Thanks for posting this. I've got brazilian cherry which look beautiful for 2 seconds. so much maintenance. We are building now and I'm looking at all options. Why solid hardwood over some other material for you? It looks beautiful but I feel your pain on the maintenance issue

I'm going for solid hardwood because I want my daughter to have a better estate sale. LOL

I know that engineered wood has come a LONG way, but my personal opinion is that solid hardwood is more, um, 'classic?' That resale value is more than likely higher with solid hardwood (as evidenced by the over-used advertising in real estate ads). I rarely see "must see ~ real engineered wood floors!"

What really sold me is when my daughter (recently) bought a 90+ year old rowhouse in Philly. The antique heart pine wood on all three floors is GORGEOUS even in its' worst condition (less-than-perfect patch/repairs, dings, dents, etc). She won't let me take it.

I have natural white oak strip floors. Hardwood is an excellent choice, IMO.

I'm also leaning towards the "strip" (instead of the wider 'plank') floors. From what I understand, the narrower strip floors have less gap issues and are more stable. They are definitely a more timeless look (even though I also love the wide plank look!).

I have hickory hardwood floors. I wanted something different from the oak I have had in the past. The brand is Somerset which is made in the USA, from hardwoods in Kentucky.
I do prefer solid to engineered wood flooring especially for the ability to sand and refinish if you want or need to. You cannot do this with engineered wood or bamboo.

Ours are oak (solid) in the home we bought almost 2 years ago...they look great. I can't tell you how handy a Roomba vacuum is when it comes to hardwood floors, especially dark hardwood.

@CJ...

You sound like a candidate for a nice RIFT Sawn White Oak in a lightly hand-scraped (keyword: LIGHTLY) 3" plank...or even a wire-brushed" texture.

Lends itself well to the more contemporary/modern style and in a medium to dark color (of your choice, of course) is a look that will NEVER be out of style.

The maintenance & wear factor is more in lie with the actual "finish" used in the choice made. We have great success with our proprietary Aluminum Oxide Polyurethane finish... which is available in any sheen level from Ultra Low Sheen on up to Gloss... although the most popular choices range from Satin (#1) to a Semi (#2). We've found that using the right product provides a great, user friendly and durable result... which also allows for periodic re-coating if needed (every 5-10 years perhaps), and eliminates the need to actually refinish the floors, which can be a costly & painful endeavor at times.

There's a HUGE difference between a quality product and the run of the mill... "junk-in-the-box" products. (IMHO).

Thanks, person-from-Select Hardwood Floor Co. I agree that RIFT sawn is spectacular (also the most pricey). I tend to gravitate towards the quartersawn, simply for the amount of color and LACK of "uniformity." I like the 'character' in reclaimed flooring and most of the hand-scraped/distressed new hardwood boards. But there is a fine line to avoid looking like a ski cabin.

I speak from experience when I shout from the mountain tops, "NO SHINEY FINISH!" Ever. Look super cool in pictures, but not in real life. Maybe for a closet or something, the kind you don't walk in to.

I am looking for a higher quality product, something that will outlast me.

ideasinva ~ I find myself gravitating towards Hickory ALL the TIME! Every sample 'board' I look at, my eyes go right for the hickory! I love its' character. What color/tone of stain did you put on yours?

chloebud ~ I think a Roomba would leave smudges on this super-shiney, makes-me-want-to-jump-off-a-bridge, laminate bamboo! I vacuum (mostly because I have so many rugs laid out to cover the flooring), dustmop, and dampmop (with just a spray bottle of junk) ALL.THE.TIME.

I want floors that you can't tell they need to be cleaned unless you look at the bottom of your socks.

Tken34 ~ I love your floors! You're very lucky to have chosen homes with them already down. Right there is the future value of re-doing my floors with hardwood ~ people KNOW they are lucky to have them already installed!

CJ, we have recently installed dark hardwood floors in LR, DR, and foyer replacing beige wall to wall carpeting. The dark floors do show dust and lint, and I think cherry would probably have been a better color. Still like mine anyway. I have a Rumba for hard surfaces but REALLY do not like it and won't use it on the dark floors since it doesn't seem to polish very well. (I LOVE my other Rumba for carpet). I think the hand-hewn look is very county and avoided it for that reason, besides I thought it looked contrived. I would choose a reputable flooring company in case there are problems. We used a locally owned business and am sure they would stand behind the flooring. Luckily we have not had problems. Successful choosing!

I would love to see you with a quarter sawn white oak with a mid-tone colour with a snick more 'gray' in it than the caramel coloured floor shown by TKen34. The gray undertone (not quite so golden) lends itself well to a distressed/wire brush finish (when oak is chopped and then let to go natural = gray). I wouldn't go any darker than what is shown by Tken34. A low-gloss satin would do just fine for you. I would say Tken34 has a semi-gloss on there.

A satin has a 'glow' that makes people feel like it is clean...but not SUPER SHINY to the point of seeing smudges all over. A matte finish is a nice option that works really well with NATURAL coloured floors. I'm not fond of matte on dark(er) floors. But thats a personal preference.

Remember: the lighter the floor the LESS dirt you see. If you want a stain on it, you will naturally see "more". That being said, a lower gloss finish with a hint of gray in the stain will offer the same liveability as a light floor (dust is "gray"...see where I'm going with this?).

