My head may explode!!! How to match or complement existing floors??

7 years ago

My head may explode before we determine how to solve our flooring dilemma, so please help.

We have a large 2 story home built in the 90's. The bulk of our home has traditional 3/4" thick, red oak hardwood flooring with a golden oak finsh. Each plank is about 2 1/2 inches wide. Our den has hardwood floors and leads into the kitchen, sunroom, powder room, playroom and then to a hallway that ends at the back door. We currently have 8" white tile in the kitchen, sunroom, powder room, and back hall. The playroom has blue carpet which is in terrible condition. We are very concerned about matching the red oak with a golden oak finish since it seems that oak and this finish may be out of fashion. The update will be a sizeable investment. Also, we plan to sell the house in around 5 years, so we want to use a product that will appeal to buyers. As info, the installer said that he cannot make the original flooring color exactly due to age. We have received numerous suggested from realtors, a decorator, and flooring representatives which include: replace the tile areas with updated tile; others suggest that we use hardwood that is 3/4" thick, 5 inches wide and try to match the existing hardwood color; one realtor suggested installing engineered flooring in the entire area by covering the existing hardwoods with engineered flooring.

..............Whatever do we do? We are open to all solutions. Thank you.

Please respond. What type of flooring do you suggest. If you suggest wood, then what type of wood, width, color, and finish do you suggest? Do most people prefer traditional 3/4 inch wood or maybe engineered flooring? Help....

Featured Answer

apple_pie_order

7 years ago

What is the reason to do something now, rather than in five years when you plan to sell? It'd be easy to just replace the playroom carpet now.

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Comments (7)

kayled
7 years ago
So....the only room on the first floor with hardwood right now is the den? You can put hardwood throughout and refinish the den in the process, everything will match downstairs and you can get it close enough no one will notice if it's slightly different on a different floor. No to engineered flooring if you want to try this. Why is someone suggesting oak of a different plank width than what you currently have? Odd. golden oak finish is pretty neutral. better to have the whole house match than to have one level trendy and one level classic.

functionally it sounds like the materials were well chosen- carpet for a play room, tile for an entry and powder room...could be just a personal design choice. Pictures would help.
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drivingagain thanked kayled
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JAN MOYER
7 years ago
last modified: 7 years ago
Install new sand on site select red oak for all tile and carpet areas, slightly change board width if you like, and completely RE FINISH the existing flooring at the same time. It may be not the most perfect match, but they will continue to blend over time. Do not introduce new flooring of a far different tone or species . Just don't do it.
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drivingagain thanked JAN MOYER
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jhmarie
7 years ago
It is possible your floors are natural red oak rather than "golden oak" because the oil based finishes used on wood floors amber over time. The flooring itself is not dated though the finish has aged. That flooring has been used in homes for over a hundred years and is in many elegant homes. Unlike other newer styles of wood flooring, oak is not discontinued and can be found to match or repair floors. It is more timeless than trendy.

If you do not like the red undertones in red oak, it can be lightly stained by a skilled floor installer with a stain that will reduce the red tones and bring out the brown.
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drivingagain thanked jhmarie
drivingagain
Original Author
7 years ago
Thank you all for the great comments.The existing oak hardwoods are not only in the den downstairs. They are also in the entry foyer, the dining room, living room and gurest room. One half of downstairs is the oak, the other half is the tile and 1 room carpet. The finish on the oak could be a little different on the floors, the finish info is what the floor made said.
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drivingagain
Original Author
7 years ago
oops. the finish on the oak is what the floor man said.
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drivingagain
Original Author
7 years ago
That's also a good idea to wait. We are in the remodeling process and we may want to enjoy living in the updated look, but who knows, maybe we should wait.
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