You can be sure that genuine hardwood flooring will add significant beauty and quality to the value of your home. A hardwood floored house possesses the rich look and smooth feel that can never be possible with any other flooring material. Unlike the other flooring materials, the value of your Hardwood floor if maintained properly increases with time. And it will be amazing to see your house value increase tremendously just because you installed wood floors.

In hardwood flooring there are two types, the solid hardwood and engineered hardwood. Solid hardwood flooring is a single piece of a 100 percent solid wood that is easily sanded and refinished. It is a 100 percent Wood product. On the other hand engineered hardwood flooring is a higher-performance product made by bonding several wood layers with the featured species showing distinct designs. Numerous, but not all engineered wood floors can be refinished.

To begin with you must think like a designer as you have options to choose the colors and textures of the hardwood. Hardwood colors range from cooling yellows, to warm reds, to neutral umbers or naturals. Most hardwood floors will change color overtime, so you can select your own color according to your taste and match it with your home. The show off of your floor will depend on the lighting system in your home. You can choose low gloss, satin gloss or high gloss as finishing touches.

Some hardwood floors come in rustic, hand- scraped or smooth tailored contemporary styles. You can use hardwood flooring styles throughout your house to get that special magnificent style. The surface texture and the natural designs on the hardwood will definitely add to the decor of your House. It is desirable to use solid wood at or above ground level so that you can avoid damages occurring due to moisture. Engineered wood can be utilized virtually anywhere, even over concrete.

So now you have the facts, selecting hardwood as your flooring will add magnificent beauty to your house while providing a true sense of increased value to all that visit your welcoming home.

If you’re used to carpet and this is your first wood floor you’ve had to care for, you will likely notice how often it needs cleaning…much more often than carpeted floors. It doesn’t attract dirt or dust more than carpet, it just has no where to go, unlike those handy fibers in the carpet. It doesn’t get dirtier, you just see it more. This is one reason wood floors are better for those with allergies than carpet.

The first tool you will need for cleaning wood floors is a broom and dustpan (FULLER Angle Broom or FULLER Household Broom and FULLER Upright Dustpan). Sweeping daily is not unheard of with a wood floor.

The second tool you will need for your floor is a mop. Depending on your preference, good mop choices include spatter mops and sponge mops (FULLER Spatter Mop or the FULLER Sponge Mop). Use the mop of your choice to soak up any liquid spills as soon as they occur. Wood floors, especially unsealed wood floors, will warp and stain very quickly if fluids are allowed to stand. When you mop with a wet mop, make sure the mop is rung out well.

You will also need just a couple cleaning chemicals. If your floor is unfinished wood flooring, you’ll want a mild, non-oil soap (FULLER Wood Floor Cleaner & Polish). For sealed wood floors or laminate wood flooring, you should purchase products specifically made for wood floors or multi-floor cleaners (Wood Floor Cleaner and Polish or FULLER Multi-Floor Cleaner). For those unexpected scuffs, scratches and tough stains, however, you might need to look into a cleaner designed for those difficult problems (FULLER Wood Floor Easy Clean Mist).

Some steel wool and a polisher (FULLER D.C. Polisher) will also come in handy.

As well as being beautiful and hard wearing, they are environmentally friendly as well. Wood is a natural resource that is both renewable and recyclable. It is warm and resilient to walk on and healthy too. Usually wood flooring will never require replacement. And can add thousands of pounds to the value of a home.

There are many options to choose from. Not just the design of the floor, but the shade and texture as well.

Fitting a real wood floor need not be daunting. With no previous experience and easily hired equipment, a complete novice can install a solid hardwood floor proficiently and with professional results.

Selecting the species and style of wooden flooring that suits your home is of the utmost importance as you may well have the floor for life. A solid wood floor can be purchased pre-finished which means it is ready to use and walk on as soon as it has been installed.

The finish is usually acrylic or polyurethane lacquer, which is durable and hard wearing. However oil finishes are becoming increasingly popular, as people have come to realize the maintenance is easy and straightforward.

Real wooden floors (usually the solid type) are also available unfinished. This means that after installation and a light sanding, a finish such as oil, wax or lacquer can be applied.

The most straightforward way of installing a solid wood floor is by secret nailing (through the tongue) into a base of plywood, flooring grade chipboard, joists or battens. If you have an existing wooden floor, this should first be over boarded with a 6mm plywood sheet to ensure stability of your new flooring. Fitting solid hardwood flooring onto concrete sub-floors is best avoided despite the recent advantages in wood floor adhesive currently on the market.

The styles of solid wood floors available are:

Strip – This is typically between 57mm and 90mm in width and is available in random lengths. This takes a little more time to fit than a wider width, but is ultimately more stable.

