Great. yes we have white oak floors just placed in a new home and are struggling to match something similar to this. we love this look and would even prefer it to be a little more on the "grayer" side. all of the duraseal mixes we have tried have not worked, however we do have rustic beige and silvered gray coming next week to try.

do you apply 2 coats of wood bleach first then 2 coats of the duraseal stain mix? and do you have a non yellowing urethane that you recommend? I have been researching the bona sealers and finishes but if you have another you recommend we can certainly look for it.

thanks so much for your response!

The Silvered Gray might get you closer to your target. The bleach gets two coats, letting the first dry before applying the second*. Let that dry fully before applying one coat of stain**. We use Bona finishes mostly; after the stain you could use ClassicSeal (clear) or NordicSeal (slightly white) and two coats of Mega HD Clear or Traffic.

I recommend you bleach a spare board, apply a small swatch of each stain and a coat of ClassicSeal. Then evaluate the base color of each gray as to whether it tends to brown or blue or black. You can either look at it as adding white to a color you like but want darker or as adding a tint to the white to steer it toward your desired target. It may take a mix or two to four colors to get the perfect color. Buy a set of cheap plastic measuring spoons so you can keep track of ratios. Once you have something you like, make a little bigger batch of stain and a bigger sample. Pay attention to the difference between the hard and soft grain since over the larger area your eye will combine the two when viewed at a distance. If you get the whole floor stained and want it slightly lighter you can use NordicSeal rather than ClassicSeal and apply multiple coats (but too many coats tends to fill the grain and obscure the surface texture).

*White Oak may require a coat of white vinegar to neutralize the bleach if it exhibits a greenish or yellowish tinge after bleaching. Technically the bleach self neutralizes but some batches need this extra step.

**A second coat of stain could compromise adhesion of the surface finish.

this is awesome. I was thinking about using either NaturalSeal or NordicSeal and probably matte traffic HD since it will be a heavily traveled area :) thank you SO much again. I may be back for more questions later but this is a great place to start. I am passing all of this info along to our flooring company who is very familiar with duraseal but not so much with bleaching. I will let you know how it turns out!

NaturalSeal has a bit of dark tint so don't use that. I hate to tell another flooring company their business but since I'm in south Florida we've been bleaching and pickling floor since the 1970s. Good luck!

I think my flooring people will be appreciative :) I sure am. Too bad we are not in south Florida. I love palm beach :) and thanks on the NaturalSeal.

Dumb question - is there any certain wood bleach you use?