I’m not sure what’s going on there and maybe you would be happier with vinyl flooring, but those of us with hardwood floors absolutely wash them with water. The polyurethane coating makes that possible. I’ve never had a floor as light as yours, but I’ve never had anything like that happen either.

What kind of flooring is it? How was it finished? Those aren’t really spots, that looks like wood grain marking of some sort. It still shouldn’t be happening. Call your floor guy.

I had engineered white oak installed in June and there is nothing wrong with it. I wonder if you got a bad batch or what's going on?? I would talk to the seller and see what they recommend.

What kind of floor is it?

These are my Palladio Engineered wide plank oak floors and I was told these are sealed. I am going to have my husband talk with the flooring salesman. This is what it says on the website:

• Edges: Beveled on 4 sides, T&G
• Surface: Ultra Matt (7 +/-2%) gloss, UV cured polyurethane, carbide enhanced anti-scratch top coat
• Install: Glue, Float, Staple
• Construction: 3 ply
• Warranty: Structural: Lifetime, Surface: 50-year residential, 5-year commercial

My floor guy who we know personally and have had do other jobs for us has been installing floors for years and he said these were good floors and had many coats of sealant and would hold up well. I am pissed!

**Edited because picture would not load.

It’s a beautiful kitchen, and the floors are beautiful. I agree with M, they look like they have no finish. Engineered floors are not something I know a lot about, but that’s definitely not performing the way it’s supposed to. Perhaps he got a bad batch of flooring, as lucky mentioned. It’s great that you trust your flooring guy. He will make it right.

Here's an older thread about this same brand flooring. Could you have micro checking of the poly layer that is allowing the water to seep through and cause the staining?

https://www.houzz.com/discussions/4165243/looking-for-palladio-wide-plank-engineered-wood-flooring-review

I hope you find a resolution, changing the floor is a huge hassle and I would not wish that on my worst enemy. Especially after getting thru a reno, the last thing you want is more mess. Fingers crossed!

Wood reacts to the minerals in water and in soil (ie. dirt from outside). When minerals (mostly iron...but not always) reach the wood (not the finish...the wood) the minerals can cause the wood to turn blackish/purple. This is very common with iron-rich soil and/or water.

Wood that has been exposed to minerals (was wet once and then allowed to dryout) will turn grayish and then purplish and then black. With a natural wood colour, this is easy enough to miss. With a white-wood floor the discolouration is going to be quite glaring.

Some of your discolouration follows the mineral rays (the grain) while the second photo shows a definite "spill" pattern (more than a few drops). I would be interested in doing an experiment.

You will need: an off-cut from a board and some tap water; some soil from a shoe (tiny is fine); a small amount of your monthly 'cleaner'. Tape of the board into three sections. Test a spill of water (table spoon size); a bit of water mixed with the soil from the shoe and then a spill of cleaner (diluted or as you would normally use the product).

Let all three sections dry. Date the board, leave it out on the floor (somewhere that gets some sunlight, some darkness, etc). Leave it there for a few months or until you start seeing some colour changes. Mark down the date each time a patch shows discolouration. You will get a feel for what is doing this.

BTW: how often do you do a damp mop? How often do you do a "cleaning" (mop with cleaner on it)? What is your cleaner? What is your humidity levels in the house?

Your floor guy lacks experience. Those blotches are from the ebony wood putty that they applied. They left it on too long, which makes it a pain to clean off. Have them come back and scrub it off. If, they can't do it, boards would need to be replaced or sand it off. It's a costly lesson for them.

The floors looks like it's wire brushed. Which will add another level of difficulty.

Thank you for all the help.

@chocolatebunny123 Thank you for the link. We have a really good system in our home so the humidity level is good. These are definitely more what looks like a mildew look.

@SJ McCarthy While this could be a very interesting experiment, I am afraid to wait that long to see what happens and have more dark stains appears. The stains just appeared this week. I read through their website and it says it would be wise to put a mat near the sink but these aren't in front of the sink.

Thank God I do not have a dog. What if I did and every time he/she drank from their water bowl they dripped a little water on the floor (as it is my daughter is visiting with her family and dog for the holiday)? This maintenance is really ridiculous! I am hoping the salesman can tell me what the issue is.

@G & S Floor Service the areas were just visible this week.

A few definitely look like little water "spots." I have read that oak floors can get mold from water but this should not be happening with a simple spot and again not sure how it got to where it is, not near the sink.

The stains are across the way and not where I put any dishes away. I have not damp mopped at all, only vacuumed and we do not wear our shoes in the house except maybe a handful of times at most to run in quick but again, not that area. We have been very careful and I vacuum at least 4x a week. Why would they put putty on my floor and if so why do a few of the spots look like little water spots?The floor is beautiful but I want to get to the bottom of this and find out what is going on. I do not want to live like this, worrying about every tiny drop of water on my floor.

