It is a nice product but as a designer I find many clients turned off when the 'benefits' (i.e. marketing spin) is broken down for them.

Moisture: Oiled floors are essentially chopping block floors. They will absorb water just like a chopping block counter or cutting board would. My recommendation is to request a few sample strips. Oil them. Spill something on them--wine, mustard, ketchup, barbecue sauce, your choice. Wipe it up but do no more. Just as you wouldn't interrupt a party you were hosting to begin sanding and oiling, leave the stain for at least a day. What does it look like? Are you okay with that look? Then sand it and oil it. Are you okay with the maintenance? How does the spot-oil effect look to you?

Markings: Like a cutting board, your oiled floors are in no way resistant to marks, scratches, or scuffs. Your dog's toenails, kids toys, a dropped fork, and your high heels will all leave their traces. Some people love that look. I'm one of them. But many people do not.

Sanding: One of Navarre's marketing spins is that you don't have to sand it unlike other finishes. In fact, it is not oil vs. polyurethane that determines the need for sanding. Most people will want to sand at least some marks or scratches out of their oiled floors. The real distinction lies in the difference between engineered and hardwood, and in this comparison, Navarre engineered wood comes up short. Like all engineered wood, it is plywood with a veneer finish. Eventually that finish is going to be sanded through and you'll be left with nothing but plywood. This would not happen with hardwood.

Refinishing: Navarre would have you believe that owning polyurethaned floors is a labor-intensive endeavor. In fact, most people will find themselves reoiling floors more than they would refinish polyurethane. It is true that you can spot treat an oiled floor and you can't do that to polyurethane. But polyurethane lasts longer for most users than oil.

Appearance: Navarre proudly claims that oiled floors overtime become more beautiful. That's one way of looking at it. I tend to agree. But what they mean is that the oils, and by extension your floor, will darken. Think of oil spills in your kitchen. They get darker (and more obvious) over time. Navarre's explanation of polyurethane's color changes is curious. It is true that polyurethane yellows; it is ultraviolet light sensitive. The yellowing is usually not very noticeable unless a rug is left in place for several decades. And the source of the yellowing--the urethane can be completely removed. The oil in oiled floors cannot be removed if you find down the road that you don't like the color it is becoming.

Hygiene: Oiled floors are not impervious. Polyurethane finishes are. If someone spills something on a polyurethaned floor, the finish repells it and it remains on the surface of the floor. It does not soak into the wood. With an oiled floor, dirt becomes imbedded in the floors, moisture is absorbed and can invite mold and bacteria. Sure you can mop and clean, but wood fibers will swell and dirt and unpleasantness will work their way into the open grain. Your bare feet will be walking on it; your children will be playing on it. Again, many people are not troubled by this; we are exposed to far more harmful things every day and most not only don't hurt us but strengthen our immune systems. But it does give many customers pause.

@kodak---thank you for the wonderful 'primer' (pardon the pun) on this type of wood floor. i would think that this type of oiled finish also would make it difficult to run a swiffer over it without catching. i'm with the pausing customers :)
katy
http://fengshuibyfishgirl.com

Ed: Kodak has a great and thorough overview. I can only add a little from what I've learned from several neighbors with oiled, solid wood floors.

The finish is not shiny as there is no clear lacquer coat, just the beauty of the oiled wood. My next door neighbor, with medium colored stain, had a few problems in the beginning. The floor would stain from spilled food/liquids. Conversely, some of the stain would come off when wiped up or it would rub off on socks. It became less of an issue over the years as the floor received more oil coats and years later it looks great.

The floor does show all the nicks and scratches (especially with pets) as there is no clear-coat barrier, although for some this is part of the look they love. One of my neighbors has distressed, dark stained, oiled floors (not an issue for you) and all the stained edges have been rubbed away so that they are light colored. She's not happy with that part.

The floors need to be refinished once a year or once every other year so that's an added cost to consider. This includes sanding the really scuffed up, high use areas. Kodak mentions that this might be an issue if Navarre's floors are engineered and I have to agree because the visable wood is a thin veneer and good for one, maybe two sandings. For this process, everyone I know moves out for the entire weekend it takes to refinish and re-oil.

Hope that helps a bit.

My 50s ranch bedrooms have wood floors that somehow escaped varnish or urethane (probably because they were covered in broadloom at some point). Having just cleaned, reoiled and waxed them I understand your love for their beauty but never would I have them anywhere else in the house, since even with only the slippers and socks of adults they just barely hold up. Don't even think about it!

@kodak--Thanks for the great information!

Thank you everybody, and especially kodak, for all the information. I will have to think twice before getting this after all your comments. Thanks again!

Ed

I'd check out Stang-Lund, a Scandinavian inspired newer line of hard-waxed/oiled wide-plank flooring (from an established company, WD Flooring). http://stang-lund.com/finish/index.htm We are ordering custom whitish 6". This type of finish is very common in Scandinavia --my mom is from there. I researched options in the US... so happy when I finally found them! It's also NO-VOC!! Looove that! Regarding wear, if you get a big scratch or a traffic pattern, you can fix that area only -- you don't have to re-sand and re-poly your entire floor. You can buff and re-wax/oil one board! So, to me, that's a big plus for this type of flooring. No one mentioned that in above posts.