Plank – This normally denotes wider widths 120mm up to 200mm width.| This is a wider width than plank flooring. However, always bear in mind that the wider the width, the more the tendency for the floor to shrink and gap, or expand and buckle.

Parquet Flooring – Parquet floors have a very different look from typical hardwoods. It is constructed from short stathes of hardwood assembled by hand into tiles, which are then mounted, on a backing board. Some of these can be installed in a similar fashion to the plank floors

Engineered Hardwoods- solid hardwood wear layer of between 2mm-6mm which is laminated onto either a softwood or plywood core. The advantage of engineered hardwoods is their ease of installation, and their stability. If you desire a very wide plank type look, an engineered plank floor will ensure far less movement than solid wood. However this may cost a little more than buying solid plank.

Engineered hardwoods although suitable for secret nailing, can also be installed ‘free floating’ over an underlay. Another advantage of engineered hardwoods is that most can be used over underfloor heating.

Wood Finishes

The final finish (as opposed to staining) is what protects the wood from staining, wear and moisture. The different types of finishes are as follows:-

Oil-Finish – The most common surface finish, oil is applied in two or three coats. Oil soaks into the wood providing good protection against wear and staining. This can be left as a mat finish or buffed to give a light sheen. The big advantage is that the finish is inherent in the wood- it wont’ scratch off, and can be easily repaired.

A polyurethane lacquer – A good option for the DIY-er, this finish dries quickly and cleans up easily with soap and water. This provides excellent wear protection for the floor and gives a professional finish. Although in high traffic areas may show scratching or marks.

PU Impregnator and Wax. A polyurethane sealer (impregnator) is applied to the wood, which acts as a waterproof barrier. A wax can then be applied by hand and buffed up to achieve a warm patina.

Wood or Laminate?

With the popularity of laminate flooring growing everyday, many people often ask which they should choose, hardwoods or laminate.

Laminate flooring is typically constructed with an HDF core, sandwiched between a melamine laminate backing, high quality photographic paper with an image of wood, stone or other natural flooring, and a melamine laminate top. While laminate floors are inexpensive and durable, they are also noisier to walk on, cold and not as attractive as the ‘real thing’

There are benefits and drawbacks to both hardwoods and laminate flooring. Hardwood floors can be

scratched, but scratches are pretty easy to repair. If a laminate floor is scratched or dents, it is not very easily repaired. Where a hardwood floor can be sanded to remove imperfections, the same cannot be done Laminate flooring companies do make touch-up and chip repair kits as well as offer plank replacement. With hardwoods, though, a simple light sanding may do the trick.

Cleaning & Maintenance

Caring for a wooden floor usually requires little effort. Always try and dry clean the floor, as this is the safest and most efficient method. If you do have to wet clean your floor, bear in mind that leaving a layer of moisture to dry on your floor will leave it looking dull and will soon make it attract more dirt.

Maintaining sheen is important as this prevents dirt adhering to your floor. Always fit protective pads to the base of furniture and install a good door mat at the entrance and you will find that this will eliminate most of the scratches on your new floor.

A number of the older homes have hardwood floors under the carpeting. Wall to wall carpeting covered many hardwood floors in the late 1960’s and early 1970’s. Carpeting was considered more energy efficient as well as more comfortable than hardwood floors.

The trend is now to restore hardwood floors in older homes and to install this flooring option in newer homes. Part of the trend of going back to hardwood floors started with the research that links carpeting to allergies to dust, mold and other particles that can get trapped in carpets. When you have hardwood floors it is much easier to get rid of these allergy causing culprits. In the past people also considered blemishes in hardwood floors a reason to cover them up, today these blemishes are seen as part of the natural beauty of hardwood floors. The natural blemishes are what distinguish the natural hardwood floors from the products that resemble wood.

Many of the new homes that are going with hardwood floors are installing heated flooring. This is popular in geographical areas that experience cold winters. The heating elements are installed under the hardwood floors. Some of the heat is electric and others get their heat through a hot water system. This can be a very nice option in bedroom areas, so that you do not step out of bed onto a cold floor. It also reduces your energy costs.

The installation of hardwood floors adds usefulness to the home. When carpeting is used its color usually dictates the color scheme for the room. With hardwood floors the color scheme can be changed by the use of area rugs. It is much more suitable and cheaper to replace an area carpet than wall to wall carpeting.

Many of the laminate flooring options that are available are a less costly alternative to hardwood floors. The higher quality laminates look like wood and are more resistant to scratch marks. The installation system used in laminate flooring allows you to place it over the existing floor. This helps save time and expense. Many people find that they can follow the step by step instructions and install the flooring themselves.

