I have NEVER seen any fall color on silver maples here maybe a scant yellow for a day and then brown...Maybe you have a differnt variety there. I had one at my old house loose a limb and take out the neighbors garage that cost me pleanty I had my neighbors take out my fence .. we had one down the road take out the power for about 1000 folks. I have another neibor who lost half of his last wiointer the rest doied and it's 80 feet tall it will cost a fortune to take down now and have it cut up or hauled away you can't use it for fire wood it's to soft and crummy!! As Ia kid my father had several planted for quick shade and I spent most of every summmer taking care of falling branches ...As I said If you like 'em go for it .As far as seeds there were NO SM's withjin 800 yards of me 5 years ago and now except for the thousands that are popping up in any unmowed place in my yard ...they do FLY!!..But in the final result It's all a persoanal choice based on personal experiences ... Mine are obviously differnt from yours and from the posts here I have much more company than you as far as opinions on the silver maple but there is nothing wrong with having a minority opinion ...again good luck ..David

You'll have to have an arborist look at the trees in person to be able to get any useful opinions about their structural integrity. Look for somebody that sells themselves as a consulting arborist or other tree expert as part of the package of services offered.

We will have omega smokey grey cabinets (dark grey-brown color) on the island and lower cabinets. Would this floor color scheme work okay with the darker smokey grey or clash? Any opinions or suggestions appreciated! TIA.

Scuff marks (sits on top of the finish...is actually "left behind" material from an object) are different from scratches (penetrates the finish and touches the wood). A floor finish is something that protects the wood - not the look. A finish is meant to take the abuse (take the scuffing) while leaving the wood underneath unharmed. Your floor is doing just that. That means the finish is "working". I know the VISUAL (how it looks) isn't appealing but the fact remains that the wood is still protected. Ok...on to maintenance. Oiled floors have more maintenance than polyurethane finishes. They require re-oiling several times before the next sand/refinish is required. And that re-oiling is normally done by the homeowner (move the furniture, apply the oil, let sit, wipe off, let dry, put furniture back). And the touch-ups (when the finish is disturbed and you need to reapply more colour) will also be done by the homeowner. Again, this is MUCH MORE frequent than a polyurethane finish. I HIGHLY recommend you go onto the Ligna website and find out what your maintenance requirements will be. I suggest you purchase EVERY PRODUCT they recommend for your floor and then teach yourself how to use it. It will save you oodles of stress when an event occurs. You will be ready for it. Now onto the colour. You have a very dark floor. The colour alone can and will show everything. And I mean everything. This is the norm for dark flooring whether it is stained maple, black porcelain, slate or soap stone. All dark products show everything (like a black car shows every speck of dust from the road....and water marks too). I would guess that the oil finish is doing "just fine" but because of the depth of colour, it is showing what happens to wood finishes when something is moved across them - they scuff. And because the finish is matte, the scuff marks show up as a low-gloss satin = visible difference in gloss level. For me, that's one reason why I prefer a satin finish over matte. It is easier to live with. At this point, you have a dark maple floor that appears to be doing its job. Getting a stain on maple is EXTREMELY difficult (so difficult that most refinishers will NOT attempt it). For this reason alone, the oil finish is a better option for a dark stained maple. If you wish to go 'natural' then a polyurethane in a satin finish is an excellent choice. If you wish to maintain a dark floor, you may want to stick with the oil....it is less hassle/heart ache than trying to stain maple with traditional stains. I'm sorry you don't like your floor. I wish there was a better way to deal with what you are going through.