how we feel about our hardwood floors {two years later}

Once upon a time, I shared this not-so-little journey on the installation of all things hardwood flooring as we’ve slowly taken our house on a full ride of a renovation over the past few years. {You can see most of the history with before and updated afters here!} But if you’re not familiar, one winter, our kitchen faucet had an unfortunate leak and this was literally an if-you-give-a-mouse-a-cookie situation. {As most things involving all things house, usually are.} Because our former floors were now discontinued, we were in a pickle. Not to mention seriously bummed. 

I go into greater detail in this post, so you’ll want to read all the gory details here if you’re curious. But I realized we’re nearly two years to the day of our transformation and sharing this again. Because Elizabeth wrote and asked this: 

Love this post! We just decided on the same finish (Loba 2k Invisible Protect AT) for our new white oak floors (in our “forever” home, with 4 almost 5 kids, no pets), and I am so excited!! This post is so encouraging. We were torn between 2k Supra AT in Satin and 2k Invisible Protext AT, but I just vastly prefer the look of the invisible over the satin.
How are yours holding up 2 years later?

I initially told her I had no regrets, but I did want to sit back and think about what, if anything, I’d do differently. So, today, I thought it would be a great topic to cover.

Just to review if you haven’t, check out the post: After doing a lot of research, observing client homes, and more… I landed on what we really wanted. And that was 3.5-inch planks in white oak with #1 grade flooring. Finished in THREE COATS of Loba 2K Invisible Protect AT.

I’d never been really happy with our original floors. We’d chosen something way too dark in a high gloss at the time, as we were kind of restricted by budget and options… because real life. And as a result, it showed everything. So, choosing this new flooring + finish was a game changer for our family and home. 

A word on temporary: A lot of people choose LVP or pre-finished hardwood for their homes, and we totally get that. We understand that areas like a basement will call for finishes like this. Just a word of caution from someone who has learned the hard way: There is something to be said about things potentially being discontinued in the future. Every situation is different, but if we’d initially gone with what I really wanted, the leak would have been a patch-up job, and the smaller area would have been refinished. The end. Now, it was kind of a bigger deal than it needed to be, and we had to move out of the house… it was a whole thing. That said, it was a happy accident because insurance handled a vast portion of the cost. So… it is what it is. But if you’re choosing floors now or in the future, be wary of anything temporary throughout your entire home. 

A word on researching: If you’re doing this on your own, be sure to get multiple quotes from multiple installers. We did this for insurance purposes alone, but you should always do this. It also may seem like common sense but do not give any companies the full asking amount with the assumption that they’ll come back. Never pay up front. We’ve seen it happen too many times: some companies or contractors take funds from your job to pay for other jobs, never to return. It’s a whole thing. So just don’t. Make sure that whomever you are working with is reputable before you begin. Read the contract carefully. We had one rep try to talk us into installing pre-finished floors, and his plan was to have them stripped and re-stained. What? Either he didn’t understand what I was asking for, {there’s really no excuse because this was fairly straight forward} or he was trying to rip us off. I’m going with the latter, since his quote was astronomically {about three times} higher than the other quotes. I had photos. I do this for a living. So does he. It’s not that hard. 

People keep asking us where we got those floors. It’s just 3.5-inch planks in white oak with #1 grade flooring. With a finish of our choice as shared above. A good reputable company should know exactly what you want. All you need is a flooring installer. 

this is the before before, but it’s still fun to share.

But two years later, we love our floors. They’re classic. They’ve made our spaces seem so much brighter and lighter. The kids are happy. The two giant, high-maintenance dogs are happy. There’s something soothing about walking barefoot on said floors. Everyone is thrilled. 

Where: We took this finish throughout our great room on the first floor and upstairs with the kid’s bedrooms. We also took it through the hallway / butler’s pantry area, and the primary bedroom. You can see more of our entire home here. The only spaces that do not have this flooring are the laundry, our bath, poolroom + basement. {Along with the other two respective baths.} The closets even have this finish. It makes the house feel larger, simplified, and clean.

full disclosure: I totally need to purge my closet, as it does not currently look like this.

Why: Two years later, I’m still reminded why we chose this flooring. You can’t see the smudges. You can’t see the dogs’ hair. Or the dirt. Or the chip crumbs. Or even the popcorn pieces that the kids like to spill at night before they can be discovered the next day by the dogs who shed on said floor. I guess it’s 6, half dozen, another over here. This was a big deciding factor for me. But I do feel like the idea of keeping the flooring simple with the finish was a huge decision, as it helps with the upkeep. I opted for a few imperfections and variations in the wood, for that very reason.

I no longer feel as though I have to scramble with the vacuum cleaner before someone comes over. The kids pick up so we don’t look feral, and it is what it is. I have more time for life. And with the swinging door that is our home in the summer with a pool + cabana, I also don’t have to be the bad guy and fuss over everything with my OCD tendencies. HALLELUJAH. 

Which brings me to…

Cleaning: This is the part where I’m supposed to tell you that you need some special system to keep your floors amazing forever or you’ll die. Honestly, it’s the Swiffer for Wood, our Vacuum, and this robot guy when I can’t get to it on my off days. {And most days are off days.} I know. Sacrilege. Here’s a quick shot I took of said floors whilst being robot-ed. They were not clean yet. Nor had they been mopped in a while. Naary a smudge in sight, my dears. They just look good and wear well. 

The One Thing I Hate: So, this happened this past year. It’s the one thing I would say about these floors, though I think it will happen with any hardwood flooring in a kitchen. This is why some people are adamantly opposed. This was a user error on our part. Someone spilled some ice, and it melted. When it hit the seams, that caused a problem. BUMMER. 

I will say, though, it’s an easy fix down the line. Honestly, no one has noticed. We just haven’t gotten around to it yet. 

Otherwise, the floors are pristine. This is a quick shot I took of a main traffic area after NOT cleaning. They’re BEAUTIFUL. 

One More Thing:  We’re a shoes-off family. We just are. We have dogs, but we wipe their feet when they come in, and keep a fairly orderly situation when it comes to this. Basically, I think it helps to prolong your floors if you’re not wearing stiletto heels all over the place. It also helps to prolong the amount of times you’ll need to clean. Sorry not sorry, but it’s gross to think about where your shoes have been after a nice visit to a gas station bathroom and traipsing into your house… but that’s just me. 

So, that’s an honest look at our floors, two years in! There’s just nothing like the traditional beauty of real wood. We hope this helps! We love our floors.