Last summer I planned on redoing my kitchen, and I removed the POs indoor/outdoor carpeting that came pre-stained and smelly. Found the original 1891 floor underneath (1" thick with a 1" t/g subfloor!), that was perfect in every area that I didn't need it to be (of course).
From the looks of it, there were several kitchen fires that damaged the floor in varying degrees, leaving bad patches in small perimeter areas and the walkway directly in front of the cabinets. I was able to find salvage oak flooring to make the repairs, but due to contractor problems, the floor and the kitchen were put on hold. There didn't appear to be any finish left on the original floor at all - and because it's not sealed, I've done little more than sweep and damp mop it.
The other day I was putting some shellac on trim in another room, and thought I'd run the rag across a few boards in the kitchen to see how it looked. They seemed far more shellac-ed than they should have. Turns out that there is still some old shellac on the floor because when I hit them with a bit of alcohol, the finish perked back up.
However, it was then that it became clear that the floor was laid with alternating boards of red oak and white oak - in a striped pattern. The boards are very long 12' to 14', and from what I can tell, this pattern was deliberate and runs throughout the room. It's definitely not random. The salvage wood I bought is white oak, so it will look really obvious if the pattern isn't continued. I can't imagine that I'd be lucky enough to find red oak in the same configuration.
The thing is, because of all the nail holes in the original floor and some of the discoloration from the previous fires, I'd planned on staining the floor. Does anyone have experience with staining these two woods? I'm hoping that they will take the stain similar enough that the floor will seem to be one color, with varying grain patterns.
If that won't work, any other suggestions? Could the individual white oak boards be color matched to the red with stain?
Thanks so much! Here's a photo of the area that needs patching. The original floor is the part closest to the little rug at the bottom of the picture. The entire 13' showing (plywood and other patches) needs to be replaced. Some of it is only 48" wide, but many other sections run the entire span of the room - another 12' out of the picture.
![Image](http://i1262.photobucket.com/albums/ii618/NY_Linda/patches.jpg)