I have a similar situation as OP we used Nordic Seal followed by MegaOne finish. We definitely were misinformed about the Nordic Seal applicaiton and did not put on enough sealant the first time around. This left us with some nasty patchy spots here and there. Fortunately the majority of the floor turned out really nice, but we are not very excited aboiut the pictured spots which unfortunately ended up right in the middle of the hallway and super noticable. Our sealant is the white tinted seal. We have tried to lightly scuff the finish and then reapply some white sealant to match the color but we are having a tough time blending it in. The white seems to need a lot to look the same tint and if you overlap any spots where the white is already fine then it keeps getting whiter and you can tell its layered up. Given the cost to rent the machines again, re-doing the entire floor is something we would like to avoid at all costs. I have read the above comments about sanding down to wood, but should we be concerned about potentitally damaging other parts of the floor that area already in good shape? Any advice would be much appreciated! thanks.

Hello, We'd be happy to provide some information to help with your hardwood floor renovation. Question #1 - is it Ok to use Duraseal stain and coat with Bona HD seal? Bona’s line-up of water based sealers and finishes generally are compatible with most wood stains, including DuraSeal. As with any stain it is important the stain is completely dry before applying a finish. Please be sure to read the label carefully as the dry time for stains will depend on the color. Some colors can take multiple days to dry vs others that may dry in a few hours. When blending two or more colors together you should default to the longest dry time of the colors used to ensure no drying issues. When mixing different brands of stain and finish coats we recommend doing a small test area to ensure compatibility and desired appearance. To clarify, Bona doesn’t make a product called Bona HD seal, but we do have a number of sealers and finishes and they all can be used over stain. Your contractor can help you select the best finish system to meet your needs. Question #2 - I understand with white oak you have to apply sealant BEFORE you stain your floor? So how does it work? Sand, then put sealant on (Bona?) and stain and seal AGAIN? Please do not apply a sealant before you stain the floor. Bona’s DriFast stain as well as the Minwax and DuraSeal stains are penetrating stains and must be applied to raw wood for them to work properly. If the floor is sealed prior to the stain application the stain has nowhere to go and will not look right and will create adhesion issues when you apply the finish coats. If the floor is stained with Bona’s DriFast stain you may apply either a sealer and finish coats or go straight to finish coats. If you use another brand of stain please refer to their label directions if they require a sealer prior to finish. The reason you may choose to use a sealer and finish coats has to do with appearance. Adding in an extra layer with the sealer can provide a little more build and depth to the floor and on white oak can help reduce reactions and bleed thru from the natural tannins. Question #3 - below are some stain colors that I like in Duraseal-Minwax. What Bona stain color combo can replicate the looks? We can't answer this question directly, as we do not have samples of competitor product blends. However, Bona’s DriFast Stain Collection comes in 26 stock colors and they are blendable to achieve any custom look. Please visit bona.com/inspiration to see the many color options we have available. If you have any further questions, please call our Technical Services Team at 800-872-5515. Thank you and have a wonderful day!

We have newly installed red oak. We want to keep it's natural pale look. We tried the Bona Natural seal but it still does not look like the bare unpolished wood. It seems that the grains are becoming more prominent which I don't like. Currently the grains are very subtle, barely noticed. I also tried the Nordic Seal, but this made the floor hazy and pink.

Thank you for asking. Unfortunately, we have put our kitchen reno on hold. We were advised to wait until the economy rebounds. But, my husband and I are closer in agreement. We have decided to go with a mix of white and light wood for the cabinets. I have found some great inspirational pictures. I still love the white oak but maybe with less wood cabinets maple will be ok. I checked Durasupreme and they have white oak but not in the shade we like. Also, Durasupreme got less than good reviews online. Plato has the white oak shade we like - nude cream - but the estimate came in really high. I still hope to get my dream kitchen.