How to select hardwood flooring for your home

There are so many different colors, and styles to choose from that it may be difficult deciding what hardwood flooring is right for you. To help you narrow your choices, you want to select a flooring style, which complements the overall interior design of your home. If youre interior dcor is rustic-county, then you may not want to install bamboo flooring as your new flooring may clash with your dcor.

Your next step in narrowing down your choices is to look at how the flooring will be installed and the amount of expected floor traffic. The amount of traffic you expect your floors to endure will greatly influence the type of flooring you can choose. Laminates and woods that have high hardness rankings provide a high amount of durability. However, softer woods do not make a good selection for high traffic areas.

Sub-flooring:

Good quality subfloors are vital to ensure that your new hardwood flooring wears well and last. Subfloors must be dry, stable, and level. Concrete slab subfloors are usually only acceptable for laminate, and a few engineered floors. However, there are several quality underlayments, which provide an appropriate moisture and sound barrier, making them perfect for some hardwood floor installations.

Having a dry subfloor or an appropriate moisture barrier will help prevent warping and cupping of your hardwood floors. In addition, you have to endure that there is adequate ventilation and that the temperatures are kept regulated thought the year. To much of a change in temperature will cause hardwood floors to swell and contract. For room and homes that have high humidity levels, laminate floors do better than solid hardwood floors.

Installation:

When selecting your hardwood flooring, you also have to take into consideration whether or not you will be installing the floors yourself or if you will be hiring some one to install them for you. Glueless snap together-style floating floor systems can be a weekend project depending on the amount of square footage you are installing and your experience as a do-it-yourselfers.

Warranty:

Lastly, when selecting your hardwood flooring, it is strongly suggested that you choose flooring that has a warranty. When manufactures make claims under a warranty, that they are willing to back up, it often demonstrate the product is reliable. Installers, who provide warranties, are stating that they have installed your flooring according to the manufactures recommendations, so that their installation did not void the manufacturers warranty in any way.

Home page

Types of flooring

Caring for flooring

DIY Repairs & refinishing

Selecting Flooring

FAQ's

Disclaimers