If, you examine the first image, where there is a check in the knot. They applied wood putty and it blotched. It’s possible that they were careless and dripped it all over. If, it is epoxy filler. The stuff sets up in within minutes And becomes a pain to remove. Although it is possible, I doubt that the product is staining. Post more images of the other areas for further examination.

Following....with sympathy for you

Oh no! I hope you find a resolution soon. I currently have engineered hardwoods in my house and I have never seen this happen. The finish on ours is dark, but we do use water and mild soap to clean, never a problem. I've spilled plenty on the floors and have never had a stain like that.

G&S those are the only spots. I am hoping no more start coming out.
Im not sure what you mean about the knot in the picture?

Wood putty here, looks like a blotch around it. It can be a knot or mineral streak. Two things could have happened.

1. Contractor applied wood putty and let it sit too long. Making it difficult to impossible to clean off. Transferred wood putty residue to nearby areas, creating more blotches.

2. If, this is a existing water base wood putty. When cleaning with water, water will soften it, making it possible to be transferred to other nearby areas, creating more blotches.

Use a soft brush to scrub it off - toothbrush.

I found this interesting: "...I have not damp mopped at all, only vacuumed...". Have you tried scrubbing your floor with some cleaning product (as suggested by the manufacturer?). I'm wondering if any of this has been 'put down' as in dirt. It is the winter season which means even a quick in-out with shoes can lay down dirt/mud/etc.

Wood flooring can be damp mopped, they cannot be WET mopped. The texturing of the finish (which is what is soooooo difficult to clean) is grabbing onto something. The soft toothbrush option would be a good idea.

The finish is polyurethane so it is safe to try a squirt of Windex + toothbrush to give this a bit of a clean.

You will want to pick up a microfibre mop (I always suggest two) and the cleaning products recommended by the manufacturer. One microfibre mop head can be the 'dry' clean (dusting/sweeping the floor) and the other can be the 'damp' cleaner.

You will damp clean your floor once per week. Using just water-damp (it will feel as if it is dry) you can get the fine dust particles up off the floor (bare feet or cooking oils will put down a bit of oil and that oil will grab dust that does not vacuum up).

Once per MONTH you will then use the cleaning agent (recommended by the manufacturer) instead of just a water. This will help remove any bit of oil that is still left behind (human skin has ++ oil in it....even when sloughed off as dead skin cells).

Removing oil from the floor is very important in cooking areas. These areas can get very sticky...and the floor starts looking like it has a bit of mud on it. And cooking oils can fly 6-10 feet.

Thank you so much SJ. If it is that easy I will be thrilled. After reading the manufacturer oage saying DRY MOP Ive been afraid to useca wrung out mop. I have a good dry mop that has two dry mop cloyhs and one for wet.

I tried to clean with a barely wet sponge then wipe with a dish towel after and nothing came up at all. Ive read you can try hydrogen peroxide or even a little bleach. I will get a tooth brush and try your suggestion. Hoping something that simple will work.

NO hydrogen peroxide! NOOOOO BLEACH!!! Please purchase what the manufacturer suggests. Your warranty HANGS on all of this.

Personally, I would use a TINY shot of Windex (use the narrow spray/shot) directly on ONE of the spots (the one in the least visible area) and then get down with a toothbrush and give a slight scrub. Have a dry cloth near by to wipe up the fluid.

Windex has +++alcohol in it which means it dries VERY quickly = least likely to damage the floor. The original windex also has a small amount of ammonia. Ammonia is not 'allowed' on floors but the mix in Windex is slight. The occasional 'tough spot' clean with windex should not damage the floors.

Do NOT use google to tell you how to mix pastes to clean hardwoods. The suggestions above are for PORCELAIN TILE...not polyurethane/wood.

Those are prefinished floors. They should not have been site filled with anything.

Matte finished anythings are more difficult for many people to live with because they “grab” all manner of oils and dirt in their texture. Think of your home’s walls and hand prints. A flat finished wall will show those oily handprints every time. A glossier wall not only won’t show it, but also allows any dirt to be much easier wiped off.

The texture of a matte finish isn’t easy to clean, even under the best of circumstances. When it’s a floor that shouldn’t be having contact with large amounts of water, it becomes a maintenance pain. Combine that with a wire brushed wood that has little valleys in it, and you get the most difficult to maintain floor of all.

A wrung our microfiber mop, and no cleaner, with frequent clean water changes, would be the first route. Second would be using a wrung out microfiber and the manufacturer recommended cleaning product. Again with frequent mop cleaning with fresh water, then wringing.

