PF offered to come buff and put another coat, but we objected it since all 4 coats were put within 6.5 hours and we are not sure that previous coats are good. PF also offered to do full refinish but we don't have confidence that PF can do a good job this time. PF himself does not guarantee that second time the finish will work because as he says we do not have perfect humidity conditions. PF says all his employees are certified and did everything within the Bona's guideline. I don't know how 4 coats in 6.5 hours is within Bona's guideline but he is a type of a person that can claim that yogurt is black. The inspector made a mistake and told us that only one person was certified from PF. After we told PF that we talked to female inspector and she said that from our description it looks like PF was at fault, PF tracked down the inspector (we did not disclose inspector's name to PF), called her to correct her that all his employees are certified. In addition PF threatened the inspector to take her to NFWA ethics boards and told her how much money he makes a year and that she should be careful. PF told the inspector that she cannot work for us since he hired her once and that would be a conflict of interest since the inspector has a dislike for him. He is willing to pay $1400 for the damages and walk away if we sign NDA. I told him $1400 would not even cover our accommodation and moving and storage fees of our belongings that we are incurring because of him plus we have to sign a NDA that will free him from any future responsibly of his subfloor and floor install work. We contacted PF and told that it was wrong to track down the inspector and threaten her. PF denied that he threatened the inspector and only called her to correct that all his employees are certified. Also PF tried multiple times to convince us to hire an inspector of his choice for $500. We said we want an independent inspector. He says the inspector we found is a rip off as their fee is $2800.

SJ McCarthy, I do have photos of the cracking and rising floor boards. And of the spotty finish, streaks, and drips. The boards have sat untouched and unfinished in our AC home for the last nine months, and within days of the oil and water applications the cracking and rising occurred. It’s been less than ten days since the floor has been finished. The guy who did the work was the owner of a highly rated flooring refinishing company in my area. We agreed to use a water-based finish which is on my contract as Poloplaz 1k water-based floor finish with a matte sheen. When he arrive he talked me into using an oil-based product instead, stating that it would keep the natural color as it is, but also preserve the wood. I apologize for repeating myself here -- I was so fearful of the oil yellowing the white oak which I stated many times to him, but he assured me if it did yellow it wouldn’t be for fifteen to twenty years. He said he would be using a clear, natural, expensive oil-based polyurethane finish that was newly opened. I'm not sure of the brand but I do have a photo of the yellow oil drip down the side of one of the white panels around the stairs. The next day after the oil application he added the matte flat water-based finish and I absolutely know what product he used because after the second coat was applied I followed him out to his truck voicing my concerns about the color/finish of the floor and he showed me the container… Bona Traffic HD extra matte. That’s when he blamed the product for the streaky look of the finish. He said he doesn’t like using this Bona product for quality reasons but because I insisted on a matte finish he didn’t have a choice. He said he could use a different product but it would leave a shine and not have the matte look I wanted. Thankfully the guy did not apply the 'natural poly' over the factory finished Shaw floors. My contract with him states that he would apply it over the entire dining area, and I was charged for it, but at the last minute the decision to not do it was made. The guy is not affiliated with my general contractor because I wanted to hire a flooring ‘professional’ who truly understood hardwood floor finishes. I was incredibly anxious and very select about what I wanted in the finish and it took me a while to find and then trust someone. Unfortunately I paid him in full. Contractors, here at least, are allowed to have a lien against your home if you withhold payment and because I'm not familiar with what that truly means legally for me, as the homeowner, I paid. Thank you for your information regarding an inspector from NWFA -- it's a great idea and I will most certainly make a few phone calls. Recent research has informed me that an oil-based polyurethane needs to cure for at least two weeks to 60 days before adding a water-based finish, do you know if that statement is true? And if so then the pro not waiting for the curing time before applying the water-based finish likely and knowingly voided the warranty on the Bona product -- he's been in business a long time so he would know. Also, is a natural polyurethane the same as an oil-based polyurethane? I'm just making sure I understand everything before speaking with an inspector. Thank you so very much for your advice and time, SJ McCarthy, I really appreciate all of your help.

@jjam Your floors look beautiful. @Angela Wacker I hope your floors turn out beautiful. @mdln these are such a good ideas/solutions next time I am doing a renovation I will make sure to get this kit. I went by the house in the morning and took a closeup photo (prior to getting confirmation from the contractor and subcontractor) It does look like white oak. @SJ McCarthy thank you for all the information, it gave me ideas on what to ask the contractor and how to have a conversation about the floors. I even came up with a few more stains to try in case the original choices did not work out. The contractor e-mailed me early this afternoon agreeing to test a few more colors. We asked him, again, regarding the type of floors we have and the new ones they installed, initially he said the floors were red oak, but then he texted us an hour later letting us know that the sub had informed him that it was white oak!?! What!! @Beth Thank you!!!! @SashaDog Thank you!!!! @G & S Floor Service @Timothy Winzell it appears you guys were right - it is white oak -probably. Quality/grade? who knows! I cant believe the contractor did not know this! It appears my worries about the floors looking red after a light stain were unnecessary. We stopped by the home to see the samples on our "white oak" and the white stain looked nice with the top coat on it, not pink. The birch was nice, but we decided to go with the white as it looks more like the natural color of the wood we love. I am still anxious about the overall outcome, but crossing fingers that it turns out nice. I am going by the house tomorrow and working from my car so I can take a look and stop the workers in their tracks if it looks bad lol. I am just kidding...but maybe I am not :) Here are the two samples we tried Bona Birch and Duraseal White with bona HD on our "white oak" floors (this is not 100% for sure lol). Leaving the picture here in case someone is looking for a picture of these two stains. You are all such a wonderful group of people! Thank you for helping me through my anxiety. This morning I felt so stupid to have been worrying about a floor stain when so much more important things are going on in the world. Anyways, thank you and much love to you all. Stay healthy!! -Mari

The Loba 2K Supra A.T. in semi-gloss is technically on the low end of a standard semi-gloss coating and is shiny under certain light but is, in my opinion, a long way from "basketball court shine." See more information below this photo. Loba's Technical Data Sheets provide a numerical gloss rating for the finishes measured at 60 degrees on glass. Here is how the following finishes stack up: 2K Invisible Protect, Approximate Gloss Level = 9 2K Supra A.T. Satin, Approximate Gloss Level = 25 2K Supra A.T. Semi-Gloss, Approximate Gloss Level = 43 2K Supra A.T. Glossy, Approximate Gloss Level = 130 What those numbers tell us is that the Invisible Protect is a tad shinier than a flat matte which would be considered anything at 5 or below measured at 60 degrees on glass. The Supra A.T. satin and semi-gloss finishes are consistent with their names, while the glossy is a super-high gloss almost like a mirror. There's a huge jump between the semi-gloss and gloss. The semi-gloss is on the low end of gloss, and the glossy is off the charts by some calculations on the high end of gloss. As mentioned previously in this post, the Loba satin finishes can look cloudy after several coats. Some people use gloss for the base and then finish off with satin, but that can make repairs difficult mixing sheens.