I would love to have wood, but by the time I put down the protective pads for three chairs there wouldn't be much wood left to show.

You can buy clear chair pads with smooth back surfaces, just for use on non-carpeted floors. That would let you have wood and the look and protection you want.

Thanks Steve_0, but since I'm putting two or three chairs in I'm really not willing to deal with the protective pads, I dislike them. Any hope of finding a wood that can handle rubber casters or something like them without showing the wear? Do warranties cover that kind of wear? Maybe the acrylic impregnated stuff? It is a small area, so the extra cost per sq foot isn't really important if there is a good solution....

OTOH, I guess a nice carpet tile would work, something neutral that would be put in an executive office building? I'd appreciate any specific recommendations!

I would suspect that wood or laminate warranties would not cover that kind of repetitive wear, but I'm sure some of the people who know more about that kind of flooring could say for sure. I don't know how transferable casters are when supplying them "aftermarket" -- might be a question for a good hardware store (not one of the big-box stores) or an office-supply place.

I like carpet tile -- I put it all over my house (kitchen excepted). I wanted the color and the texture and like that it will wear far better than standard residential broadloom. It's also easier to move things on it. :-) Personally, I would avoid padded carpet tile, which knocks out the Legato and Tesserae available at the big-box stores and some FLOR lines. But you can get carpet tile on-line from various sources or from some local places that handle flooring exclusively.

Oh my gosh we had the same problem and solved it with special casters, they are large rubber wheels. My chair is really pretty, traditional cherry with beautiful leather... so I was worried the casters would look stupid. But they don't, they look fine.

I have to do my filing today or tomorrow and will get the receipt out and put the info here. My husband found it on line, some place in PA, the guy I talked to was a genius -- I sent him a photo of my chair and caster, and he knew exactly which one would match the socket. The chair doesn't make marks on the floor, and we are definitely not lightweight people either.

Finally got through my filing. Whew, that feels good!

Here is the contact:

Service Caster Corporation
9 South First Avenue
West Reading, PA 19611
800-215-8220
servicecaster.com
info@servicecaster.com
Sales rep ID: Kaspy

He was SO helpful, you will get what you need from him.
I ordered the POM30211BC-NPR, which is a big rubber wheel and has not hurt the floors. Your chair may take different shaft, so talk to them if you're interested.

Here is a link that might be useful: Service Caster website

Thanks for checking on that! I may find it useful to put a rolling chair in the kitchen where I already have wood.

I went ahead and ordered some carpet tile for the office, I think it is going to look very nice and be easy to care for. Carpetbargains.com has closeouts on low quantity items, and sent me samples very quickly. If I don't like it I can replace it; I don't have to love it forever at this price.

I looked for a long time for a floormat that was made for hardwood. Most of what I found had a fake wood look to them... you can imagine why they wouldn't work for many floors. I finally found a clear mat that is made for hardwood floors. I haven't used it or purchased it. (I haven't sprung for it, b/c we might decided on a rug in my office anyway.)

"rubbermaid hardfloor chairmat"

part# 115338DG (45x53, lip=25x12) $62
part# 115339DG (46x60, lip=25x12) $70
part# 115340DG (46x60, no lip) $78

www.consolidatedplastics.com
http://www.consolidatedplastics.com/Rubbermaidsupsup-Hardfloor-Chairmat-C1871.aspx

Here is a link that might be useful: Rubbermaid HW chairmat at consolidated plastics