwoods hardly at all now! I guess b/c they are golden--they don't show. I have a cleaning service once a week. They get mopped then. No shedding dogs, but still!

I like the color, personally!

You mention that your stairs get less light-My floor looks much lighter when the sun or the can lights are shining on them. If they weren't covered with drop cloths right now, I'd take some pictures to show the difference. Could you bring a light over by the stairs and see if that lightens them up more?
Also, did they water pop the treads? Skip that step if so, if you want them lighter.
I choose one of the darker options of the finish we used (Rubio Monocoat) because I wanted to err on the side of "too dark" instead of accidently ending up with "medium brown" so I am definitely biased towards dark floors. I'd rather clean floors I love often, than have to clean floors I don't like infrequently.
I think mixing woods works fine; having some contrast probably works better than having two different woods that are about the same shade. I am using walnut and quartersawn white oak.

They will be GORGEOUS and look great with any furniture! I have dark floors, 6 kids, 4 adults and a dog in the house-and I'd do it again in a heartbeat. Actually, I did-our last home also had dark floors and I wanted them replicated. A satin finish is the way to go in a busy household. Ours ore glossy and that's the ONLY thing I would change

Pattiem93, thank you! Wow. That is a busy household. I have two kids and a dog who doesn't shed--and all the kids' friends. I think satin is what we are planning. I will confirm, though. Do you clean/mop/vacuum often?

Don't turn back- they're going to be gorgeous. My floors are just that dark, and the only time I actually saw a dusty footprint was when there was drywall work being done. You will get what I call perimeter dust bunnies. I also have a satin finish. I think if your gut was saying you wanted dark- don't question it. Stick to your guns.

I have wood floors and they are not dark. I consider them medium to light. Our kitchen is still a work in progress. All the major dust work is over I hope. But in the mist of the construction, I was even questioning my choice. I had dust everywhere! Believe me once the dust settles it will be so much better. I have to say dark colors in anything will show more dust but a canister vacum with a brush attatchment works wonders. Go with your heart and you will be happy.

Keep the dark floors, I think they look great!!! Go with your vision, you won't be happy with lighter floors. As long as your prepared for a little swiffering.

From what I've heard from friends the prefinished dark floors are much harder to keep clean than stained red oak(I think that's what you have).

It will be beautiful.....and remember I posted before how I wish mine were a little darker.

One word: Roomba. I have medium red oak floors right now and I wouldn't live without my roomba. I turn that baby on and come back later in the day to find my hardwood clean! I want a scooba for my kitchen, but I'm waiting on it until we move. I hope to have darker floors in my rebuild so I understand about the stress of dust and dirt showing.

You're floors are beautiful dark, do you mind sharing what stain color/brand you used?