I have 3000 sq ft of reclaimed heart pine that was finished with three coats of Bona Traffic. The finish started separating from the wood almost immediately. Those areas that aren't peeling have an opaque whitish line running along virtually every joint. The finish has pulled away from the wood, and it is just a matter of time before the finish starts peeling away from the edge of each board. At this point it matters not to me whether the source of the problems with the finish is the finish itself or the application. It is a nightmare. I will never ever again be talked into using any type of poly, not even Waterlox. I will be using either pure Tung oil cut with a citrus solvent from Real Milk Paint Company or Millie's All Purpose Penetrating Tung Oil (polymerized tung oil with citrus solvent and bees wax)from Sutherland Welles. Right now I am leaning towards Millie's but will be seeking advice from an old flooring guy. Good luck with whatever you decide -- and do post photos of the floor when it is installed and finished. Here is a link that might be useful: Millie's All Purpose Penetrating Tung Oil

I'd hesitate to put wood on a bathroom floor. But if the area was small and I thought I was emotionally prepared for the possibility of a failed experiment, I might be tempted to give it a try. I'd replace any old plumbing and install one of those soft plastic toilet rings first. I would want to be sure I could contain spray from sinks, tub and shower. That said, Waterlox is very good and much easier to repair than most varnishes. Unlike polyurethane and most other varnishes, each coat fuses into the last. In contrast, once they've dried thoroughly, most varnishes must be sanded before recoating, to provide a rough surface for the next coat to make a mechanical attachment to. Plus, you really should recoat an entire surface after repairing most varnishes because the edges of overcoated areas tend to be visible. That successive coats of Waterlox merge makes this much less of a problem. Waterlox is pretty aromatic, and the smell lingers a while. I have a terrible sense of smell and I can still detect Waterlox inside a medicine cabinet I finished last spring. I like it, however, because it smells like old speedboats, but some people don't. You might consider not using Waterlox indoors if you or someone you live with has a good nose and really dislikes the smell. Red oak, which has open pores, is not very water resistant. White oak, which has closed pores and is water resistant, has been used for boatbuilding. Live oak, which is neither red nor white, has been used for battleships. But water makes nasty black stains on oak that are tedious to remove by sanding and applications of increasingly strong solutions of oxalic acid. For wet applications where appearance is important, Honduras mahogany, teak, and bald cypress come to mind, although I don't know whether these have all the qualities you'd want in a good bathroom floor. A competent flooring person should be able to advise.

Hi @mpbiersack. We are still extremely happy with the flooring. No issues except my husband says there's one board in the kitchen that doesn't seat well. Not sure if it's from a defect or poor installation. It does scratch easily so all our furniture feet have felt or some other protection. Take care when moving heavy furniture. I can't speak to moisture because we're up on a raised foundation and live in a low humidity, high desert area. We used this flooring throughout our 2300 sqft house except in two guest rooms and media room. Still in love with the color.

Sigh...it sounds like a low-end finish to begin with. A duration of 5 years is abysmal. Do you have photos? I prefer a HIGH END 2 part European finish. The toughest of the tough come with serious protection. The gold standard is Bona Traffic HD (the HD is SUPER important). It is easy to find (harder to finance...but you want tough/durable not cheap/useless). One that I worked with on CORK (yes... the softest most difficult hardwood to live with) is Loba 2K Supra AT (the AT is SERIOUSLY IMPORTANT). It is harder to find and even harder to finance but SOOOO worth it. It has a velvety silky feel to it, it is extremely tough and it has some of the best 'low slip' ratings in the industry. No matter which high-end 2 part European product you work with (should be $150 - $220/gallon...) you really want to work with 3 coats of FINISH. A sealant coat can be used...but the TOUGH stuff is the finish = the expensive part = 3 coats to get you a commercial grade finish.