Stick with solid hardwood in 3" (white oak is the easiest to work with because it takes any stain, anytime, anywhere and it does it with style) and you will never have a problem "matching" the floor later.

baggie2 ~ Your floors sound gorgeous and I'll bet they are MUCH easier to live with than my super-shiney laminate bamboo. I really like the look of dark floors, but the maintenance has just gotten the best of me. After 5 years, I'm throwing in the towel!!

I avoid the over-distressed/hand-scraped look as well, because they DO look more 'countryish.' Also, I am REALLY researching the wood supplier(s) that my local flooring specialty stores are recommending. I'll spend a few extra bucks *now* to avoid heartbreak in the future!

Cancork Floor Person ~ I *do* like the quartersawn look....and also the mid-tone color stains. Your suggestion for a "snick more gray" is GREAT.....and I'm going to ask for it when I visit the front runner floor company tomorrow!

I am also planning on a low-gloss finish. Possibly no-gloss. lol.. Not really, but you can tell I'm a little bit paranoid when it comes to this big purchase. I don't want to make another mistake!!

ALSO, everyone, two of the companies that are supplying quotes suggested that flooring might look nice laid in a "diagonal" pattern.

Now, I like it....a lot, in fact, but I worry that I might get sick of it? As you can see from the pics, it's a fairly *square* area, which leads me to think that the 'diagonal' pattern might look really good.

Has anyone tried that?

I do LOVE my hardwood floors. Oak downstairs & Pine upstairs.

They came with my 100 yo house. I wouldn't trade them for anything!!

bungalowmo ~ See? Your place is the reason I WANT those floors!! I'm so mad that my daughter won't give hers to me. lol Enjoy them ~ you cannot BUY floors like that (well, not in MY budget)!

Tken34...my floors look very much like yours. 10 yrs old and thriving. There was a brief (about 10 min) period of time when I thought they look dated...when everyone was going dark. Well...I got over that pretty quickly and am soooo glad I have what I have. Timeless and so easy to keep. Mine are real oak strips, show lots of grain so almost all kinds of wood on furniture can blend. They are fairly shiny, polyurethane coated...easy as pie to maintain. Dust shows....after a couple weeks! Even though trendier looks have come and gone....when I look at these floors I consider myself wise that I use other ways to keep my decor current. I am told that they can be refinished, stained another color, glossiness changed etc. but I see no reason to do it anytime soon.

Can, I got the prefinished color called hickory saddle. It is a very nice brown tone

CJ, sorry the auto correct said can, lol

I love my hard wood. They were an old gymnasium, and I love their look. Our house can get dark in the winter, even with Solatubes, so the light floors help. We have bamboo in the
Halls and bedroom. Like both.

I have red oak engineered hardwood. It's actually hardwood but much more stable than you may think and it fit perfectly with my Georgian style home. We recently has hvac trouble and it endured humidity of 72% for an entire week before swelling a bit and once the hvac system was repaired, the wood is as good as new. A satin finish is excellent for high traffic areas and pets. The rule of thumb is to remove your shoes and only wear socks or house slippers while indoors. A shaggy microfiber push broom helps collect the dust and dander one see on dark wood floors. I prefer hardwood over carpet. I grew up in Victorian and Georgian homes so with our new home, it definitely had to be hardwood. I wouldn't accept anything less.

Moved into our home about 6 months ago. Was very nervous about our wood floors due to three crazy dogs (15, 45, and 65 pound mutts). Have to say that we LOVE our floors. No scratches at all! Cannot be happier. Check out http://realwoodfloors.com/. We have the Ponderosa Pueblo hickory floors with satin matte finish. We have them throughout the house including the kitchen.

In my kitchen I have solid white oak in 3" and 5" strips finished with one coat of medium brown stain and 2 coats of oil-based polyurethane. The first coat glossy, the second satin. I've had them for almost 2 years now, and they are super easy to maintain. In the rest of the house I have 3" strip oak (not sure whether red or white) and it's original to my 90-year old Colonial revival home. Solid hardwood is the way to go--just make sure the quality of the product and the finish are superior and you won't be sorry!

We have hand scraped oak floors, pegged in walnut. They came from trees cleared to build the house in 1948. They are absolutely stunning. They're a tad darker than I'd like, but I adore ever scar & imperfection in them.

I have rift and quarter sawn 4" wide white oak in a mid-tone brown, matte finish, in my new build. It still shows the dust, but I love it. Prior to this, I've had grade A white oak in 2.5" strips, no stain, in. Swedish-type finish and they NEVER shower ANY dust or dirt, which was better. I loved them even more.

RE: diagonal, I'm not a fan, I think it reads weird modern, but that's just weird me.

Hi, can someone please tell me what species of wood this is? (Or most likely is) I have no idea, and I want to refinish. Thank you!

Either red or white oak. When refinishing, you normally only need to know the species when matching the floor - not necessarily refinishing.

When refinishing white oak in a water based finish, it will require a sealant applied to prevent tannin pull. Red Oak doesn't need this step....but it doesn't HURT if you add in that extra step with Red Oak. So, I would plan out your refinishing as if this were white oak...which would mean a sealant will be needed if you work with a water based polyurethane. That is really the only difference when it comes to the APPROACH.

Colour choice is a different beast and will require stain patches to determine which colour you want...again this is done with every species so the approach is not affected either way.

Wow, thanks for the great response!

What brand of sealant would you recommend? and is this step done before or after the stain?

We have reclaimed hardwood flooring in our house. Is there really that big of a difference? I didn't think mine was too expensive.