Hi folks! New guy, here. We have some parquet flooring in our home. We assume it’s from the original build (1970). In the last year I noticed some pieces were deteriorating, mainly in one particular area. I thought it might be related to mold in the crawl space below but that doesn’t seem to be the case, as much as I can tell anyway. In the last year or so, it has spread out considerably. We do have two dogs (42 and 72 lbs), the bigger of the two is newer, two years old, but the odd thing is that the spot where it looks worse and showed up first 1) predates the bigger dog, and 2) is in a kinda awkward spot where they don’t tread, nor do we, really. It almost looks eaten away in that spot but no big issues. I did realize my wife sometimes throws damp towels there while piling up laundry, but as the surface issue are spreading, mold doesn’t seem to explain it as it’s a dry area and the wood still feels hard/solid. But what do I know? That’s why I’m here!

It appears that the deterioration is occurring where the dark grain streaks exist in the pieces. I don’t see a method by which to upload a picture or I would. It’s getting severe—a few mm wide and strengthibg the length of the planks which are about 6 inches. No termites. The subfloor below looks great, judging from the crawl space, after I removed insulation batting, recently. I’m just trying to figure out what might be causing it. I’ve searched high and low online for comparable images and explanations but haven’t found either. I’d love to know what’s going on so that I can prevent it’s spread and possibly fix it. Date to dream!

The soft grain of oak is the most susceptible for water damage. I think the little bit of water from damp fabric could harm the surface if it does not have a protective coating. Start saving for a refinish. In the short term, paste wax is the least expensive solution that most people can manage.

Thanks you! I’ll check out the paste wax.

Did you try the sniff test to see if it's dog pee?