Another alternative to saving cost on hardwood floors is to purchase flooring that has been removed during a changing project. Remodeling contractors often have materials for sale that they remove from homes that they are working on. The contractor will often sell the materials rather than having to pay for their disposal. This allows for the recycling of hardwood floors from one home to another.

It doesn’t matter what type of hardwood you have – exotic, oak, maple, cherry, Brazilian cherry, etc., to remove surface dirt, vacuuming is the easiest and best way to start. If pollutants are sticking to the surface, such as smoke, you can remove them by rubbing the surface carefully with a slightly wet cloth. You can dampen the cloth with water or use commercial furniture cleaner but make sure to test a corner of the wood with the product you’ll be using so that you don’t damage it.

Commercial cleaners are generally water-based. They usually contain degreasers besides the cleansers. These are used for hardwood floors and for wood furniture and are usually safe for people but use gloves to protect your hands. And be careful about breathing any fumes that are emitted from the hardwood floor cleaners. Use good ventilation too.

If your cleaner is oil-based it will be flammable. If you choose to use the oil-based cleaner, after you finish, be sure to soak the rags in water and put them outside in a fire-proof container such as metal, away from your house and any wooden structure.

Try not to use any hardwood floor cleaners that contain silicone. The silicone will give a smooth finish but you will not be able to refinish the hardwood floor in the future even if the original coating is stripped off. Also lemon oil cleaners should not be used because they show fingerprints and the shine will have a smudged appearance. But worst of all these cleaners usually contain kerosene which will hurt most finishes and exposure to it is not good for your health.

When wood furniture is exposed to ultraviolet rays from sunlight it will become damaged as time goes by and the same is true for hardwood floors. To avoid this you can tint the windows to stop the UV rays from shining on the flooring.

If your floors need waxing just a thin coat of wax is best. If you put on a coat that is too thick it won’t dry evenly. This will leave a finish that is spotty.

When you wax your hardwood floors, a hard, waterproof wax is usually recommended. Waterproof wax will prevent the white ring problem. If you’ve ever placed a water pail or other container on a hardwood floor and it left a white ring, it’s because the water or moisture penetrated below the wax and it actually breaks the bond with the hardwood surface. Waterproof wax will prevent this from happening.

You only want to wax hardwood floors once a year or so. Make sure to apply just a little bit of wax because a buildup of wax is messy and difficult to remove. You want to choose a paste wax instead of a liquid wax because it will contain more wax.

With these tips you will know what to do to help preserve your hardwood floors and most importantly what to avoid so you won’t damage them. There are still other tips that you can use to help preserve your flooring or help you decide what flooring to get whether you already have hardwood floors or are thinking about putting in hardwood floors yourself or through a hardwood floor contractor.

Do you want to add new life to your hardwood flooring? Flooring is a major part of your home and can be quite costly if you’re just starting out in life with a new home. If you are living in an older home with hardwood floors that have seen better days, there are a few different options available to you depending on your budget and personal preferences.

Installing New Hardwood Flooring

If you’re in the process of renovating your home or even just a few rooms, your costs are going to add up so you’ll want to save money any way you can. If your budget allows and your hardwood flooring really isn’t worth saving, replacing it with new flooring may be your best option. You can save a lot of money by tearing out the old hardwood flooring yourself. You may be thinking that this is an opportunity for you to choose less expensive flooring but in terms of aesthetics, beauty and durability; you really can’t go wrong with hardwood flooring. Not only does it add a touch of elegance to your home but will also add value to the home if you should want to sell in the future. If installing new flooring is your choice, you’ll be amazed at the many styles and colors available to you, all with simple-to-follow installation instructions.

Refinishing your Hardwood Flooring

If your hardwood flooring only has slight damage like nicks, scrapes or similar surface damage, you may have the option of refinishing it to an almost new appearance. Water damage to your wood flooring is the worst kind of damage and may cause warping as well. If your floors have this type of damage, you probably won’t be able to refinish those boards but you may be able to remove the top layer of the boards and put a new sealer on it. Replacing the few damaged boards is also an option. You can then finish the new boards with the same color and finish as the cleaned refinished boards.

Area or Throw Rugs Add Appeal to Hardwood Floors

You may have grown up hearing your mother say she bought throw rugs to cover up some imperfection on the floors. While throw or area rugs are still used for that purpose at times, they are also used as a great fashion statement. In fact, seldom will you see a hardwood floor and not see some sort of area or throw rugs. Designer rugs are very popular in homes of all styles. Area rugs come in a variety of sizes and patterns and will not only enhance the beauty of your hardwood floor but also coordinate with your other furnishings. Designer or custom-made rugs are also great for protecting your hardwood floors in high traffic areas. You guests will admire your hardwood floors and the stylish rugs as though they belonged together.

