Posts Tagged ‘Engineered’

Is engineered floor more scratch resistant than hardwood?

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Is engineered floor more scratch resistant than hardwood?

Different types of various flooring are available now on the world market concerning to meet the demands of nowadays active lifestyles. There is always too much information about wood flooring. It makes hard sometimes to know exactly what is what. You may wonder what the difference is between purchasing one kind of floor or another. From the basics of the wood flooring, the engineered floor and hardwood flooring can be marked out.  The both types of floor are durable and beautiful, have its benefits and disadvantages.

You can often hear that the engineered floor cannot be refinished as often as the hardwood floor. The deep scratches and dents can be sanded out in hardwood, but it may not be possible in engineered wood. To find out more about this statement is good to know the structure of engineered floor and hardwood.

Engineered flooring

Engineered wood is made from three to five layers of hardwood, by attaching the thinner pieces of hardwood and layers then on the top of each other to a softwood base, often with a plywood bottom. The cris – cross effect makes this type of hardwood floor able to withstand more weight, force and heavy traffic. All layers are bonded together under heat and pressure that is why the engineered floor is strong, stable and long-lasting product.

A hard surface on the engineered floor prevent from forming scratches even if you drag the furniture across the room. This will not damage the floor. It is stronger alternative than solid wood flooring.  However, the top layer in engineered floor is thinner than in the solid hardwood, though it as a protective coating. The small scratches can be sanded out, but the deep ones are hard to be repaired.

There are many kinds of engineered wood. You just have to go to a store to see the differences in all of the different types of floors available. The disadvantage of the engineered floor is that can be sanded no more than 1 – 3 times, depending on the thickness of the finish layer. Engineered wood flooring is less affected by changes in humidity and can be installed at all levels of the home.

Solid Hardwood flooring

This wood is made from thick piece of hardwood. Its thickness, gives to the hardwood the possibility to be sanded and refinished over several times. According to the changes in your home, the hardwood will expand and contract. In case the expansion gap is left between the floor and the wall this will not cause any problem.  The extra space is covered by molding.

Hardwood species all have different hardness ratings, when considering scratch resistance you should consider what kind of finish has been used and how scratch resistant the finish is. Some floors have more durable finished than others do. The gloss level can also add to the floor the ability to show or hide scratches more or less. Most pre finished hardwood floor is generally very durable and installed make great floor for leaving.

Considering buying one from the great varieties of flooring options, try to make the best choice. The most important is to find the product that will exactly meet your budget, needs, and suit to the lifestyle and entire home’s design. In this way eventually, there is no need to worry about scratches and maintenance.

Toronto Hardwood TipTop Flooring is a professional flooring services firm in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA). We are offering hardwood/laminate flooring installation services. Our exceptional services and approach are professional to everything we do. To find more about Wood Floors please visit us on http://www.tiptopflooring.ca/all_about_wood_floors.html.


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This entry was posted on April 1st, 2011 under Engineered Flooring.

Engineered Hardwood Flooring – Designed to Provide Great Flooring Stability

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Engineered Hardwood Flooring – Designed to Provide Great Flooring Stability

Have you ever wondered what engineered hardwood flooring is? It is flooring that is made up of a core of hardwood, plywood or HDF that has a top layer of hardwood veneer that is glued to the surface of the core. You can find engineered hardwood flooring in just about any species of hardwood. The end product has the natural characteristics of the hardwood you selected instead of just a photographic layer. This engineered product has been designed to provide the flooring with greater stability, especially in areas of moisture or heat that would pose a problem for conventional solid hardwood flooring.

The difference between a laminate flooring, solid hardwood flooring and engineered hardwood flooring is this: a laminate core floor is usually made of High Density Fiber or HDF. The top layer is a photographic layer that mimics the appearance of the product it is replicating. This can be wood, vinyl, or tile for example. This product is usually about 3/8 inch thick and has a tongue and groove locking system that doesnt use glue. This enables you to install and reinstall the flooring several times if you wish. A laminate is the least expensive of flooring options.

