• Solid Hardwood — Hardwood is cut into planks
that are generally 3/4-inch thick. Solid hardwood floors are recommended
only for above ground use and should not be placed on concrete
slabs.
• Engineered Hardwood — Engineered
hardwood is created by combining several layers of thin wood veneer to
form a single wood plank. These planks range in thickness from 1/4-inch
to just over a 1/2-inch and can be installed in most areas of a home,
including a "dry" concrete slab.
• Longstrip
Hardwood — These planks are much longer and wider and engineered
with a top layer consisting of a longstrip plank composed of 2 to 3 rows
of thin hardwood strips spliced together. The result is a composite that
gives the appearance of two to three planks that have been locked
together. In reality, it is just one board that can be glued into place,
stapled or floated over a wide variety of sub-floors and installed in
almost any area of the home, including a dry concrete slab.
• Exotic Hardwood — These unique and sometimes rare
hardwoods are found throughout the Far East, Australia, Africa, Brazil
and North America and offer unique graining and colorations. Most exotic
floors are available as engineered composite planks but, for the
discriminating buyer, can be found in solid hardwood planks.
If
installed properly, it is extremely difficult to tell the difference
between a solid hardwood floor and one constructed from engineered
planks.
But for difficult locations, the engineered and the
longstrip planks are often better suited. Such planks, because they are
created from several thin layers of wood glued together, provide
dimensional stability within the plank itself, which allows the planks
to be installed in areas that have a high percentage of moisture
content.
This includes basements and over concrete slabs where
solid strip wood floors are considered off limits.
Once you
choose which type of flooring you want for your home, you then should
decide whether you want a pre-finished floor, or an unfinished hardwood
floor that will be finished in your home.
Another attractive
option is laminate flooring. Laminate flooring is manufactured from
fiberboard material that is covered with a laminate and finished to look
like oak, cherry, walnut or beech. A clear plastic wear layer is
added.
The boards come in a range of textures, from rustic to
high-gloss finishes. Many laminate flooring products are stain- and
scratch resistant and feature a built-in edge sealant to protect the
boards from moisture absorption.
The flooring is usually
installed over a foam cushion under-layment to absorb shock and provide
a natural sound.
Tongue-and-groove laminate flooring boards
fasten together easily to give your home the classic look of hardwood,
and they don't even require glue. The interlocking boards create a tight
joint that gives you the look of real wood with the advantages of
laminate.
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