We just moved into a new build and many concerns with the hardwood- upcoming meeting with builder and installer but want to make sure we have our ducks in a row.

It is red oak and stained espresso. I am familiar with wood staining and the grain of oak and understand the variances of stain acceptance but there are areas that appear almost striped with light and darkness- does not correlate with the wood strips- and there appears to be a lighter halo all around the cabinets and island. We keep being told 'we've never stained a floor this dark' but feel this is an excuse...are we wrong?? Also, the poly is a mess! Despite the multiple drips and area of concentrated drips (like sprayed and never went over) the biggest issue is it seems EXTREMELY delicate. For instance, we have felt pads on all of our furniture and it leaves marks on the floor- not a scratch but more of a rub that does not rub out. It even shows footprints- the floor is a matte finish but footprints show up as dull marks mostly, but sometimes defined toe prints! We were told it has a Glitz (??) finish and usually holds up well but then added the 'we've never stained a floor this dark before' comment. The mentioned plan is to sand the floors down and I guess start over. I am not very familiar with floor refinishing. Will they have to sand all of the stain off? What can we do to ensure this doesn't happen again?

couple things, the halo around the cabinets and island is from too fine of edging. The footprints and polish marks from the felt are normal and part of living with a floor that dark with a matte finish. Glitza makes several types of finishes and they are of high quality and durability if used correctly. A dark floor is HIGH maintenance and will need five times as much care and maintenance compared to anything provincial or lighter. Those dark and rich colors are enticing but just remember they will greatly magnify wear and tear and needed maintence.