Solid hardwood is the natural wood species throughout the whole flooring. This too usually comes with a tongue and groove installation. A solid hardwood floor has good sanding and refinishing capabilities. It tends to be more expensive, and solid hardwood flooring has limitations to where it can be installed due to moisture or heat issues.

Engineered hardwood flooring usually has three or more core layers. The more layers you have, the greater the stability you can expect. The core layers of engineered hardwood flooring can be made of plywood, high density fiberboard or hardwood. The best part of engineered hardwood flooring is that is does not destroy the natural warmth and beauty of a traditional solid hardwood floor. The top layer is the same genuine hardwood you would have in solid hardwood flooring.

You can add the warmth and grace of more expensive solid hardwood flooring at a fraction of the cost when you decide to use engineered hardwood flooring. With all the money you save, you may want to think about remodeling the rest of your home.

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This entry was posted on March 31st, 2011 under Engineered Hardwood Flooring.

All about Engineered Flooring

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All about Engineered Flooring

Engineered Wooden Flooring comes in a large range of finishes and styles. It also comes in different structures and it is important to understand the implications of how the boards are manufactured to appreciate the effect they can have on the application you want to use the flooring for. Finishes can range from antique hand distressed to tranquil natural brushed boards all through to rustic and prime finishes and can be used with underfloor heating. You should never confuse Engineered wood flooring with the cheap limited versions.

 There are three basic structures of engineered floors

Cross ply birch plywood back

Sandwich Board where the whole structure is made up of the same species of tree

Poplar back where you normally get just two layer of poplar this is the cheapest engineered board and is probably the worst to use except in very limited applications 

 

Top quality plywood boards are the foundation for any quality engineered flooring. The plywood is made up of several layers of birch; each layer has the grain running in opposite directions which will ensure that the top layer has a very hard surface on which to adhere. You should always look for 100% birch plywood back to give extra stability. A mixture of woods is not good for the long term stability of any engineered wooden floor.  

Solid Wood and Engineered boards

The difference between a solid wood floor board and a good quality engineered floor board that has a minimum top layer thickness of 5mm or 6mm is minimal. Solid boards are normally 18mm thick and good quality engineered wood flooring is 20 to 21mm thick. The picture of actual boards opposite shows the end section of a solid board next to an engineered board and as can be seen there is no real difference between either. Therefore engineered boards offer huge advantages over solid wood flooring due to their stability and they will look the same as a solid board.   

 

The picture below shows the end grain of a modern solid oak where the heartwood is near the middle and the board will always “cup” towards the heartwood, this will not happen with an engineered board.  

 

How are engineered floor boards made.

Engineered wood floors are made up of a top layer bonded with modern adhesive to a plywood base. Like any structure, the foundation, which in this case is the plywood, is the part that gives the floor board its stability. Plywood is made from veneers (which are slices of hardwood) about 2mm thick which are bonded together in high pressure presses. The best engineered boards have a 14mm or 15mm thick plywood back. The top of hardwood flooring is then bonded to the plywood base with a high pressure press and allowed to cure. Once this is done and the adhesive is cured the boards are then put in a drying chamber (similar to a kiln) to balance the moisture content of each type of wood.  

The top veneer or top wood layer of solid hardwood can be anything from 4mm, 5mm or 6mm. If the top layer is only 2mm then it can get easily damaged and unlike thicker top layers it is harder to repair. The picture below shows a top quality engineered board section.

Top quality engineered floors will look no different than solid wood but are in fact much more stable and do not need to be acclimatised except for the sandwich board.

By choosing an engineered wood flooring board you are helping the Environment

There are many reasons to choose an engineered wooden floor over any other type including solid wood, some are listed below and with issues of global warming and other concerns about our environment we should be looking at buying such a natural flooring solution.                                   

