[RogerT]

As noted elsewhere, I am re-doing a second floor apartment that a tenant
just moved out of.

Unfortunately, the previous tenant had cats and there are cat urine stains
everywhere on the existing old hardwood floors. There were rugs on top of
the old hardwood floors, but the urine stains went through the rugs to the
hardwood floors. So, barring some miracle way of getting rid of lots of cat
urine stains and smell, it looks like I am going to have to rip up the
existing old hardwood floors to get rid of the smell.

If I go that route, I want to put new 3/4-inch hardwood down -- not Pergo,
laminate, vinyl, etc.

My questions are related to what type of hardwood to get.

I was thinking of maybe putting down pre-finished 3/4-inch hardwood -- such
as Bruce prefinished hardwood. But, my concern about that is that the
prefinished "colors" are apparently a stain and finish -- so if the floor
gets scratched or damaged in the future (hopefully not by cat urine), I
would need to sand out the damaged area and then have to figure out how to
match the stain so the color would match. Instead, I was wondering if there
is some particular type of finished or unfinished hardwood floor that would
look good with just a clear polyurethane finish. That way, to repair any
damage, I could sand it out and apply a clear finish again and hopefully
that would match the original finish.

If I go with that approach, is there any particular type of hardwood
flooring that I should consider getting -- oak, maple, something else? --
either finished or unfinished?

[[email protected]]

On Fri, 9 Sep 2011 15:01:20 -0400, "RogerT" wrote:

As noted elsewhere, I am re-doing a second floor apartment that a tenant
just moved out of.

Unfortunately, the previous tenant had cats and there are cat urine stains
everywhere on the existing old hardwood floors. There were rugs on top of
the old hardwood floors, but the urine stains went through the rugs to the
hardwood floors. So, barring some miracle way of getting rid of lots of cat
urine stains and smell, it looks like I am going to have to rip up the
existing old hardwood floors to get rid of the smell.

If I go that route, I want to put new 3/4-inch hardwood down -- not Pergo,
laminate, vinyl, etc.

My questions are related to what type of hardwood to get.

I was thinking of maybe putting down pre-finished 3/4-inch hardwood -- such
as Bruce prefinished hardwood. But, my concern about that is that the
prefinished "colors" are apparently a stain and finish -- so if the floor
gets scratched or damaged in the future (hopefully not by cat urine), I
would need to sand out the damaged area and then have to figure out how to
match the stain so the color would match. Instead, I was wondering if there
is some particular type of finished or unfinished hardwood floor that would
look good with just a clear polyurethane finish. That way, to repair any
damage, I could sand it out and apply a clear finish again and hopefully
that would match the original finish.

If I go with that approach, is there any particular type of hardwood
flooring that I should consider getting -- oak, maple, something else? --
either finished or unfinished?

Unstained oak or maple would be a good choice, if you're set on hardwood. It
would naturally be quite light (color). Another alternative would be bamboo.
It's cheap and, IMO, the horizontal stuff looks pretty good. Spending a ton
of money on a rental doesn't sound like a winner.

[Big Jim]

You may be able sand and refinish the entire room and once sealed
there should be no odor. Whatever you do- dont allow pets. They will
have accidents. Or at least get extra security from them


On Sep 9, 3:01*pm, "RogerT" wrote:
As noted elsewhere, I am re-doing a second floor apartment that a tenant
just moved out of.

Unfortunately, the previous tenant had cats and there are cat urine stains
everywhere on the existing old hardwood floors. *There were rugs on top of
the old hardwood floors, but the urine stains went through the rugs to the
hardwood floors. *So, barring some miracle way of getting rid of lots of cat
urine stains and smell, it looks like I am going to have to rip up the
existing old hardwood floors to get rid of the smell.

If I go that route, I want to put new 3/4-inch hardwood down -- not Pergo,
laminate, vinyl, etc.

My questions are related to what type of hardwood to get.

I was thinking of maybe putting down pre-finished 3/4-inch hardwood -- such
as Bruce prefinished hardwood. *But, my concern about that is that the
prefinished "colors" are apparently a stain and finish -- so if the floor
gets scratched or damaged in the future (hopefully not by cat urine), I
would need to sand out the damaged area and then have to figure out how to
match the stain so the color would match. *Instead, I was wondering if there
is some particular type of finished or unfinished hardwood floor that would
look good with just a clear polyurethane finish. *That way, to repair any
damage, I could sand it out and apply a clear finish again and hopefully
that would match the original finish.

