Hardwood Flooring

·               Wood floors are a natural, non-    allergenic product

·               Hardwood floors can add real value to a home

·               Wood floors come in 3 basic types:

·         Solid wood floors

(prefinished & unfinished)

o   cut from tree as a solid piece of wood

o   will react to changes in humidity

o   recommended for above grade installations

o   nail-down installation to a wood type sub floor

o   solid wood needs proper expansion allowances along vertical walls

·         Longstrip engineered wood    floors (prefinished)

o   a type of pre-finished engineered wood floor

o   usually 3 plies of wood laminated together

o   planks are approximately 8 inches in width and 8 feet long

o   glue, float, staple or nail-down on all grade levels

o   some companies make a glueless version, no glue or nails required

o   can be installed on wood subfloors, concrete slabs and floated over some existing floors

o   a good choice of do-it-yourself

·         Engineered wood floors

(prefinished & some unfinished)

o   several wood plies laminated together

o   top finish veneer may be domestic or exotic wood specie

o   planks widths vary from 21/4” to about 7”

o   glue, float, staple, or nail-down on all grade levels

o   wood subfloors or dry concrete slabs

o   dimensionally stable, most may be net fitted to vertical walls

o   less effected by humidity changes than solid wood floors

·         unfinished hardwood floor

(also called job-site finished)

o   with a job-site finish they sand the floor smooth, less chance for overwood

o   custom stained colors, generally 2-3 coats added of finish

o   this can be fairly messy, takes several days

·         Pre-finished hardwood floors (also called factory finished)

o   usually installs in less than a day

o   less messy than job-site finish

o   limited to manufacturer’s colors

o   manufacturers can apply 7-10 coats of finish

o   factory finishes are extremely wear resistant

o   some manufacturers add aluminum oxide for additional durability

o   today’s factory finishes are much easier to care for than the old waxed finishes

o   prefinished trims are not an exact match to the floor

·         Wood accents available to create unique looks and patterned designs

·         Variety of wood trims and moldings available

·         Never clean or wet mop a hardwood floor with water.  Water can dull the finish and permanently damage the wood floor

·         All hardwood floors can be scratched.  Scratches in the finish layer are fairly easy to repair

·         Areas with lots of sunlight may effect the color

·         Most hardwood floors can be used over radiant heat with some limitations

·         Most stained wood floors will change color to some degree over time from sunlight

·         Wood floor finishes can be used to restore the floors original beauty

·         Mostly used for: living rooms, dining rooms, bedrooms, dens, and great rooms.

Laminate Flooring

·         Laminate flooring are extremely impact and scratch resistant, but are no real wood.

·         Although laminate floors are extremely tough, they can be scratched by dogs or dragging heavy objects across the floor

·         These floors are extremely stain resistant and will not fade from ultra-violet sunlight, nor burn from cigarettes

·         Laminate flooring come in three types:

·         Glued-down, floating floors

o   Special glue is applied manually to the tongue & grooves of each plank

·   Glueless floating floors

o   No glue, just click or snap-fit

planks together

·         Pre-glued floating floors

·      The glue is applied at the factor.

Just moisten the plank tongue and insert into adjacent plank

o   Trims and  moldings are

available for laminate floors.  Moldings are laminated over a fiber core so they match the floor, or the moldings can also be made from real wood and color coordinate with the flooring

o   Laminate flooring uses the

floating installation method, which means:

o    Laminate floors just rest on top of the sub floor.  They are never secured or fastened to the substrate below.  Instead they just lay on top of the substrate.  Specially designed tongue-and-groove interlocking systems to secure planks together.

o    Float entire floor over a variety of sub floor materials, such as plywood, OSB, existing vinyl flooring, concrete slabs, etc…

o    You never have to glue-down, or nail-down laminate flooring.

o    Even though these floors are floated the sub floor still must be level for locking planks together.

o    Most laminate floors can be used anywhere within the home, including wet area (but may not be warranted)

o    Laminate floors do not need a wax or polish

o    Excessive moisture may affect a laminate floor’s inner core and overall performance

o    Laminate planks are not easily repaired.  There are touch-up kits and chip repair kits, but difficult to find

o    Laminate floors require a thin, special padding underneath the planks so they can move freely

o    Laminate floors can be fairly noisy when walked on.  Special underlayment paddings are made to help reduce the noise level.

o    Glue less laminate floors are a very good do-it-yourself product

o    Highly resistant to the effects of sunlight

o    Most laminate floors can be used over radiant heated concrete slabs

o    Most used for family rooms, living rooms, dining rooms, bedroom and dens.