We can manufacture much more flooring from the same tree using engineered wooden flooring. Solid boards are normally 18mm to 20mm thick and with a 6mm top layer we can get three times as much and with a 4mm top layer, four times as much engineered wood flooring. Engineered floors will not expand and contract like solid wood You do not need to acclimatise the boards You can use engineered boards with underfloor heating Engineered flooring can be floated on uneven surfaces or better still glued down Engineered wooden flooring can be used in moisture prone areas of homes and commercial premises, like bathrooms, kitchens, walkways etc. 

Cross section of an engineered board 20mm thick with a solid 5mm top layer and a multiply birch plywood back

Installing Engineered Flooring

There are several methods of fitting engineered floors and the main ones are below

Floating Floor this is where you glue the tongue and grooves together with a good quality PVA adhesive and just let the boards rest on an underlay or electric heating mat if it is recommended by the manufacturer. Gluing the floor directly to a concrete screed or flat subfloor like plywood or chipboard Secret nailing or screws directly to a plywood subfloor or directly to joists

 Cheap Poplar backed Engineered Flooring

The picture below shows the profile of a click system board that uses a poplar middle and a thin birch back. These are stable boards but the top layer cannot be thicker than 4mm and the poplar back is more susceptible to moisture than birch.   

This should only be used in certain situations where there is no high traffic and is only really for residential situations.

Engineered Sandwich Floor Board Construction

These are fairly new to the market and are normally used where boards are wider than 220mm to 260mm. For example the picture below shows a 340mm wide board that is constructed totally of Oak. This means that the whole board has the same cell structure and is the same species allowing consistent movement which is only restricted by the structure. If you had a solid board like this that is cross cut, as all floor boards are these days, then you would have to drill holes. This means you would screw the boards directly from the top as there would be too much movement which would result in expansion, contraction, warping and cupping. This is why you see plug holes in very old boards.

In a sandwich constructed board, picture opposite, the top layer is 6mm, the middle with the grain going in the opposite direction is 9mm and the bottom layer is 5mm and is also finger jointed.

The top picture is a slice of the 20mm thick sandwich board. This shows how the grain runs in the opposite direction. The lower picture shows the strips of the middle layer, 6mm top layer and 5mm bottom layer.

Martyn Ryder owner and ceo of The Solid Wood Flooring Company www.thesolidwoodflooringcompany.com


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This entry was posted on March 14th, 2011 under Engineered Flooring.

Solid Hardwood Floors v/s Engineered Hardwood Floors

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Solid Hardwood Floors v/s Engineered Hardwood Floors

Hardwood flooring in Vancouver is a flourishing industry. Wooden floors add aesthetic beauty to our living spaces and workplaces. It is being extensively used by people with great taste of ethnic flavor and who enjoy adding charm to their property. In different textures and forms, they are being used for different purposes and style.

Among the most in-demand forms of wooden flooring in Vancouver are the Solid Hardwood floors and the Engineered Hardwood Floors. Both the forms are popular in use and have their own sets of advantages and disadvantages over one another.

On one hand, Solid wooden floors are durable and add strength to your flooring. They are cost-effective flooring solution and give you the aesthetic feel of solid wood used for flooring. It is the traditional form of floors made out of wood. It uses the actual solid wood and is used throughout the North America region for its durability. The common forms include maple, oak and birch which are available in different colors and shades. The only and the biggest drawback with this form of wooden flooring is that it gets easily damaged or wears out with time due to moisture and temperature modulations.

On the other hand, there is the advanced form of Engineered Wooden flooring. The engineered wood floor uses the solid wood as the base along with multi-layers of plywood. Its installation is more sophisticated than in any form of flooring. It offers durability and resistance to external damaging factors. In contrast to the solid wooden floors, it offers resistance to external factors like moisture, light and other wear and tear. It is more structurally sound in comparison to solid hardwood and does not lose its luster quickly.