If I go with that approach, is there any particular type of hardwood
flooring that I should consider getting -- oak, maple, something else? -- *
either finished or unfinished?

[JimT[_2_]]

On 9/9/2011 3:35 PM, Big Jim wrote:
You may be able sand and refinish the entire room and once sealed
there should be no odor.

Assuming the floor is in good condition other than the stains that's
what I would at least try first. A dark stain might be able to help hide
some of the residual stains.

[HeyBub[_3_]]

RogerT wrote:
As noted elsewhere, I am re-doing a second floor apartment that a
tenant just moved out of.

Unfortunately, the previous tenant had cats and there are cat urine
stains everywhere on the existing old hardwood floors. There were
rugs on top of the old hardwood floors, but the urine stains went
through the rugs to the hardwood floors. So, barring some miracle
way of getting rid of lots of cat urine stains and smell, it looks
like I am going to have to rip up the existing old hardwood floors to
get rid of the smell.
If I go that route, I want to put new 3/4-inch hardwood down -- not
Pergo, laminate, vinyl, etc.

My questions are related to what type of hardwood to get.

I was thinking of maybe putting down pre-finished 3/4-inch hardwood
-- such as Bruce prefinished hardwood. But, my concern about that is
that the prefinished "colors" are apparently a stain and finish -- so
if the floor gets scratched or damaged in the future (hopefully not
by cat urine), I would need to sand out the damaged area and then
have to figure out how to match the stain so the color would match.
Instead, I was wondering if there is some particular type of finished
or unfinished hardwood floor that would look good with just a clear
polyurethane finish. That way, to repair any damage, I could sand it
out and apply a clear finish again and hopefully that would match the
original finish.
If I go with that approach, is there any particular type of hardwood
flooring that I should consider getting -- oak, maple, something
else? -- either finished or unfinished?

Before you go to the expense (but for anyone who spends $5,000 on a floor
for a rental unit is probably not concerned with expense), try renting an
ozone generator. A powerful one.

[hr(bob) [email protected]]

On Sep 9, 2:01*pm, "RogerT" wrote:
As noted elsewhere, I am re-doing a second floor apartment that a tenant
just moved out of.

Unfortunately, the previous tenant had cats and there are cat urine stains
everywhere on the existing old hardwood floors. *There were rugs on top of
the old hardwood floors, but the urine stains went through the rugs to the
hardwood floors. *So, barring some miracle way of getting rid of lots of cat
urine stains and smell, it looks like I am going to have to rip up the
existing old hardwood floors to get rid of the smell.

If I go that route, I want to put new 3/4-inch hardwood down -- not Pergo,
laminate, vinyl, etc.

My questions are related to what type of hardwood to get.

I was thinking of maybe putting down pre-finished 3/4-inch hardwood -- such
as Bruce prefinished hardwood. *But, my concern about that is that the
prefinished "colors" are apparently a stain and finish -- so if the floor
gets scratched or damaged in the future (hopefully not by cat urine), I
would need to sand out the damaged area and then have to figure out how to
match the stain so the color would match. *Instead, I was wondering if there
is some particular type of finished or unfinished hardwood floor that would
look good with just a clear polyurethane finish. *That way, to repair any
damage, I could sand it out and apply a clear finish again and hopefully
that would match the original finish.

If I go with that approach, is there any particular type of hardwood
flooring that I should consider getting -- oak, maple, something else? -- *
either finished or unfinished?

I would swab the floor with pure bleach, let it sit for several
minutes and then swab it off as much as possible. Do this with a good
exhaust fan running. Once the wood has dried, see how the smell is
doing. You could cover the present floor with a couple of layers of
plastic film, and then put carpeting over that. It might be much
faster, much cheaper and much easier than replacing the whole floor.

[RogerT[_3_]]

"JimT" wrote in message
net...
On 9/9/2011 3:35 PM, Big Jim wrote:
You may be able sand and refinish the entire room and once sealed
there should be no odor.

Assuming the floor is in good condition other than the stains that's what
I would at least try first. A dark stain might be able to help hide some
of the residual stains.


You both may be right about that, and that is still a possibility. We are
doing most of the rest of the apartment first and then will deal with the
floor issue. I belong to two real estate investor groups, each of which has
a fairly active online discussion forum. Over the past few years, people
have posted over and over about how to deal with cat urine problems and
smell. Most have said that if the cat urine gets down into the hardwood
flooring, the only way to ever really get rid of the smell is to rip out the
old flooring and put down a new floor. Some even say that it may also
require replacing the subfloor, but I have doubts about whether that would
be true. Others have said that using enzymes designed for use with cat
urine (such as Nature's Miracle), possibly sanding the floor, and re-sealing
it may work. So, I don't really know yet what the final answer will be. I
did already buy 2 gallons of Nature's Miracle and may try that initially.

