Here are some pics, the photos don't show the true color of the floors though. They were much darker and had more brown and less red in person. We did chose a almost black wire brushed oak floor in our newest build. Just to try something different, but I would do a dark handscraped low sheen again in a heart beat. :) We do build a new home every three years as an investment, so no real long term experience. But in the three plus years of having each home the floors wore well and did not show scratches with dogs. But low sheen, and handscraped did hide any scratches or dings we did have and looked natural. Other house: New build brushed oak floors, low sheen: This post was edited by xc60 on Fri, Mar 28, 14 at 1:27

I'm sorry to say but you purchased a low(er) gloss floor. Either a matte or a low-gloss satin. At this point, you will have to live with a dull floor because the finish chosen is a low(er) gloss finish. The polish you have is EXACTLY that...a polish. It is a polymer "temporary" finish. Yep. It will "add" a chemical to your floor that will slowly wear away (that's what a polish does). As it wears away, it dulls again. So you must apply it...again...and again...and again (should be every 4-6 months for the rest of the floor's life). And then, because life isn't exciting enough, you will need to REMOVE the polish/polymer that you spent so much time applying to your floor. Yet again you will be working hard to remove the HAZY, WAXY residue you have on your floor. You will chemically and mechanically STRIP the floor. Yes...wax on, wax off! After you spend a few hours STRIPPING your floor, you will the have a dull floor once again. And the polishing cycle continues. You will then have to apply another coat of polish...and a few months later you will have to do it again...and again, etc. If you start down the dark path to "polishing hell", you will forever have to do it. And it is possible you will have removed your warranty on the floor and have prevented the possibility of a refinish in the future. I don't suggest you go that direction, but if 'clean shiny' is a requirement in your home, you are welcome to apply the polish. Just be FULLY AWARE of what you are getting yourself into. It will be a continuous battle with the polish. I would rather be unhappy about the sheen - with very little work to do; rather than be unhappy with the polishing with HUGE amounts of work to do. Good luck. Polishes *sound great...but they create a maintenance nightmare that you will never get out of until you rip out your floor.

I take it you dont have a new home warranty? (They are required where I am up in Canada, but let me tell you, that 'warranty' isnt all its cracked up to be either). If you dont have a warranty, best bet it to get a 3rd party expert (or two) and serve your builder with copies and politely ask him again to remedy. If not, pursue small claims. (Sadly these are workmanship, not code issues, or I'd suggest you sick your building inspector on him). Good luck, I get what you are saying about yoru house - I'm waiting for a new home warranty claim to be resolved - spring came and my drywall got ruined due to a water intrusion issue! The warranty rep and GC are speaking to each other, but refuse to speak to me. (I have to wait for 'paperwork to come in the mail', grrrr...)

The "oil finishes" are hardwax oil products that are applied as a single coat. They are traditionally a matte finish and they require maintenance by the homeowner. You must be prepared for the maintenance. Many of the factory finished engineered floors with oil finishes can require (or would benefit from) an application of maintenance oil applied as soon as they are installed. This isn't a huge issue (because it is relatively easy) but it is something that most people do not know and therefore "miss" the opportunity to add this little bit of extra love at the beginning. Once installed, the oil floors are beautiful, raw-looking wood finish. They are low gloss. If you are someone who likes the look of a "clean shiny floor" then you will be horribly disappointed by the floors and will spend days and days trying to "clean" the floors to a "shine" - without any success. Tears are soon to follow. As for "UV oil finish" this is just a fun way of saying the factory used UV lights to speed up the curing of the finish. Instead of 2-3 days, the cure can be reduced to a few minutes under UV lighting. That's it. That's the whole difference. Other than that, UV cured vs. natural cured hardwax "oil" finishes are the same beast. If you love the look of oil finished flooring, then go for it. But PLEASE FIND OUT the maintenance requirements and purchase ALL of the maintenance products at the same time that you purchase the floor. That includes any "colour oil" products used to create the colour at the factory. Once the floor has been delivered, I would find a "culled" or warped plank (an imperfect plank that will not be installed) and start playing with your maintenance products on the board (or boards) so that you are well schooled BEFORE a little "oopsa" occurs. It will make your life MUCH easier.