The only reason behind the popularity of engineered floors is due to its resistivity to wear and tear. But solid wooden floor continues to be a favorite too since it is far more economical and durable.

Prestige Floors is a Vancouver-based hardwood flooring specialist offering a wide range of hardwood flooring products and services in the entire Greater Vancouver area.


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iFLOOR.com shows how do-it-yourselfers can install their own pre-finished solid hardwood flooring from Westhollow.

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This entry was posted on March 12th, 2011 under Solid Wooden Flooring.

Oak Flooring-A Comparison of Solid Wood and Engineered Flooring

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Oak Flooring-A Comparison of Solid Wood and Engineered Flooring

One of the first choices you will have to consider in buying an oak floor is whether you are going to choose a solid hardwood product or a laminate product. Laminate is also known as engineered flooring and uses real wood on top of another material, usually plywood. Hardwood or solid is, as the name implies, made of only one type of material. Laminate can also refer to other products made of plastic, but that will not be addressed in this article.

Engineered floors

Generally, engineered products do not offer quite the variety that you can find in solid products. Engineered floors can be installed in a variety of ways including free floating, glued down and stapled or nailed down.

Engineered floors tend to remain more stable and flat in conditions where heavy moisture is present. Changes in climatic conditions cause all floors to expand and contract, but engineered floors are more resistant to the influences of moist air. This kind of floor is the floor of choice for any basement or sub-grade installation and may also be a better choice for tropical locations that are subject to extreme humidity or in areas where there are extreme fluctuations in temperature.

Laminate floors are somewhat thinner than solid wood planks and may be a better choice for installations over an existing floor. Door clearances and transitions from one room to another with and without a wood floor are kept to a minimum.

Solid Hardwoods

While it may seem that engineered floors enjoy many advantages over solid oak floors, there are arguments for the hardwood plank camp as well.

Solid wood floors have a certain feel to them that other floors cannot match. There is something almost indefinable, but still very much present, in the sound and the feeling of walking on a hardwood floor that is missing in the alternative.

There is a broader selection in styles and in addition to oak, solid flooring offers a wider range of species, cuts and finishes.

Solid wood floors also have a high level of trustworthiness that adds value to a home. While laminates are excellent floors, the psychological appeal of a solid hardwood floor is hard to deny. Oak floors are associated with tradition, elegance and endurance-”The Mighty Oak” and other floors have similar connotations-the richness of walnut or the warm and rare cherry.

Finally, there is no doubt that the solid hardwood floor is an enduring addition to any home. One only has to visit homes hundreds of years old to witness firsthand the sturdy and ever-lasting quality of a solid plank floor.

There are so many happy decisions to make when choosing your oak floor! Resources and advice are ready for you in a complete wood flooring guide. Come visit us today!


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Co-Founder Rob Banks hosts this overview of how to install an engineered floor. Take a look! learn.builddirect.com
Video Rating: 4 / 5

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This entry was posted on February 16th, 2011 under Engineered Flooring.

Ways You Can Benefit from Engineered Hardwood Floors

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Ways You Can Benefit from Engineered Hardwood Floors

 

As a home owner, you may have heard about hardwood laminate floors since they are the most common and popular type of flooring used in homes. Although you can also choose to have hardwood floors for your home, there are alternative options which may be more suitable for your home. One of these options is engineered hardwood floors. In case you get these floors for your home, make sure that you get these floors in high quality condition by buying them from professional floor covering providers such as FINfloor Store.

 

Quick Assembly

At FINfloor Store, you will find a variety of engineered hardwood floors in their Greenkett collection. A lot of homeowners especially ones that are in a hurry would usually choose engineered hardwood floors instead of solid hardwood floors and laminate floors. The reason for this is because of its simple assembly system which makes hardwood floors installation easy and quick.

 

The assembly system provides strong locking between the engineered hardwood floors so that you no longer have to use glue in installing the floors on your home. However, you are also allowed to glue in the hardwood floors installation of the engineered floors as long as the glue used is a water-free elastic glue.