[RogerT[_3_]]

"HeyBub" wrote in message
news
RogerT wrote:
As noted elsewhere, I am re-doing a second floor apartment that a
tenant just moved out of.

Unfortunately, the previous tenant had cats and there are cat urine
stains everywhere on the existing old hardwood floors. There were
rugs on top of the old hardwood floors, but the urine stains went
through the rugs to the hardwood floors. So, barring some miracle
way of getting rid of lots of cat urine stains and smell, it looks
like I am going to have to rip up the existing old hardwood floors to
get rid of the smell.
If I go that route, I want to put new 3/4-inch hardwood down -- not
Pergo, laminate, vinyl, etc.

My questions are related to what type of hardwood to get.

I was thinking of maybe putting down pre-finished 3/4-inch hardwood
-- such as Bruce prefinished hardwood. But, my concern about that is
that the prefinished "colors" are apparently a stain and finish -- so
if the floor gets scratched or damaged in the future (hopefully not
by cat urine), I would need to sand out the damaged area and then
have to figure out how to match the stain so the color would match.
Instead, I was wondering if there is some particular type of finished
or unfinished hardwood floor that would look good with just a clear
polyurethane finish. That way, to repair any damage, I could sand it
out and apply a clear finish again and hopefully that would match the
original finish.
If I go with that approach, is there any particular type of hardwood
flooring that I should consider getting -- oak, maple, something
else? -- either finished or unfinished?

Before you go to the expense (but for anyone who spends $5,000 on a floor
for a rental unit is probably not concerned with expense), try renting an
ozone generator. A powerful one.

I did think about renting an ozone generator, but there are two reasons why
I probably won't end up doing that.

One is that the apartment below this one is occupied. And, my understanding
is that ozone generators need to run for a few days to work, but that the
ozone is hazardous to people -- so the place has to be empty while the ozone
generator is on. Even though this is a separate apartment, I think the
ozone generator operating in the floor above could present a risk to the
occupants of the apartment below.

And, the second reason is that from what I understand about cat urine
smells, the problem is not just one of removing the existing odor. The
problem is that the residual cat urine is a bacteria (or something like
that) that regrows in humid weather and produces more odor. So, unless the
ozone generator kills and removes the bacteria(?), the odor will return.

[RogerT[_3_]]

wrote in message
...
On Fri, 9 Sep 2011 15:01:20 -0400, "RogerT" wrote:

As noted elsewhere, I am re-doing a second floor apartment that a tenant
just moved out of.

Unfortunately, the previous tenant had cats and there are cat urine stains
everywhere on the existing old hardwood floors. There were rugs on top of
the old hardwood floors, but the urine stains went through the rugs to the
hardwood floors. So, barring some miracle way of getting rid of lots of
cat
urine stains and smell, it looks like I am going to have to rip up the
existing old hardwood floors to get rid of the smell.

If I go that route, I want to put new 3/4-inch hardwood down -- not Pergo,
laminate, vinyl, etc.

My questions are related to what type of hardwood to get.

I was thinking of maybe putting down pre-finished 3/4-inch hardwood --
such
as Bruce prefinished hardwood. But, my concern about that is that the
prefinished "colors" are apparently a stain and finish -- so if the floor
gets scratched or damaged in the future (hopefully not by cat urine), I
would need to sand out the damaged area and then have to figure out how to
match the stain so the color would match. Instead, I was wondering if
there
is some particular type of finished or unfinished hardwood floor that
would
look good with just a clear polyurethane finish. That way, to repair any
damage, I could sand it out and apply a clear finish again and hopefully
that would match the original finish.

If I go with that approach, is there any particular type of hardwood
flooring that I should consider getting -- oak, maple, something else? --
either finished or unfinished?

Unstained oak or maple would be a good choice, if you're set on hardwood.
It
would naturally be quite light (color). . .

I'll have to check that out. I did buy a medium grade unstained red oak
once in the past and I didn't like the way it looked with clear polyurethane
on it. But, in general, I like the look and color of maple furniture -- so
maybe I'll have to see if I can find out more about what unstained maple
would look like. Thanks.

Another alternative would be bamboo.
It's cheap and, IMO, the horizontal stuff looks pretty good. . .

