This is a great thread on oil finished flooring and I hope the open honest discussion will continue. We are in the same confused boat as many of you above. We are really wanting to put down oil finished engineered wood flooring in the house we are building. We have the same concerns as many of you do on this blog: maintenance/kids/pets/stains/water/spills/etc... I feel like I have looked at several options over the past 2 years (DuChateau, Castle Comb, Hallmark, Lazon, Mirage, Homer wood) and I can honestly say many days I am still just as confused after 2 years of research. I think the problem is many of these companies are coming out with their own oil finishes and trademarking the term, like Hallmark did with NuOil. When I try to research what NuOil is exactly I can't find much information and this worries me more. Some companies claim their oil is UV cured and makes it stronger. Again how is a consumer supposed to verify if any of these claims these companies are making are correct? It is so frustrating and honestly the people who get on this thread that are trying to sell a product/line or push their view are not really helping.
And to respond to the issue of flooring and were it is made and finished and the China issue. I had the same concerns. We all want safe flooring that is low VOC/no formaldehyde, CARB 2 compliant, eco friendly, and made in the US but unfortunately it is not always possible to get all of this and not pay very high cost for the product. My research has shown that even the high end companies like Lazon and DuChateau are sourcing materials in North America or Europe but 9 out of 10 time the floor wind up in China to be finished. A perfect example is a flooring company in the US called CaliBamboo. They pride themselves on being a US company with eco friendly product but all their product is sourced and finished in china.
Right now we are considering a UV oil cured engineered wood floor by Nuvelle, the line is called Camelot. Has anyone had experience with this? I will say my wood flooring specialist was kind of trying to sell me on Hallmark wood flooring and I looked at Alta Vista and the Organic line. I just could not find a finish/color that I loved and I had some concerns about the NuOil. I feel like Hallmark is one of those companies that uses hype and aggressive sales techniques to lure customers and flooring specialist. For example they have stickers on their floors in the showroom that say Best of Houzz 2016. Well what is exactly does that mean? Is this a popularity contest? Does it mean people that have the floors voted and liked the flooring or just that a people on Houzz liked the photos and and look?
I agree with others. You don't want the cheap stuff but you also don't need to spend $15-20 a sq foot and I think many companies are using the oil based flooring as a reason to charge more because it is very trendy and in vogue right now. I just wish there was more transparency. Some companies are claiming they use a Hardwax oil, UV cured oil, NuOil or just regular oil. Then there is the issue of maintenance. I have kids and a dog and the floors will be a in a water front home. It would be so nice if someone could provide guidance. If Europeans have been using oil treated hardwoods then they are usually more environmentally centers and like less chemicals so there are obviously pros. Are these companies that are making their own oils or UV curing them still keeping the environmental benefit? I hope we can keep this blog going as it seems like many people want answers and need helps and this is a big decision. I know for us it is a big decision. We are looking at almost 3,500 sq ft covered in engineered hardwood flooring and with many of these floors having lifetime or 50 year warranties we want a floor that is timeless and will last and look great.
To the person considering Castle Comb, there are owned by US Floors which is a big flooring company so not sure they are going to have the most transparency as US floors also makes some pretty cheap wood floors.
Q