 

Layered Surface

Over time, the engineered hardwood floors may accumulate some scratches. That is why the engineered floors from FINfloor Store has a 3 mm thick layer so that the floor can be sanded at any time you want. Through sanding, you can make the surface of the engineered hardwood floors smoother or rougher. Aside from this, you will also be able to remove materials such as paint on the surface by sanding. When sanding, just keep in mind that the engineered hardwood floors can be sanded.

 

Treated to ensure its performance is optimized, these floors are completely made with a superficially lacquered finish and mechanized edge. So if you want a quick and simple solution for installing new flooring to your home, get engineered hardwood floors. To find out more, please visit http://www.finfloorusa.com/engineered-floors-greenkett.html

The author is a computer professional who works on the internet  Finfloorusa its viewers through optimization. For world class decorative moldings visit us online http://www.finfloorusa.com/

 

 


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This entry was posted on February 12th, 2011 under Engineered Hardwood Flooring.

FAQ’s For Solid and Engineered Wood Flooring

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FAQ’s For Solid and Engineered Wood Flooring

What is Solid Wood Flooring?

Solid wood is exactly as it sounds, one piece of wood from top to bottom.

What is the difference between Laminate and Real Wood Floors?

Real Wood floors will age and mature with your property, this means that they will mark and dent more easily than a laminate would but this is part of the character of real wood floors and should not be viewed as a fault of the product. The shade of the wood surface will change with exposure to sunlight. Dependant on the species, it will either lighten or darken with age. The shade variation will only go on to a certain level and then cease. Any unexposed surface areas will eventually catch up with the colour differences once exposed.

Depending on the type of Real Wood floor (solid v’s engineered) it can sanded and re lacquered a number of times to prolong the life of the floor.

What is the difference between Solid Wood Flooring and Engineered Wood Flooring?

Each type of flooring has its specific use and choosing one over the other is dictated by your lifestyle and needs. Solid wood should be in a moisture-controlled environment. Solid wood (strip or plank effect) should be nailed down only and requires a wood sub floor. Solid wood can be glued to a variety of sub floor materials.

Engineered wood flooring consists of a multi-plied, cross-stacked backing with a real wood veneer (top layer of a selected species). Engineered wood flooring can be used on grade, above and below grade.

Engineered wood flooring is more dimensionally stable so it can be installed in areas where solid wood is not compatible due to moisture. Engineered wood (strip or plank effect) can be glued down over various sub floor. Some engineered woods (strip and plank ) can be nailed down which require a wood sub floor. Engineered woods can also be layed as a floating floor where the tongue and groove are glued together, but the floor is not anchored to the sub floor.

What is a “Floating Floor”?

Floating flooring is a flooring system laid down over a layer of underlay. So while the individual planks are glued together, the individual planks are not nailed or glued into the permanent floor. Instead, the planks form a system that “floats” over the layer of underlay. The underlay can be laid down over existing floors.

What is the required distance between the walls and the flooring boards?

When gluing a Real Wood to the subfloor an expansion gap of 15mm towards the walls is sufficient. With floating-floor installations for every metre of installation width the flooring requires a distance to the wall of at least 5mm, lengthwise an expansion gap of 15mm is sufficient.

Can I install the flooring using one pack after the other?

No, for a natural, harmonious looking installation is recommended to work with approximately 5 open packs of flooring and sort/choose the boards individually by colour.

How much wastage do I allow for?

Despite our strict sorting criteria and thorough quality control there may be certain material-specific peculiarities that customers come across during the on-site selection and installation process which may need to be cut out. Generally, we recommend adding 5% to the room’s sqm-total for cutting scrap.

Which kind of Real Wood flooring is right for me?