I don't know, but I have heard that bamboo is not really a hard hardwood --
meaning it damages fairly easily.

Spending a ton
of money on a rental doesn't sound like a winner.

I agree that it is more money to put down new hardwood, and most people
don't do that for a rental. But tenants do like hardwood floors (at least
in our area), and I think about how it looks good and that lasts much longer
than carpet. The floor area that I would be covering is about 440 square
feet.

[Vic Smith]

On Fri, 9 Sep 2011 15:01:20 -0400, "RogerT"
wrote:

As noted elsewhere, I am re-doing a second floor apartment that a tenant
just moved out of.

Unfortunately, the previous tenant had cats and there are cat urine stains
everywhere on the existing old hardwood floors. There were rugs on top of
the old hardwood floors, but the urine stains went through the rugs to the
hardwood floors. So, barring some miracle way of getting rid of lots of cat
urine stains and smell, it looks like I am going to have to rip up the
existing old hardwood floors to get rid of the smell.


I don't know about cat ****, but I had dog **** stains on an oak
floor. Same deal, through carpeting.
Had the floors sanded and the stains were gone.
Seems if the stains are gone the smell would be too, since the floors
gets sealed with varnish after the sanding.
My previous house stunk of cats when we bought it, but after painting
the smell was gone. Floors were okay though.
You probably want to test sanding first before you replace the floors.

--Vic

[Ed Pawlowski[_2_]]

"RogerT" wrote
hardwood floors. So, barring some miracle way of getting rid of lots of
cat urine stains and smell, it looks like I am going to have to rip up the
existing old hardwood floors to get rid of the smell.

If I go that route, I want to put new 3/4-inch hardwood down -- not Pergo,
laminate, vinyl, etc.

My questions are related to what type of hardwood to get.

I was thinking of maybe putting down pre-finished 3/4-inch hardwood --
such as Bruce prefinished hardwood. But, my concern about that is that
the prefinished "colors" are apparently a stain and finish -- so if the
floor gets scratched or damaged in the future (hopefully not by cat
urine), I would need to sand out the damaged area and then have to figure
out how to match the stain so the color would match.

I'd try sanding the existing floors first. Go deep enough and the odor may
be gone. If that does not work, I'd put a pre-finished engineered wood
down. It will have a very durable finish and if the tenants screw it up,
you can tear it out and replace it as reasonable cost. For a rental, now
way would I spend a lot of money just to have it trashed.

Visit your local floor covering dealer. You can run into some great buys for
pretty good looking flooring at times. Discontinued, special buys, etc.

[[email protected]]

On Fri, 9 Sep 2011 20:48:13 -0400, "RogerT" wrote:

wrote in message
.. .
On Fri, 9 Sep 2011 15:01:20 -0400, "RogerT" wrote:

As noted elsewhere, I am re-doing a second floor apartment that a tenant
just moved out of.

Unfortunately, the previous tenant had cats and there are cat urine stains
everywhere on the existing old hardwood floors. There were rugs on top of
the old hardwood floors, but the urine stains went through the rugs to the
hardwood floors. So, barring some miracle way of getting rid of lots of
cat
urine stains and smell, it looks like I am going to have to rip up the
existing old hardwood floors to get rid of the smell.

If I go that route, I want to put new 3/4-inch hardwood down -- not Pergo,
laminate, vinyl, etc.

My questions are related to what type of hardwood to get.

I was thinking of maybe putting down pre-finished 3/4-inch hardwood --
such
as Bruce prefinished hardwood. But, my concern about that is that the
prefinished "colors" are apparently a stain and finish -- so if the floor
gets scratched or damaged in the future (hopefully not by cat urine), I
would need to sand out the damaged area and then have to figure out how to
match the stain so the color would match. Instead, I was wondering if
there
is some particular type of finished or unfinished hardwood floor that
would
look good with just a clear polyurethane finish. That way, to repair any
damage, I could sand it out and apply a clear finish again and hopefully
that would match the original finish.

If I go with that approach, is there any particular type of hardwood
flooring that I should consider getting -- oak, maple, something else? --
either finished or unfinished?

Unstained oak or maple would be a good choice, if you're set on hardwood.
It
would naturally be quite light (color). . .

I'll have to check that out. I did buy a medium grade unstained red oak
once in the past and I didn't like the way it looked with clear polyurethane
on it. But, in general, I like the look and color of maple furniture -- so
maybe I'll have to see if I can find out more about what unstained maple
would look like. Thanks.