Thank you so much Cooks Kitchen. I have a fiber mop cleaner and sponge mop. We are going to double check with the salesman but hoping it cleans easily. As long as it cleans I am ok with it.
I had no idea these were so tough to clean nor that they were wire brushed.
I will be educating myself more on these floors this week.
Thank you for all the help!

Thank you SJ. I am going to try this when I get home. Crossing my finger's the Windex works.
Cook's Kitchen we do not know of any filler being used by our floor guy. He is top notch and did a great job.
The floors are beautiful so hoping once I figure out recommended cleaning products will be doing it every week.

SJ I tried the windex, didnt touch it at all.

Any updates?

Hopefully you have contacted the installer and supplier; it might be a warranty issue, or they may be able to tell you what is the problem.

I once had a water leak that seeped along the subfloor, that led to mildew under the flooring, that eventually showed up on the surface. This was vinyl roll flooring, but I expect it would be possible with engineered wood. Is there a water source anywhere near the spots?

SJ going to talk with supplier and installer tomorrow. Snow held us up.

They kind of look like scuff marks, which would explain why they’re so difficult to remove. If you have Goo Gone, it works really well for that.

And apparently a tennis ball does, too:

https://www.apartmenttherapy.com/tennis-ball-scuff-remover-36640056

This is why I prefer site-finished hardwood floors and a high gloss (gym floor) finish. I can mop my floors with a wet (wrung out, not dripping water!) and they are just fine - have been just fine for the nearly 20 years since they had to be replaced due to a broken 2nd floor pipe. They look as good today as they did the day they were finished.

I have dogs that get their lovely long ears in their water bowl. Even with a mat under it, there are drips on my floor - never been a problem at all.

I don't want ANY floor in my house to be high maintenance; I especially don't want one in a kitchen or bathroom to be. They need to be able to take a lot.

Sammy thanks for the video but they really look black like mildew to me, not scuff marks. I didnt even realize my floors were wire brushed till this happened.

Anglo I had the poly floors in my former home and wanted something different. I loved these floors the minute I saw them (initially wanted LVP and my husband said it wouldn't look good).

My wood floors in my former home and apartment never had an issue either. I am hoping this is an anomaly and these do not turn out to be high maintenance. That was the last thing I wanted! With 17 people here for Thanksgiving, 4 being toddlers, I did not have any other stains show up.

I am making sure my husband speaks with the salesman at the shop tomorrow so I can find out exactly what this is. In the first picture you can see the stain goes over onto another board. These are confined to one small area and not in front of my sink. They all of a sudden appeared right before Thanksgiving all within a day of each other and nothing else has appeared. Very strange.

Thr floor salesman says he thinks something spilled and somehow got under the clear coat and it is mold.
He suggested replacing the boards.
We will be calling our installer to do this. The salesman said we could put a satin coat on the floor. We will see what the installer says. No marks anywhere else still. My husband says we shoukd get a runner for the area behind the island to protect it. Im so over this already.

Hopefully when your installer pulls the damaged boards, he will take the time to figure out how this happened (I myself would make sure to see the back side of the stained boards and the subfloor while it is exposed, to see if it looks like the moisture came from other than a drip -- the finish would have had to be quite flawed in that spot to be caused by small drips IMHO - mildew/mold doesn't grow that fast and wants a steady supply of moisture)

Once a reason is figured out and steps taken to prevent it again, you will have those easy maintenance floors you wanted. Fortunately you noticed it before a larger area was (potentially) involved!

I have some issues with, " The salesman said we could put a satin coat on the floor. " Only the flooring manufacturer can dictate such an event. I know many knowledgeable sales people, but I know even MORE idiots who pull a pay cheque with remarks like that.

Anyway, If you do not like the matte (it looks ultra matte to me) AND the wire brush finish, you are looking at an expensive fix. I'm sorry to say an 'buff and coat' (which is what your sales person is referring to) is roughly $3/sf when done by an NWFA Certified Wood Flooring Refinisher.

And that's *assuming the manufacturer allows this to go down. And that's assuming the refinisher can find a product-match/chemical match to the finish on the floors. And that's assuming the finish he uses will 'stick' to the original coating.

But I do agree that IF ALL THE ASSUMPTIONS work out: you will have a floor that is easier to deal with than what you have right now.

Good luck. Keep us posted. I'm so sorry your dream floor has become a nightmare. I really, really am. For me, this is the perfect example of a salesperson working towards a SALE and not LISTENING to the homeowner. I'm so sorry this has happened to you. If you had been my client, I would have steered your clear of this one....'cause I'm that type of person. I care about my clients...not just my sales numbers. An unhappy client to me means I missed something.