The range of choices is huge. According to personal taste and character of the room you can choose between different wood types, board sizes, surface finishes (lacquer-finish or oil-impregnation), surface structures (Antique, Distressed, Brushed), impressions (Block or Wideplank) and styles.

Does sunlight have any effects on the flooring?

Yes, any kind of wood will change its colour over time. During this process light-coloured wood types are not necessarily going to get lighter, dark wood types however will get darker. Every wood type has a characteristic aging process of its own and will react in its individual way.

What is the maximum load a Real Wood flooring can bear on a single point?

With very large loads (e.g. pianos, aquariums, storage heaters and the like) we always recommend gluing down as the installation method of choice.

Can Engineered Real Wood flooring that has been installed as a floating floor be sanded and resurfaced?

Yes, but be aware that every sanding process will take off about 1mm of the flooring’s wear-layer. Try not to use very heavy sanding machinery as the big weight of these machines may lead to the creation of “sanding waves”

How do I care for my oil-impregnated Real Wood floors?

Use Wood-Floor Soap for regular maintenance cleaning. Use a vacuum cleaner for lacquer-finished floors and damp-wipe only if needed.

Should your Floating Real Wood Flooring be installed under kitchen appliances?

In the kitchen, you should install the flooring under kitchen appliances, but be very careful when you slide the appliances over the floor. We recommend covering the flooring with something such as a spare rug to protect the flooring when you’re moving the appliances.

Are there methods that make it possible for ALL stains to be removed from Real Wood Floors or is it sometimes impossible for some stains to be removed?

Most stains don’t penetrate more than the sanding will remove. However, if you have a severe water stain, you may not be able to remove it.

How much of an irregularity (drop or rise) can there be in an existing sub floor before installing your Real Wood Flooring?

You can have a drop or rise up to 4mm over 2 linear metres.

Do Real Wood Floors increase home value?

Absolutely. Real Woods floors are recognised as one of the highest quality floors available and would increase the value of your home.

I am installing a Radiant Heat Floor System involving poly water tubing set in gypsum concrete that would be my sub-floor. Can your products be used with this type of floor heating system?

This installation is okay as long as the tubes don’t touch the wood. You also would have to use a laminated underlay vapour barrier between the concrete and the floor.

Can your Real Wood Flooring be installed over Linoleum and be used on stairs?

Real Wood flooring can be installed on the stairs, however it can be slippery.

You can install our floating Real Wood flooring over linoleum if the linoleum remains sound and tightly glued to the original sub floor.

Is there a type of Real Wood Flooring (e.g. Maple v’s Oak) that is more durable or longer lasting than another?

There isn’t much difference between Real Wood flooring wood types. The only negative on oak is it’s a rather porous wood, but it is a very hard durable wood, as are maple and beech. White oak is slightly harder than red oak. Your choice will really come down to aesthetics.

My concrete floor has a few low spots in it and I was wondering what to use to solve this problem?

Most building materials suppliers have a concrete levelling product. We suggest levelling any areas that are more than 3/16″ in variation. Make sure you use the underlay with a DPM before installing over concrete.

Do you have to install your Real Wood Flooring under existing cabinets?

Ideally, the Real Wood flooring would go under the cabinets. You can, however, cut around the cabinets if removing the cabinets would cause undue complications. Keep in mind, though, that if you were ever to change the cabinets, you could have a problem if the new cabinets weren’t the same size as the old cabinets.

Is it possible to install a Real Wood as a floating floor over concrete?

Real Wood floor is designed exactly for this kind of application. It requires an underlay with a DPM over the concrete floor. The floating floor system can go directly over that.

If there were a crack in the concrete, would it cause problems with a Floating Floor installation?

We recommend that any cracks in concrete be filled with concrete filler and sealed prior to installation. If it’s just a hairline crack you can simply cover the crack with duct tape. Keep in mind that underlay with a DPM must be installed prior to laying down the floor.

Important note prior to installation:
Relative Humidity should be maintained a 40-55% prior to installation and throughout the life span of the floor.