Most "maple" furniture is stained. Natural maple is pretty light.

Another alternative would be bamboo.
It's cheap and, IMO, the horizontal stuff looks pretty good. . .

Sorry, the *vertical* looks good. I don't like the horizontal nearly as much.

I don't know, but I have heard that bamboo is not really a hard hardwood --
meaning it damages fairly easily.

Well, it's not hardwood at all. ;-) It depends on the bamboo. I put
vertical, medium carbonized, in my previous house. It was great. This house
has horizontal, light carbonized, and I don't like it at all. Unlike the
first bamboo I put in, this is quite soft. Note that hardwood isn't all that
"hard" either. I'd *never* put it in a rental.

Spending a ton
of money on a rental doesn't sound like a winner.

I agree that it is more money to put down new hardwood, and most people
don't do that for a rental. But tenants do like hardwood floors (at least
in our area), and I think about how it looks good and that lasts much longer
than carpet. The floor area that I would be covering is about 440 square
feet.

That's not a lot of area. Unless this is a really high-end unit, I still don't
think it's very smart. OTOH, I found bamboo was about the same price as
decent vinyl, installed. It looks a *lot* better, too.

[HeyBub[_3_]]

RogerT wrote:
"HeyBub" wrote in message
news
RogerT wrote:
As noted elsewhere, I am re-doing a second floor apartment that a
tenant just moved out of.

Unfortunately, the previous tenant had cats and there are cat urine
stains everywhere on the existing old hardwood floors. There were
rugs on top of the old hardwood floors, but the urine stains went
through the rugs to the hardwood floors. So, barring some miracle
way of getting rid of lots of cat urine stains and smell, it looks
like I am going to have to rip up the existing old hardwood floors
to get rid of the smell.
If I go that route, I want to put new 3/4-inch hardwood down -- not
Pergo, laminate, vinyl, etc.

My questions are related to what type of hardwood to get.

I was thinking of maybe putting down pre-finished 3/4-inch hardwood
-- such as Bruce prefinished hardwood. But, my concern about that
is that the prefinished "colors" are apparently a stain and finish
-- so if the floor gets scratched or damaged in the future
(hopefully not by cat urine), I would need to sand out the damaged
area and then have to figure out how to match the stain so the
color would match. Instead, I was wondering if there is some
particular type of finished or unfinished hardwood floor that would
look good with just a clear polyurethane finish. That way, to
repair any damage, I could sand it out and apply a clear finish
again and hopefully that would match the original finish.
If I go with that approach, is there any particular type of hardwood
flooring that I should consider getting -- oak, maple, something
else? -- either finished or unfinished?

Before you go to the expense (but for anyone who spends $5,000 on a
floor for a rental unit is probably not concerned with expense), try
renting an ozone generator. A powerful one.

I did think about renting an ozone generator, but there are two
reasons why I probably won't end up doing that.

One is that the apartment below this one is occupied. And, my
understanding is that ozone generators need to run for a few days to
work, but that the ozone is hazardous to people -- so the place has
to be empty while the ozone generator is on. Even though this is a
separate apartment, I think the ozone generator operating in the
floor above could present a risk to the occupants of the apartment
below.

Ozone decomposes into oxygen. The half-life of ozone is about 72 hours.

You've got to ask yourself which is more important: the health and safety of
your renters or saving a lot of money.

Let me think...


And, the second reason is that from what I understand about cat urine
smells, the problem is not just one of removing the existing odor. The
problem is that the residual cat urine is a bacteria (or
something like that) that regrows in humid weather and produces more
odor. So, unless the ozone generator kills and removes the
bacteria(?), the odor will return.

Ozone kills bacteria, mold, fungus, termites, and bad TV programs.

[WW[_2_]]

"RogerT" wrote in message
...
As noted elsewhere, I am re-doing a second floor apartment that a tenant
just moved out of.

Unfortunately, the previous tenant had cats and there are cat urine stains
everywhere on the existing old hardwood floors. There were rugs on top of
the old hardwood floors, but the urine stains went through the rugs to the
hardwood floors. So, barring some miracle way of getting rid of lots of
cat urine stains and smell, it looks like I am going to have to rip up the
existing old hardwood floors to get rid of the smell.

If I go that route, I want to put new 3/4-inch hardwood down -- not Pergo,
laminate, vinyl, etc.

My questions are related to what type of hardwood to get.

