I got some red oak flooring that I tried to match. It is blc from homedepot. I also got some clear minwax semi gloss polyurethane.

I layed down the floor in a small crawl space and it looks too red too me compared to the rest of the floor in other rooms. I believe I have red oak because the railings, thresholds and steps match the current floor and I believe they are only commonly sold in red oak. This was something that was originally built with the house and it is probably something the average builder would get.

the house is 10 years old, floors are original. Do I need better quality wood, stain, different poly, wait for the sun to fade it, or something else

The first picture is the crawl space I did.



The rest are some images of my floor.

fro what i see, i believe you got the oak correct....the color may be due lighting exposures over time and or waterbase or
more likely the sealer used originally..Minwax poly does have alot of
depth of color from what i remember..(dont use it much but have in a pinch a few times)

I felt it was the correct oak. There seems to be more variation with what I had before. Like more lighter pieces. Is there a different grade or brand that would give me more lighter pieces?

The minwax is giving a red tone to it, while the older floor is more lighter or yellower. Is that just from light exposure? Is there a different sealer I can use that would match better. would I have to go wiht water based, and is there a way to tell if thats what I have? I would try everything, but its costly.

looks like the grading is equal in both..from mill to mill and area ,tree growth, soils etc all have bearing on the color and lots..

a middle grading like #1 , which appears to be present,or a low line select...would have more darks..select would be lighter and more uniform.

i think the floor may have been sealed with a universal or even a lacquer sealer..this will tend to keep the flooring a little lighter than a strait application of poly..

I can tell you what you have without being there and there are so many hybrid finish systems out there, it would be near impossible to guess.

i hear of guys using waterbase sealer than doing poly over that now..so anything goes..

do you mean a universal sanding sealer? if so what brand would be good to get or will any do?

yes..you would have quick access to zinnser and in my opinion they make it best..

do some test runs before you start..do some with waterbase..anything cheap in a quart...and same with universal sealer...use some left over boards and test..see what you come up with..if its just an age /light exposure thing..you will need to wait