Oak ambers over time. Are the areas in bright sunlight?

There are a lot of windows in that room but there is a covered porch too. The floors have only been installed for the last 3 weeks so would they yellow like that so soon? The yellow is very unnatural. It’s not amber.

Call the manufacturer for technical support. It looks pretty natural, since it appears in certain boards. It doesn't look like a spill or water droplets. Most likely manufacturer defect or something they did not disclose to buyers.

Thanks so much for your response. Do you think that even though they have been flawless up until Friday, that they could suddenly develop these spots? Also one of the gray streaks turned purple and a few of the all gray boards now have a red/pink hue. I thought it may be possible that the finish was having a chemical reaction to the PolyCare which is the only thing different. Do you think there is anyway to correct the discolored areas without having to sand and refinish? I am so sick o Er this. Those floors were expensive and my whole house is done in them. The other thing to note is that this issue has only occurred in my great room and extra bedroom where the floors were cleaned. Thank you so much for your help!

A chemical reaction is certainly possible. Only the manufacturer will be able to answer the question for sure. They know the exact finish that is on their product line. They will be able to diagnose the issue.

Based on everything you are describing. It points to a chemical reaction with the cleaner. The fuming (reactive stain) used to turn the floor boards gray is having a chemical reaction with the cleaner. The cleaner is dissolving it. Similar to Rubio Monocoats reactive stain systems. I don't see mop marks or water droplets to confirm. Are you sure the finish is aluminum oxide and not an oil finish?

Replacing the boards will be the easiest fix.

Thank you again! The finish stated on the flooring website for this particular flooring says
Urethane with Aluminum Oxide - Matte.

White Oak has a history of 'tannin pull'. That is to say, the yellow in the wood LOVES to move to the surface and show yellow. Even with a clear coat (water based finish) white oak can and WILL turn yellow (all by itself) despite the water based finish.

The 'purple' is a bit odd. A photo of the purple would be helpful.

I agree there *might be a chemical reaction between the Poly Care and the URETHANE finish. I am unable to access the Technical Data Sheet on the Poly Care...but a quick phone call to the company should get you the ingredients list. I think this is a bit of a long shot...but it's *possible.

The WOOD flooring manufacturer is responsible for ensuring white oak receives a "sealant" to STOP tannin pull. Many do NOT add the sealant because it adds another step at the factory and each step adds more money.

Who is the manufacturer and what's the name of your hardwood?

The hardwood is 3/4 inch white oak from paramount flooring. Cobblestone Creek Lilac is the name and even though lilac is in the name, I swear there was no purple in the grey lol. I’m headed back over to the house now and I’ll get a photo. Thank you for taking time out of your day to answer!

From the PolyCare instructions:

Important Notes:
Do not apply PolyCare Cleaner from the bottle directly to the wood surface. Excess liquid may be absorbed by the wood fibers, and may damage or discolor the wood surface.

Hi Sammy, I read that too. My general contractor said the product was used correctly. I believe him. He’s been wonderful to work with so far but he is being defensive regarding this too. I’m just at a loss....

This is the gray that turned purple.

I was wondering if this is a glue down floor. If it is, is it over plywood or concrete? If it is glued down, I'm wondering whether or not the glue is causing some issues from below?

And the maintenance document states Bona Line Products. Nothing else.

G & S Floor Service, thank you. Are you saying any kind of moisture like a damp sponge or the cleaner? Should I reach out to the store that sold me the flooring and ask them to contact a rep or contact the company directly? I appreciate all the time you’ve taken today!

SJ McCarthy, it is not glued down. It’s over a standard subfloor and aquabar “b” underlayment. As far as the Bona line that is what he had been using up until Friday and everything was fine.

I need an opinion, because I feel like my general contractor thinks I’m over reacting. This is something worthy of getting fixed, right? I shouldn’t accept this as fine for my brand new house should I? I can see every spot of it but if you’re not looking for it it’s not super noticeable. My GC has been a dream to work with but he seems annoyed with this situation and I need him to finish my house and we are so close to being done. Just a couple of weeks away. I don’t want to cause problems but I’d like my house to be beautiful and something to be proud of and I’m paying a lot of money for it as well.

Update: I reached out to my flooring dealer who sent my pictures to the rep. The manufacturer rep says the color is a natural occurrence in the wood and both cleaners (Bona and PolyCare) are fine to use on the floors.....

Well the good news is there is nothing 'wrong' with the floors. The bad news is you have a floor that has variations in colour from yellow to purple.

I guess you will need to decide whether or not to pay for the most offensive planks to be removed or to leave the floor as it is.

SJ McCarthy I’m jumping in here because we have just had our floors finished ( first coat) we decided against water poly and went with a natural oil poly. The floors are white oak. There are sone boards that part of them are white and part darker. I didn’t think about that when we went with natural ( no stain). Now these places are very odd looking yellow streaks. Can I have these boards replaced? You mentioned above she could But my contractor says the only way to remove a board is to nail it down on top and the nail will show.

Well I will tell you, the yellow will turn to orange and the 'white' will turn to a dark yellow.

Do you like that idea? No? Then stop them right now and have the fresh coat of poly removed. Start again with a sealant and a water based finish. If you do NOT like yellow then you will NOT like the orange they turn. It is NOT the wood. It is the finish. Oil poly will turn white-board orange...no need to add a stain. It does by oxidizing and exposure to UV (aka. "light"). The only thing that stops the 'ambering' is to work with something OTHER than oil poly.

Do you have photos? Did you know that white oak has tannin pull? The yellow tannins (colour) in the wood can migrate from the MIDDLE of the plank to the SURFACE of the plank? This can happen with either oil or water based but it is MOST noticeable with water based.

The only thing I can say is: Yellow = normal. Orange (soon to come) = normal. Strong colour variations between planks = normal.

Do not pull the planks unless you can be given 100% assurance it won't happen again (hint: no one will give it to you). You ONLY pull planks if the issue is with the finish application (ie. the person allowed puddles in the finish).

SJ McCarthy thank you so much! We are having the oil poly removed and plan on putting provencial stain on and then use a water based poly. I am not sure what to do about the tanning pull you mentioned since you say that will happen worse with the water based. Do you have suggestions as to how to prevent this. We will need to decide this week! Thanks again

Many stains are considered sealants as well. It comes down to the manufacturer of the stain and what they suggest when being used over white oak and with a water based polyurethane.

You don't have to worry about tannin pull with a stain look, only natural.

Thank you both so much!! I am praying for good results this time. We cannot afford another re do!!

help! i just had my custom white oak floor installed and theres a ton of yellow streaking. they used a water based poly and they swear its not due to the application of the finish. what do you all think and advise to remedy? is this normal?!

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