I was thinking of maybe putting down pre-finished 3/4-inch hardwood --
such as Bruce prefinished hardwood. But, my concern about that is that
the prefinished "colors" are apparently a stain and finish -- so if the
floor gets scratched or damaged in the future (hopefully not by cat
urine), I would need to sand out the damaged area and then have to figure
out how to match the stain so the color would match. Instead, I was
wondering if there is some particular type of finished or unfinished
hardwood floor that would look good with just a clear polyurethane finish.
That way, to repair any damage, I could sand it out and apply a clear
finish again and hopefully that would match the original finish.

If I go with that approach, is there any particular type of hardwood
flooring that I should consider getting -- oak, maple, something else? --
either finished or unfinished?
Always have a damage deposit from renters. WW

[gregz]

"RogerT" wrote:
As noted elsewhere, I am re-doing a second floor apartment that a tenant
just moved out of.

Unfortunately, the previous tenant had cats and there are cat urine stains
everywhere on the existing old hardwood floors. There were rugs on top of
the old hardwood floors, but the urine stains went through the rugs to the
hardwood floors. So, barring some miracle way of getting rid of lots of cat
urine stains and smell, it looks like I am going to have to rip up the
existing old hardwood floors to get rid of the smell.

If I go that route, I want to put new 3/4-inch hardwood down -- not Pergo,
laminate, vinyl, etc.

My questions are related to what type of hardwood to get.

I was thinking of maybe putting down pre-finished 3/4-inch hardwood -- such
as Bruce prefinished hardwood. But, my concern about that is that the
prefinished "colors" are apparently a stain and finish -- so if the floor
gets scratched or damaged in the future (hopefully not by cat urine), I
would need to sand out the damaged area and then have to figure out how to
match the stain so the color would match. Instead, I was wondering if there
is some particular type of finished or unfinished hardwood floor that would
look good with just a clear polyurethane finish. That way, to repair any
damage, I could sand it out and apply a clear finish again and hopefully
that would match the original finish.

If I go with that approach, is there any particular type of hardwood
flooring that I should consider getting -- oak, maple, something else? --
either finished or unfinished?

I can't figure if you are going to try any sanding. My suggestion would
apply several coats or washings of mild soapy water with at least two
tablespoons of oxiclean per gallon. Let each wash completely dry before
next. Ventilate or dehumidify process.
Oxiclean will try to change color of wood like a bleach. When I sanded a
floor, and treated decomposed foam stains with oxiclean, it worked well.
When I put on the coats of polyurethane, the floor started looking dark and
ugly. After a day or two it cleared up, light and nice. Not sure what the
reaction was.

Greg

[gregz]

gregz wrote:
"RogerT" wrote:
As noted elsewhere, I am re-doing a second floor apartment that a tenant
just moved out of.

Unfortunately, the previous tenant had cats and there are cat urine stains
everywhere on the existing old hardwood floors. There were rugs on top of
the old hardwood floors, but the urine stains went through the rugs to the
hardwood floors. So, barring some miracle way of getting rid of lots of cat
urine stains and smell, it looks like I am going to have to rip up the
existing old hardwood floors to get rid of the smell.

If I go that route, I want to put new 3/4-inch hardwood down -- not Pergo,
laminate, vinyl, etc.

My questions are related to what type of hardwood to get.

I was thinking of maybe putting down pre-finished 3/4-inch hardwood -- such
as Bruce prefinished hardwood. But, my concern about that is that the
prefinished "colors" are apparently a stain and finish -- so if the floor
gets scratched or damaged in the future (hopefully not by cat urine), I
would need to sand out the damaged area and then have to figure out how to
match the stain so the color would match. Instead, I was wondering if there
is some particular type of finished or unfinished hardwood floor that would
look good with just a clear polyurethane finish. That way, to repair any
damage, I could sand it out and apply a clear finish again and hopefully
that would match the original finish.

If I go with that approach, is there any particular type of hardwood
flooring that I should consider getting -- oak, maple, something else? --
either finished or unfinished?

I can't figure if you are going to try any sanding. My suggestion would
apply several coats or washings of mild soapy water with at least two
tablespoons of oxiclean per gallon. Let each wash completely dry before
next. Ventilate or dehumidify process.
Oxiclean will try to change color of wood like a bleach. When I sanded a
floor, and treated decomposed foam stains with oxiclean, it worked well.
When I put on the coats of polyurethane, the floor started looking dark and
ugly. After a day or two it cleared up, light and nice. Not sure what the
reaction was.

Greg

Regardless, the old floor would still need a sealer coat of varnish.

Greg