The floor is the base of the home. Whatever level of the home you’re in, there’s a floor to support you and everything else. Having a good floor, one that agrees with your home’s design and your regular usage is important. For the most part, with very little exception, all floors share one trait in common. For homes and houses, they’re made of wood.
There are plenty of different types of flooring but hardwood floors are consistently a popular option. They fit with almost any kind of decor and style and are fairly easy to maintain or, if necessary, replace. They can also adapt new flooring on top such as carpets or tiles, but the wood underneath will still remain and must be strong. There are two primary categories of hardwood: Solid and Engineered. Which one would be a right fit for your home?
Solid Hardwood
Solid is wood, and only wood, cut precisely into the proper shapes to be slotted together. It is known as the “gold standard” of flooring. It feels solid to walk on, and sounds solid as well. Solid hardwood comes directly from trees, and can have a finish or be custom-finished by the homeowner. It is primarily available in Oak, Maple or Hickory – the hardest out of all construction-type woods for flooring.
Solid hardwood is more expensive due to its direct production, and because it’s pure wood with no filler or extra processing, it is vulnerable to the regular weaknesses of wood. It’s not ideal for humidity or rooms that are exposed to a lot of moisture – no bathrooms, laundry rooms or sub-ground level. It also comes in a limited variety of sizes per board, as limited as the dimensions of the tree they came from.
Engineered Hardwood
Engineered hardwood is all natural wood with a sandwiched layer of stable core in between, usually plywood. It has the wood look you want on the outside but uses, overall, less of that wood to create the desired effect, with the remainder being filler. Engineered hardwood can include softer varieties such as Cherry, Walnut and Birch as the stable core provides most of the underfoot hardness. As a result, it’s a bit lighter and can sometimes sound more hollow than Solid.
Engineered is generally less expensive, but that comes at the cost of the feeling and weight. Premium engineered will have more layers with higher quality fiber and will simulate the feeling of Solid hardwood more easily. They can also be cut in a wider variety of ways or into more unique shapes. Because of the core, it’s less likely to shift or warp in the presence of high humidity, and can therefore serve as a below-ground flooring. It’s still wood, just arranged differently.
Which Would You Like?
Consult with Ventura’s best general contractor Todd Huff Contruction Inc. to see what varieties of hardwood will be best in your house. Take a step into quality with the hardwood floor your home needs.
Contact Todd Huff Construction Inc. – the best general contractor in Ventura county!