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Engineered vs solid hardwood flooring
“Wood flooring is the most abundantly renewable flooring material available. Sustainable forest management makes it possible to harvest wood without any serious impact on the environment, because trees are a renewable resource that can be replaced time and time again.”
If you're interested in having hardwood flooring installed in your home, you may have heard about the two types of wood flooring options available—engineered hardwood and solid hardwood flooring. It is important to understand that both options are real wood.
We’re here to let you know the benefits of each type of floor so you can be confident when committing to an engineered or solid hardwood flooring.
If you're interested in having hardwood flooring installed in your home, you may have heard about the two types of wood flooring options available—engineered hardwood and solid hardwood flooring. It is important to understand that both options are real wood.
We’re here to let you know the benefits of each type of floor so you can be confident when committing to an engineered or solid hardwood flooring.
Solid hardwood
In a nutshell, solid hardwood just means that each plank is made up of one piece of wood. This type of hardwood is solid throughout, which makes it easy to refinish and polish as many times as you need, whether it’s oak, maple or birch wood. Solid wood floors should only be used in above-ground applications, where moisture is not an issue.
Engineered wood
On the other hand, engineered wood is made up of multiples layers of wood, and these layers don’t have to be from the same type of wood. Any engineered hardwood flooring store will tell you that the best quality wood is always going to be the top layer, and the other layers are bonded together under high pressure, in a crisscross manner making them extremely strong and dimensionally stable. This makes them an ideal option for below ground applications such as a basement. They also are widely used in all levels of a home.
Variety
The actual wood can come from a myriad of species, both domestic and international varieties. The top layer of the engineered version is always the species and color you choose, while the solid version is the entire species.
Care
Both types are cared for and maintained in similar ways. Simple precautions like avoiding wet mops and using area rugs in certain high-traffic areas will give your wood flooring a long-lasting life.
Installation
All wood floors should be installed by professional installers. The floors need to acclimate to the temperature of the rooms they are being put in. One of the biggest things to look out is heat sources since solid hardwood should never be close or on top of radiating heat. Depending on your sub-floor, we can advise you on the flooring installation best suited for your project.
Come by our stores and find out more information about hardwood flooring
Stafford's Discount Carpets is a solid and engineered hardwood flooring retailer with over 25 years of experience in the field. We carry the top brands of flooring and pride ourselves on excellent customer service. If you live in the Redlands, Yucaipa, Highland, Loma Linda or Beaumont, CA area, visit our Redlands, CA showroom. You will find the best-looking, affordable materials to get that warm, high-end aesthetic you’re looking for.
