Hardwood Flooring

Benefits Of Hardwood Floors

Hardwood Flooring has number of benefits:

There are 3 important things in timber which can affect your hardwood flooring:

Hardness: different timber types have different hardness's that affect durability
Graining: which affects the board's look
Color: which can be kept natural or stained

There are 2 types of hardwood:

There are 2 types of floor finish:

Solid wood - one piece that is milled from lumber.

Widths: from 2-1/4" to 5" wide
Thicknesses: standard - 3/4", "thin profile" - 5/16"
Moisture and extreme temperature:
Solid wood can shrink and expand, potentially causing gaps between boards during colder or dryer seasons.
Installation directly over concrete:
5/16" - YES, 3/4" - NO.
Refinish and coating:
All solid hardwood can be sanded and refinished if needed (required every 15-20 years). Urethane coating is more economical than sanding and refinishing (resists household and foot traffic stains).

Engineered wood - multiple layers of solid wood in a cross-ply construction.

Thicknesses: from 1/4" to 3/4"
Moisture and extreme temperature:
Due to its multi-ply structure, engineered wood is much more stable than solid wood and is less susceptible to shrinking and expanding with changes in temperatures and humidity.
Installation directly over concrete: YES
Refinish and coating:
Engineered wood with a top layer thinner than 1/10" cannot be refinished; however, it can be recoated to renew the surface of the floor

Hardwood floors that are stained with color and sealed with a protective finish by the manufacturer prior to installation.

no dust from sanding
no fumes from chemicals
no waiting for the finish to dry
choice of colors
are warranted to last typically 15 to 25 years (factory applied urethane finishes are much tougher and longer lasting)

Hardwood floors that are stained with color and sealed with a protective finish at the installation site by the installer.

the floor can be sanded after it's installed to even out any imperfections
widest selection of stain colors to choose from
can produce heavy fumes, messy dust and significant waiting time from when the floor is laid until it can be enjoyed
labor costs may increase your installation costs