15mm expansion gap must be maintained around the perimeter of the floor.

Real Wood Flooring FAQs brought to you by the flooring experts at Wood Flooring 2U

If you would like any further information on solid wood flooring, engineered wood flooring, laminate wood flooring or advice on how to install a wooden floor, please don’t hesitate to get in touch, our knowledgeable team would be more than happy to help.


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This entry was posted on January 27th, 2011 under Engineered Wood Flooring.

The difference between solid wood flooring and engineered wood flooring

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The difference between solid wood flooring and engineered wood flooring

On first inspection there isn’t any great aesthetic difference between solid wood and engineered wood flooring. However before you rush out and opt for the cheapest wood floor there are a few pros and cons to weigh up for both engineered and solid wood floors.

Construction

Solid wood flooring is milled from the tree to give a solid wood plank which has an uninterrupted wood grain and is solely constructed of one solid section of wood. They are mostly constructed with a tongue and groove format.

Engineered wood floors consist of a top layer of natural hardwood which is stuck to a cross layered section of natural soft or hard wood known as ply wood. The cross layering of the ply enables the plank to be more stable due to the glue used so that when the wood expands width ways the different angles reduce the amount of expansion.

Durability

Solid wood flooring is more durable than engineered as it gains its strength from being one solid piece of wood and can be re-sanded and refinished with different waxes, stains or oils more times then engineered. Though the life of any floor does depend on how well it is looked after with recommended care products.

Engineered wood flooring is still very durable and can only be re-sanded five times as the top hardwood layer cannot withstand more.

Really good maintenance is key to durability as when the right cleaning products are used a wood floor can last a very long time.

Stability

Solid wood floor isn’t considered as stable as engineered due to its seasonal movements, meaning that they are susceptible to expansion and contraction with humidity changes in the home. A small perimeter gap accommodates this movement. Solid wood floor is not generally recommended if underfloor heating is already installed as the heat can cup and warp the boards. It is also not advisable to lay solid wood flooring on concrete, unless a full moisture test has been carried out and it is sealed, as the levels of moisture can also affect the boards.

Engineered wood flooring is more stable and more multi functional then solid wood as it is suitable for laying on underfloor heating, concrete and is compatible with most types of underlay making it a good option for those living in second floor and basement flats.

Installation

Solid wood floor can be stuck down or secret nailed and it is not recommended that they are floated over underlay as the joints are glued down and wouldn’t allow the boards to move with seasonal humidity and moisture.

Engineered wood flooring can be stuck down, nailed and floated. It is versatile but does still require a perimeter gap just to be on the safe side with slight board movements.

 

Jordan Stavrinou is the Managing Director of Jordan Andrews Ltd; London’s leading hardwood flooring company. With 20 years in the hardwood and construction industry and a team of industry professionals, Jordan is considered an expert in his field. Visit www.jordanandrews.com for all your hard wood flooring needs.


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This entry was posted on January 8th, 2011 under Solid Wood Flooring.

Why You Should Use Engineered Hardwood Floors for Your Home

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Why You Should Use Engineered Hardwood Floors for Your Home

As a homeowner, you have various options available for your home flooring. There are traditional hardwood floors that portray the natural beauty of wood. However, there are some limitations when it comes to using hardwood floors. In humid environments, these floors can expand. Fortunately with the development of various flooring products, you have more choices such as engineered hardwood floors.

 

When getting engineered hardwood floors or other flooring products, you have to make sure that the flooring products that you get are high quality. By getting them from top floor covering providers such as FINfloor Store, you can be sure that the quality of the floors that you will be buying is high. So if you are planning on installing new floors for your home, consider getting engineered hardwood floors.

 

Just like hardwood floors, engineered hardwood floors offer the same advantages of a natural wood floor product. The engineered floors show the same style and look of real wood with its superficially lacquered finish. Resembling real wood, these engineered hardwood floors come in various wood styles such as hard Maple, Oak, and Red Oak.

