Update - a picture of our actual floor, visible in the corner, + dog. We chose to cover it up for a long time with a large white area rug but would like to solve rather than avoid the problem this time!

I dithered over this very issue for a while. My hall,living and dining room had the same 5 finger parquet as yours except a lighter orangey colour. I could appreciate to some it might be lovely and i respected that it was original to my house but I didn't love it.
I've just done and entire renovation of that whole area and decided to finally do something about the parquet. My first thought was that I could live with it if it was a much lighter (limed/white/grey) but the experts I had assess it said as it was such a hard wood I could only go darker.
I considered getting it stained almost black which disguises the finger effect enough to make it look quite good (imo) but I still wanted my whole downstairs lighter so that wasn't the way to go.

In the end I opted to put a floating laminate on top and cover the whole parquet but know it was protected and in pristine condition underneath should I or anyone care to unearth it years down the line.
A bit of a cop out but it as the best solution for me.

How old is the house? If the parquet is from the same era, I'd keep it. I'd have it sanded and sealed ( our parquet turned our to be nice light wood under the orangey stain). It could look really funky if you go for the Scandi style in the house and some mid century furniture. If the house is, say, Victorian then I'll try to change it altogether. However, it all depends on why you're doing it and the budget.

This is basket weave pattern I believe. I would personally do everything I could to avoid removing it. Looks like it is probably afromosia or similar tropical hardwood. I'd sand it back and then finish it with a matt topcoat (something by Osmo). They offer a range of finishes with different pigments. I think it will look much nicer for not being glossy varnished as that always reminds me of a school hall.

Hi all

Thank you for your responses, they have
been helpful and greatly appreciated.

xtine74 - I think to get rid of it, no
matter how aesthetically unappealing, would be a shame considering it’s a hardwood
floor! Covering it to fit your desired look while keeping it intact underneath sounds
like a great solution though.

Jprzym - The house is not that old I think it was built in the 60s, so it definitely matches the era.

A McIntosh Photography - Agreed on the
school hall comment! I was never able to pinpoint what bugged me about it, but that
encapsulates the effect of a glossy finish on this kind of parquet perfectly,
so we’ll definitely be going matt. I will have to take a look at Osmo, thank
you for the recommendation.

clairetaz09 - I absolutely love the grey
colour, it’s beautiful! Did sanding and oiling involve a lot of work/take much time?

After much deliberation I think we are
going to keep it, sand it, re-stain a different shade with a matt finish. We’re
still unsure of what colour to go - I love a lighter, grey-ish floor and I know
that’s very popular at the moment but there is a possibility that, like with
xtine74’s parquet, the floor will only go darker, but going really dark is
something I wouldn’t be opposed to. I reckon the next step would be to get
someone in to assess the condition and let us know what our options are in
terms of staining.

Thank you all again!

Hi Isidora,

We got the pros in but our rooms took them a day to sand and two coats of oils so was done within a couple of days - well worth the time. They were also able to check the parquet blocks to see if they were solid or not (which they weren't) and advise that we only had one sand left on them as they had been over sanded by previous owner. They can then advise on the type of wood as this will be key to choosing the colour. We took time to decide between oil and varnish and finished up with oil in the end due to ability to patch sand and re-oil as needed. Good luck - it will look wonderful when you're done!
Claire

We have exactly the same flooring as you in our 1960's Camden ex-local authority property. Apparently, the flooring company we used said that the deep red/orange colour was indicative of varnish/oil that was used for yachts -- which was cheaper back in the day.

We had the parquet sanded back, which showed a lovely light colour hardwood, which we just had sealed and lacquered over (3 or 4 coats, if I remember). In total around 27sqm, the professionals were able to complete everything in one day. Almost no mess afterwards as well! Looks infinitely better now.

Like everyone else, I'd advise to keep it and just get some work done to it.

I've attached a photo of what ours looks like now.

Bear in mind that over time, the wood will change colour. I had my herringbone parquet refinished in my bedroom, with two coats of Osmo oil to seal it. At first it was a light Oak colour, similar to the previous pic from clairetaz09, but over the last 8 years it has darkened and changed shade. It still looks good, and is better than the remaining parquet in the house, which is still varnished and dark orange brown, but just don't rely on it staying 'blonde'.

Hello

I have the same parquet , only bits missing and finding it difficult to find any replacement pieces given the size - which apparently isn't made any more . Did buy some off e bay years ago which was a hassle . So wondered if anyone had any contacts or any idea where it might be available

Hi there, I have just lifted a floor like this in my home and have it in bags in my garage, where are you based? If you want what I have you are more than welcome, I have in total about 10 sacks full.

Isidora - we have exactly the same problem. We bought our house one year ago. 1970's house but exactly the same parquet style and colour. Our lounge is lighter than our hall and I imagine that is because the previous owners sanded the lounge but not the hall or used different varnish. I would love it to be made grey like clairetaz09. Please update us here on what you decide as I would love to know how much it costs, how long it takes and what colour you eventually get as I may well copy. Unfortunately, this house has a lot of orange! We have changed the kitchen to white but originally it was terracotta, as was the en-suite and conservatory. It was obviously a 60's/70's theme! Good luck and please, do keep us posted. Thanks

Mandy

clairetaz09 - I'm really intrigued as to how you got the colour change from brown to grey. Did the oil do that? Or what? I love it and would love to change our orange parquet to grey like yours.

clairetaz09 - would you be good enough to say who did the work on your parquet flooring? It really is fabulous. Thanks Mandy

Hi Andrew
That would be so helpful
I am in Worcester ?
Thanks

Hi Mandy,

Thanks for your wonderful compliments - we are a bit smug with it! :-) We have parquet throughout downstairs, the hall had a varnish on it that had a yellow cast and when we took the carpet up in the lounge, the lounge part had been varnished years ago with a dark yellowy brown stain. We were originally going to go with a dark stain but when the sanders actually took the varnishes off by sanding, the wood had a lovely grey natural tone anyway and had lost the yellow look. We were thinking of just putting a clear oil on but this would give it that 'wet look' that we wanted to avoid and also consequently give it a slightly yellow hue. After a bit of research we opted for Osmo 'raw' oil which is clear oil with a white pigment - you need to be careful what wood you put it on as it doesn't work so well with dark woods but we were very happy. Our pro was good but I wouldn't recommend due to a few snagging issues - however I would recommend speaking to The Natural Wood Floor Company in Wandsworth, London for advice if you are SE based - they are a supply shop with excellent advice! I have attached photos of our floor before it was oiled (and not fully sanded back at this stage) so you can see it naturally with no product - would have loved to keep it like that but it would be marked in no time!

Thank you for this. I do love the grey and what you've done looks amazing. Osmo raw oil sounds good. I will indeed bear all this in mind. Thanks for the tips.

Hi Andrew 198 . I replied to you in Oct . Do you still have the parquet - if you could let me know

Thanks