Choosing What Kind of Hardwood Flooring

Hardwood floors

Choosing what type of wood floors best suit your home is an important decision. The 3 main types of hardwood floors are solid wood – engineered wood – acrylic impregnated flooring. When choosing your flooring you should keep in mind that solid hardwoods may require more upkeep than engineered wood flooring, but they can be re-sand and refinished.

Solid wood flooring comes in unfinished and pre-finished. The difference between these two is that unfinished floors need to be installed, sanded, stained, and sealed. Pre-finished wood floors just have to be installed; they have been finished at the factory. Three main types:

Solid wood:

            Strip flooring – has a set width, from 1 ½, 2, and 2 ¼ inches

            Plank flooring – comes in 2 thicknesses, but is available in widths from 3 to 8 inches

            Parquet flooring – made up of geometrical patterns composed of individual wood slats

Engineered wood flooring is produced by adhering layers of plastic laminate veneer with real wood. (You should not confuse engineered wood flooring with laminate flooring; there is no actual wood in laminate flooring.)

Acrylic-impregnated wood flooring is infused with color and sealant throughout the thickness of the wood, so the finish is actually all the way through the wood. (Mostly used commercially)

Hardwood Flooring Part 1

Hardwood Flooring

Part 1

Choosing to have new flooring is a big decision, on that, you need to be well informed. Should I go with real wood or laminate? If you are not sure you need to educate yourself, find out what the difference is.

Laminate floor is made of a high-density fiberboard core, placed between a melamine laminate backing and a high-quality photographic paper. The image can range from wood, stone, or any other natural flooring. There are a few hybrid products that replace photographic paper with a very thin piece of real wood veneer.

There are benefits and drawbacks to both hardwood and laminate flooring: hardwood floors can be scratched, but scratches can be repaired. If laminate floors get scratched, it’s not very easy to repair. A hardwood floor can be sanded to remove any imperfections; you can not do this with a laminate floor. One benefit to laminate floors is that they do not fade or turn yellow from sunlight. Most stained wood floors will change color over time. On the other hand, wood floors can be restored to their original beauty. Laminate floors never need to be waxed or polished, they also hold up better in a kitchen or bathroom, whereas hardwood floors do not do well in rooms with a lot of moisture.

Ultimately, the decision is yours whether you go with hardwood or laminate flooring; you need to examine what is best for you, your family, and for your home.