 

Aside from its natural wood floor appearance, these engineered hardwood floors allow installation in humid environments as long as the humidity is 45% to 65%. You can also even use these floors in dry environments as long as you also use humidifiers. The reason why engineered hardwood floors can be used for these types of environment is because of the nature of how it is made.

 

Composed of three wood layers, engineered hardwood floors use two quick growth layers and one slow growth layer. After the layers are arranged, they are treated and finished with a mechanized edge. Plus, with engineered floors, doing hardwood floors installation in your home will be quite easy because of its assembly system.  Installing or disassembling the floors will take lesser time and effort since the flooring does not need glue.

 

T o find out more about the features of these engineered hardwood floors, please visit http://www.finfloorusa.com/engineered-floors-greenkett.html

The author is a computer professional who works on the internet  Finfloorusa its viewers through optimization. For world class decorative moldings visit us online http://www.finfloorusa.com/

 

 


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This entry was posted on January 5th, 2011 under Engineered Hardwood Flooring.

Engineered Hardwood Flooring

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Engineered Hardwood Flooring

Introduction:

Engineered Hardwood flooring is a beautiful addition to your house. Engineered hardwood is true wood, but alternatively of a single object consists of 3 to 10 thin layers of wood pasted with each other and are called cross-layer form. The thickness of upper layer is ranging from 1/16″ to 1/6″ and the full thickness of the plank is ranging from 1/4″ to 3/4″. It has the more benefit than a pure wood because of its multi-ply form.

It has smaller shrinkage and increase in width under the variety of humidity and temperature. They can also put in humid areas and in under ground as well.

Engineered floors were first developed in 1960. The right thing is that it is available in different finishes, wood types and thickness.

Engineered hardwood flooring is not advised in bathroom and laundry where moisture is available all the time. It is really strong and its multiple layers make it more resistant under any situation. It can be used at any room under ground level or aboveground level. It can be sanded and refinished at one time or twice in its whole life.

Types of Engineered hardwood Flooring

Oak hardwood flooring is in expansive and gives your house a heavy look for fewer prices.
Bamboo engineered hardwood flooring is very inexpensive and its look green.
Maple engineered hardwood flooring is a smooth coating and looks great in living, dining and in family rooms also.

Prep Tools

Tools Used When you’re starting to install the floor you need some common tolls, which will be used during installation.

Saws·
Adhesive agent
Emery paper
Hammer and block
Nailer and stapler

 

Advantages:

There are several advantages of engineered hardwood flooring are given below.

It is the clear option for those areas where real hardwood is not suggested like interiors of houses and office.
It is a good choice for to a lower place-grade Area like in basements, where humidity is more than other areas of the house.
It also can be very right for those areas where the radiant heating plant system is placed.
Engineered hardwood Flooring can be sanded after lines.
It has no shrinking and expanding power under uncommon temperature.
It can be installed instantly on the concrete sub floor.
It is the better choice for geographic areas where weather atmospheric conditions are extreme.
It has been slighter mess up also with people.
It is quickly in fixing, which saves the time and labor price too.
Engineered hardwood flooring is durable and come with as much as a 25-year guarantee.

 

Disadvantages of Engineered hardwood flooring

 

Cost:

It is more pricy than other hardwood flooring types

Maintains:

It cannot be sanded more than 3 times.

It needs an experienced person for sanding

Appearance:

During the finishing in the workshop sometime the top layer of ply has different grains than a genuine wood.

Durability:

Its top layer is very thin so more chances of a scratch on it and harder to restore it.

It cannot be fixed at all in Areas where water flood frequently.

Muhammad Sami Khan from Pakistan. I am a professional Civil Engineer.

for more detail visit the page below.

http://hubpages.com/hub/Engineered-Hard-wood-Flooring


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This entry was posted on November 25th, 2010 under Engineered Hardwood Flooring.