Thank you SJ for all your help and suggestions. You are obviously a very conscientious salesman who cares what his customers want.
This is a very small shop. I loved the floor when I first saw it. I knew it was matte finish but was asured there was a good thick finish on it and it was very durable. I admit I did not realize it was wire brushed. It is hard to tell.
My installer even loved it. He has been doing floor installation for many years and knows his stuff. He also does amazing work with different woods making gorgeous inlays.
I have zero doubt he will get to the bottom of this.
I agree with you that there is somethibg weird going on. There are no "spots" anywhere else.

The salesman was not talking about buffing, just cleaning then adding the extra coat, water based. Basically he was zero help and at first tried to say it was a scuff mark. I told him had I known it was so high maintenance I never would have bought it. We looked in many places and I wasn't overly thrilled withbanything till I found this floor. I do get many compliments on it.

I used a small tool with a spin head (like a toothbrush) and tried that on the stain. It didnt touch it, not even a tiny bit! I teally am fluxomed over this.

He said it wouldnt be an issue with the wood because we'd see it in other areas. This was installed early October in a new home we had built. We were the GC's and saw everything done in the house. I do not think there was an issue underneath (who knows what we will find now).
I am very interested to see what we find when we replace these few boards

Milney your floor definitely has a sheen to it where mine does not. At this point it wont hurt trying. I do believe the boards need to be replaced.
I appreciate everyone's help and will keep you updated. My husband is calling the installer this evening.

If you’re going to possibly remove the planks and replace them first try using peroxide, chemicals and peroxide will bleach the stain possibly.

Edward that would be a last ditch effort though. Only if they were going to be replaced if it didnt work. That would most likely ruin the finish.

NewEnglandgal, did you ever find out what cause the stains? Were the segments replaced?

I too am interested in the final outcome. X'mas time is a busy time for all. Maybe you've heard back from the manufacturer about the spots?

Hi sorry guys, have been away then sick. We were away before Christmas and just got back New Year's Eve. Have been nagging DH to call wood floor installer and he hasn't done so. Going away again next week so probably will not get him there till after we come back. No new stains on the floor though so its really odd with just those. I will update you as soon as I get an answer!

Have you tried putting more water on it and letting it sit to see if that is indeed the culprit? I mean, what’s the worst that could happen?

@milney_51031, your floors are beautiful! Do you mind me asking what type of wood and finish you used?

a_memmolo .. The floor is Armstrong laminate. The floor has worn like iron through 3 boys & 3 cats. Thanks for your compliment. Nice to hear.

My daughter has vinyl plank flooring and it is wearing very well also with 2 kids a cat and a dog and many times lots of kid's friends and a hockey team over! I like the look of ym floors but wish we had gotten luxury vinyl plank. I agree, Milney your floors are beautiful!

Sammy you are funny, just more damage to my floors? In a few weeks my husband will be calling our installer and hopefully I can get an answer.

NEG this looks just like a super stubborn mark I had on my lvp in our basement last week. My husband had moved a small gaming console that had rubber feet. No household cleaners would touch it. I had to get a toothbrush, dawn dish soap and some warm water. Plus a toothpick. Our lvp is grooved like yours. I just can’t get on board with the “mold” theory. That seems like crazy talk. If I spilled water anywhere in my house, inside outside, threw it on the wall, it wouldn’t just mold on contact. Now if taped it over with Saran Wrap, sure. But in the middle of the kitchen in winter with a nicely moisture-controlled house? Nope.
I really think it some sort of residue from contact from something: rubber boot, dragging something, etc

NewEnglandgal , I am looking at Palladio flooring. Would you mind sharing what finish you chose? I want a light color like white wash or driftwood but now I'm rethinking things.

@NewEnglandgal Read the entire thread with anticipation for the outcome! Please update, would love to know the remedy!

Hi Janet, no remedy at all unfortunately. The black I see in the tiny grooves in the floor are from water and cannot be fixed. I would have to put new planks in. I had no idea this floor would require so much maintenance. I have to be careful with every little drop of water that gets on this floor. I would never recommend it for any floor in a room with water ie: kitchen or bathroom. My husband and I have considered down the road having it polyed so as not to have to worry about the water but I do love the look of the floor. Thankfully my children are grown otherwise it would surely be a disaster!

JKS so sorry I did not see your comment until now. I would not recommend this floor with the finish I have which is no ploy. You cannot wash it like a normal floor but have to spray on a cleaner and use a dry mop to wipe it up. I wanted LVP flooring but my husband insisted on hardwood. As I have stated, I do love the look but it is not maintenance free at all!