How to Choose Your Wood Flooring With Wood and Beyond

Species

You may come across species such as Teak, Iroko, Ash and
Bamboo, however these tend to cost more and therefore less popular. Popular
species include:

Walnut Flooring – In most cases, unless the colour has been
altered, Walnut flooring will appear dark in color, which looks smart in areas
that feature white fixings.

Oak Flooring – Its colors range from light to dark brown.
Oak flooring is considered good value for money, extremely hardwearing and
available from managed habitats in North America and Europe

Maple Flooring – The maple wood is extremely strong, which
at times makes working with the material challenging. It comes in light to dark
honey colors and often more affordable than the previous two examples.

Types

Real wood flooring is available in two types. One which is
made from 100% hardwood and one which is made from hardwood on top of artificial
materials.

Solid Type – Solid wood flooring is made from whole hardwood
and suit most interiors. Each floorboard is extremely strong and has a typical
lifespan of 50 to 75 years. The solid type can be fitted in most areas, but for
warm or wet areas because in such conditions, the solid floorboard will
misshape.

Engineered Type – Engineered wood flooring is made from an
external layer of hardwood on top of Ply, MDF and Softwood (artificial
materials). It looks identical to the solid
wood type, but this time you can safely fit the engineered
floorboard in all areas of the interior, even in wet areas (bathroom and
kitchen), cold areas such as the basement and even areas that enjoy under floor
heating. Lifespan is slightly shorter at 25 to 50 years.

Grade

Natural wood features characters such as sapwood, knots,
grain pattern and color fluctuations. Some homeowners like to see plenty of
these features, while others would prefer a more uniform look. Grade means how
many (or few) of these natural features are present. 

Rustic Grade – Often referred to as ‘barn grade’ or ‘country
grade’, it is the most character rich option in which plenty of sapwood, isolated
knots and color variation is present.

Natural Grade – Each floorboard of the natural or character
grade will also feature infrequent knots, more variations in color and texture,
some mineral streaking and grain pattern.

Select Grade – The select grade is where the floorboard
starts to display a more uniform look. It features some knots, which may be up
to 20mm in size, some sapwood and some color variation

Prime Grade – The highest and most expensive is the prime
grade. Each floorboard is derived from the middle of the tree which in terms
means very few knots, limited colour variation and minimal sapwood.

Coating

Basic protection from daily wear and tear is achieved by
covering the floorboard in translucent coating. Today’s most common options are
oil based or lacquered based liquids.

The Lacquered Option – Lacquered coating will make the
floorboard almost waterproof and suitable to repel water (when fitting wood
flooring in the bathroom for example). In terms of décor, note that lacquered
is often shiny in appearance.

The Oil Finish –The oil finish has a more muted appearance
and helps keep the look of the floorboard natural. Unlike the lacquered finish,
it sinks into the wood thereby making it slower to wear. It does not provide any
form of water protection.