How do I choose a species and color that is right for my home?
Decisions abound when selecting just the right floor for the rooms in your home. There are several species, colors and grain variations to consider. After walls, the floor represents the largest expanse of color or pattern in a room. Your floor should compliment the fabrics, furnishings and accessories already present in the space, as well as enhancing the unique personality of the room as a whole.
The most popular color choice is red oak natural, but in today's eclectic style anything goes. Darker colors are most often used in formal or traditional interiors, while lighter colors work best in country, casual and contemporary settings.
What is the difference between an engineered floor and a solid hardwood product?
Engineered products, available in Planks, Strips or Longstrip, are manufactured of hardwood using a three- or five-ply cross-directional laminated construction, with a top layer of premium hardwood. This construction counteracts the natural tendency of wood to expand and contract with seasonal changes in temperature and humidity, making engineered products inherently dimensionally stable. Solid products, available in Planks, Strips or Parquet, are manufactured from a solid piece of wood.
Is there an advantage engineered products over solid products?
Yes. In general, engineered products can be installed in any room in the home, whether on-grade, below-grade or above-grade. Engineered products can be nailed down, glued-down or stapled down, depending upon the situation. One engineered product, Longstrip, can be glued down, stapled down or “floated” over most subfloors without the use of nails or adhesives, making it ideal for remodeling. Solid products are not recommended for below grade installations and must be nailed down or glued down.
What about prefinished versus unfinished?
Most hardwood flooring sold today is prefinished. That is, several coats of UV-cured polyurethane are applied at the factory. These factory finishes are tough and durable. Installing a prefinished floor eliminates the time, the dust and the odors associated with the on-site sanding and finishing of an unfinished product. A prefinished floor can be installed in a day. An unfinished flooring installation may require up to four days, depending upon the space.
What about installing wood in high traffic areas?
High traffic areas include exterior doorways, hallways and the areas in front of the sink, stove and refrigerator. To protect the floor just inside exterior doorways, use walk-off mats or small rugs to catch tracked-in dirt and grime. Place small rugs or mats at other high traffic locations. Vacuum or shake these regularly. Watch for grit or pebbles that might be brought in on waffle soles of athletic shoes and collect these with a hand-held cordless vac.
Q. What is engineered hardwood flooring?
Engineered hardwood flooring is flooring manufactured by using hardwood with a cross-directional laminated construction (usually 3 to 5 layers), with a top layer of premium hardwood. Our suppliers use only USA northern native hardwoods, and is 100% hardwood construction. Other companies may use hardwood substitutes, and a thinner top layer. Our product should not be confused with flooring that is made to look like wood. Our hardwood flooring is the best engineered flooring in the industry.
Q. Can flooring be glued to concrete?
Yes, you can glue engineered flooring directly to concrete: on, above or below grade. However, it is important to test the concrete for moisture before installing hardwood flooring, for below grade applications if moisture is present then a moisture barrier is recommended.
Q. What advantage does engineered flooring have over solid hardwood flooring?
Engineered hardwood flooring is very versatile and more stable than solid flooring. For example, engineered hardwood flooring can be glued, stapled, or nailed to virtually any subfloor, concrete, wood, linoleum, or even over existing hardwood floors. The cross directional layup of the products counteracts the natural tendency of wood to expand and contract with seasonal changes in temperature and humidity, making engineered flooring inherently dimensionally more stable than solid products.
Q. Why should I buy Prefinished Flooring versus Unfinished Flooring?
Unfinished flooring installed by a professional gives the most options regarding sheen and custom colors. Prefinished flooring is convenient. There is less time involved in installation and less mess. Changes in humidity will not crack the finish between two individual planks as they can move independently.
What Type Of Flooring Should I Choose?
There are so many types of flooring offered today, it is hard to know which one is right for your particular application. We all want something that will be durable and easy to care for, not to mention something that will look good with our decor for many years to come. Let's face it, flooring is a major investment for your home, one that you probably don't want to have to make very often. You have to find the balance between personal preference, practicality, and your budget. This guide will present the pro's & con's of each type of flooring available.
Here are some general tips on choosing & purchasing your flooring material:
Choose NEUTRAL! Sure, you love blue now, but can you guarantee you will love blue five years from now? Will you always want blue in that particular room? The answer to both of those questions is probably "no." You can't go wrong with choosing neutral colors such as cream, beige, brown, or gray. It is understandable that some folks find this a bit boring, but this is something that we want to last both in durability AND beauty. So, when orange becomes the rage again (perish the thought!), will it look great with that royal blue carpeting? I don't think so, and Martha Stewart would probably say "It's NOT a good thing!" This is especially true when you are sprucing up your home to sell. You wouldn't want somebody else to pick out their favorite color for your new home, would you? Plus, the same color throughout a home makes seem larger and makes it seem to "flow." Neutral colors just make more sense all the way around. But, if you are the adventurous type, go for it! It is YOUR home after all!
Wood vs. Plastic Laminate Flooring
(a.k.a. the "fake" wood floor)
Plastic laminate flooring looks and acts just like a real wood floor, right? Well, not exactly. The countertop industry has entered the world of floor covering in the past few years with a product called plastic laminate flooring. While these floors have somewhat the appearance of wood, upon closer inspection they can be seen to be more closely related to cardboard. The printed wood image can be as thin as a human hair and when chipped it exposes the fiberboard core of the panel.
The visual appearance of the printed wood pattern may look great in a small sample, but in a large area you will notice how the pattern of the flooring panel repeats - usually about every five boards. Also, when you walk upon a plastic laminate floor your footsteps make a hollow, tip-tappy sound.
All floor covering wears and when plastic laminates chip, or when they loose their gloss due to wear, they must be thrown away. Most real wood floors can be renewed by applying additional coats of urethane to the surface. Most wood floors are backed by a lifetime structural warranty. So why "fake it" when you can have a real wood floor that adds real value to your home?
Wood vs. Carpet
Carpeting is more economical, right? Actually, carpeting lasts between seven and ten years under normal residential use. Hardwood floors can last a lifetime and are always in style.
Here's a 30-year comparison test you can use when trying to decide between carpeting or wood flooring. Say you installed a hardwood floor. It would typically last for 30 years. During that same period you probably would have to install new carpeting four or five times. At that rate, the hardwood flooring actually costs less than the cumulative cost of all the carpeting you would have to install.
Another thing you need to consider is the cleanliness of your home. A large American company that recycles old carpeting has stated that most used carpeting it receives for processing contains at least 35% of its weight in household dirt. The families who owned this old carpeting were actually walking, or crawling on dirt. Hardwood flooring is simply cleaner. If it is dirty, the dirt is plainly visible to the eye, not hidden within carpet fibers and padding. Hardwood flooring my be your best buy and most solid investment.
Engineered Wood vs. Solid Wood
It's a well-known fact within the flooring industry that engineered wood flooring is much more stable than solid wood flooring in environments where moisture is a concern. Wood and water, however, do not mix. Damp conditions undermine all types of floor coverings. Oak lumber floors, for instance, can have many problems in the presence of moisture, including gaps between planks, squeaking, cupping, buckling, and cracking. Hardwood Floors' Cross-Locked Engineered planks are eight times more stable than solid wood planks, so there is no need to worry about squeaks or buckles in normal indoor environments.
