DH has ruined week old wood flooring

[Veraper]

I feel sick to my stomach.

We have splashed out on parquet flooring for all of downstairs (sick of renting a rug dr after every dog walk). Have been uber cautious with furniture pads etc.

DH saw ink-like black splodges on the floor last night and had to scrub very hard using the green side of the sponge to remove (still slightly visible tbh). And the floor now has white splodges the size of Xmas choc coins.

We are wooden floor newbies, can anyone save my floors? Has the varnish just come off? They are my dream floors and I didn’t even get to enjoy them yet (still doing up the rest of the house)

If this is all you have to worry about...

It's a very pale coloured floor for someone who's so distressed about a few marks, especially if you have animals

If they were trying not to change the colour of the unfinished wood, the finish they gave it may not be robust enough. Get their honest opinion. And stand the dog bowl on a mat!

Oak has many different colours through it and I would be surprised if it wasn’t natural, since once laid, the colour does come out more due to oxidation. You can try making a stain using a teabag, but very weak. Tbh, I would call the installer and pay them to fix it. And tell DH not to remove any more splotches but to next time to wait and see. If they are ink, they will be tacky to touch. If they are the wood, leave them be. Knots in wood are darker than surrounding areas.

To be honest if you have a dog will it not get wrecked pretty quickly anyway?

Well it kept you occupied for a minute anyway.

Chances are it's a removal of the top layer of oil. To be honest, a dab of even vegetable oil will probably do the job.

If that doesn't work, by the lightest oil you can buy and recoat the whole lot. An oil with a hint of stain will work as the third option.

From reading this thread, you'd think none of the posters have ever scratched, scorched, broken or stained anything. It's always the stupid men who can't do anything right.

Which is pretty surprising considering the stupid men never usually do anything anyway.

Would love to have you in my life...

Is it actual parquet (eg individual blocks of wood) or that engineered parquet look stuff?

Actual parquet has to be treated carefully (felt dots on the bottom of furniture, keep water away from it) but add a couple of coats of high traffic varnish and it will age beautifully, the knocks and patina will become part of the floor. We have 90 year old oak parquet flooring - it isn't perfect but it is beautiful.

By the look of it the coating on your floor isn't robust enough. You need clear high traffic floor varish - it shouldn't be able to be shifted that easily with a washing up sponge.

To bring the pattern back to old wooden furniture after repair, I've seen lots of people use special wood colour wax crayons. Might be worth considering.

I had the same issue on oak doors - i managed to get self tan on one . DP scrubbed in same way and it went white like yours have. I got a walnut (just one out a can of mixed nuts) and gently rubbed and as if by magic it went back to the original colour and you can't see it.

I see lots of other ideas from others but somethings to maybe try on a tiny patch (or even if you have any spare offcuts do a practice by scrubbing one of them and then using the variety of solutions suggested)

To be fair to your husband, I moved in to a house with wood flooring and kitchen surfaces and ruined them both within days as had never lived somewhere with this before, it's easily done. We sanded it all down and re-applied Osmo oil which fixed it.

I have wood floors...

1. If it is oiled, you need it changed to a durable varnish - there is no way you will survive with dogs and oiled wood floors, they will be ruined. Ours are varnished and you can throw pretty much anything at them.

2. Wood does dent so it will "wear" over time, but you need to avoid "sharp" things on it as it will scratch.

3. Bear in mind real wood will get darker over time, so it will change colour regardless. Ours is now a mid-dark brown after starting the same colour as yours 20 years ago.

4)Never ever ever get wood worktops, they are a nightmare.

DH and I are not handy at all so probably very ignorant. Everything we’ve put in the house we’ve asked whether or not it is dog compatible (35kg dog). Looks like we were naive to accept everything said to us.

We have stayed at a lot of air bnbs that have had wood flooring with our dog. Every time we’ve had a spill/muddy paw prints it’s been an VERY easy clean up job. Hence why we put them in.

I’m always precious at first, will die down with time.

You have my sympathies too. Sure you can do something with oil to fix it?

we invested in wooden parquet In the kitchen diner and it’s not the strongest stuff. Every time we drop something hard / heavy in the kitchen, a dent forms in the wood. Wish I’d got harder wood but we live and learn.

We do get ours reoiled which helps some scratches. But a full sanding will be needed eventually.

My guess is: the black marks were water damage and would have needed to be sanded out/treated with oxalic acid anyway. The lighter patches remaining are just areas where the varnish/wax has been rubbed away. Should be possible to top this up if you find out what the builders used.

Parquet is a bit high maintenance. I wouldn't have it in a kitchen or house with pets or very young children.

It hates water. We use Method almond oil wood floor cleaner and bees wax polish.

I am pretty precious about our floor.
.

I can’t believe the level of stress over this. It’s a bloody floor FFS. No one has died.Learn to cope with a bit of house disappointment before a real difficulty occurs is my advice.

Just message the manufacturer and ask for the name of the stain they use and explain there are marks - you can probably buy a tin for £50 and just touch up now while the rest of the wood is still similar colour to the of the fresh oil. But honestly - give it a year and it will be totally fuc*ed anyways, I loved my wood floor when we got it installed - it’s a nightmare now - every drop of water leaves black marks, underfloor heating causes it to crack, every time we move furniture no matter how careful we left with scratches and marks.

ill never put down a wood floor again.

agree with this

Also agree that you need a large mat under dog bowl, and prepare yourself that other damage is inevitable over time especially around sink, outdoor doorways or eating areas. Think of it as patina or character.

Adds to the character

Close up of black splodge post scrubbing.

This is why I wouldn't buy a house with that kind of floor.

It's not a good enough finish to the floor if it comes away so easily.
I have a vintage parquet in some rooms and I'd need a screwdriver to scratch it. Or heavy furniture with no wheels, that also works.

Varnishing is the way to go for the blemish-free look.
Oiling on the other hand will always accumulate patina and not just stains - but also dents, scrapes and gauges. Same goes for wax. My waxed floors accumulated quite a few dents from me dropping things but they were rustic to start with so I was chill about it.