Distressed Flooring?A New & Stylish Option

If the majority of your hardwood flooring still looks good but is being ruined by a few badly scratched or damaged areas, making your entire floor match can be a unique and very popular option for your room. Distressed flooring is very popular today and is something you can do yourself. You’ll find that distressed hardwood flooring hides future wear and tear and is a very inexpensive way to preserve your floor and still be in style.

Some of the methods used to create distressed flooring vary but you can try different ways and find one you like best. Some people have filled socks with nuts, bolts or similar items and “beat” them on the floor in a repetitive manner until they have the design they desire throughout the entire floor. You and also get some really unique impressions with the head and claw of a household hammer. When you get the desired look on your entire floor, stain in with the finish of your choice, making sure the distressed areas show up darker. When the floor is thoroughly dried, add a sealant or protective coat of gloss on the entire floor. You’ll love the finished effect.

There are many other reasons to go with hardwood floors, such as the value they add to your home, easy care and easy cleaning, great style and durability and they’re natural and safe for the environment. Although carpeting is an easy alternative to floor decorations, many home decorators are now setting a new trend with exotic hardwood flooring.

If you know a building contractor or hardwood floor contractor, they may be able to help you get a nice discount. In most cases, refinishing your floors will increase the value of your home, not to mention, adding style and beauty. Some of the most well known hardwood floor manufacturers include Bruce, Shaw, Mohawk, Mannington and Armstrong.

If you’re looking for great ideas get a copy of Hardwood Floors magazine; it’s sent to more than 24,000 hardwood flooring professionals throughout the world, including contractors, dealers, distributors, manufacturers, builders, architects and many other industry professionals. If you own an older home, if the floors are structurally sound, why not go ahead and refinish them and bring your old hardwood floors back to life. After all wood is wood, and what can be more ecologically clean than natural wood planks after very little chemical processing?

There is no need for cleaning chemicals, carpet shampooing, or replacement carpets whenever you have big spills. When you’re deciding on what type of flooring is the best for you and your home, the first step to making sure it’s really right for you is to list all the pros and cons. Many people are now installing hardwood floors in their kitchen and it can also be installed over concrete.

Today’s hardwood flooring has made advances in style, durability, maintenance and care, making it more widely usable throughout the home, except in the bathroom where its use is not recommended due to possible moisture problems. You may be able to get your flooring or prefinished planks through a hardwood floor lumber liquidator or supply; shop around for discounts and low cost flooring buys. The cost of hardwood flooring depends on what type you choose.

With tons of web pages online, you can easily check online for all types of hardwood flooring including: red oak, white oak, American cherry, Brazilian cherry, maple, red birch, ash, hickory, walnut and even bamboo. And many of the hardwood flooring retailers and manufacturers offer discounts if you have a lot of square footage. If you’re thinking about a do-it-yourself project, you can easily learn how to install flooring with a few of the proper tools like sanders, nailers or nail guns etc. which you can easily rent or borrow.

Summarizing, we can say that hardwood flooring provides the utmost warmth and beauty for your home. Most hardwood floors almost never need to be replaced and can add thousands of dollars to the value of any home.

Hardwood floors are the healthiest choice for interior living, especially if you live with children. If you’re looking for a great way to improve the look, durability and value of your home, they are definitely the way to go. They are one of the most important design elements in any home or business.

Hardwood floors come in a wide variety of wood species, colours and widths. Besides the classic hardwoods (like red oak, white oak, maple and ash) many manufacturers now offer exotic hardwood species from all over the World. Exotic hardwoods give homeowners the chance to better express their own personal decorating tastes with a more unique looking floor. With so many different types of hardwood flooring now available it is sometime hard to choice which is best suited to you.

Different Types of Wood Flooring

Solid wooden floors are one solid piece of wood that have tongue and groove sides and come in either pre-finished or unfinished styles. Solid wood floors are sensitive to moisture and it is not recommended to install these floors below ground level, or directly over a concrete slab. These floors are for nail-down installations only. You can refinish, or recoat solid wood floors several times, which adds to their appeal and to their long life. There are solid floors that are over 100 years old and are still in good condition.

All solid wood floors will react to the presence of moisture. In the winter heating months, moisture leaves the wood causing the floor to contract which leaves unsightly gaps between each plank. In the summer months when the humidity is higher the wood will expand and the gaps will disappear. If there is too much moisture it may cause the wood planks to cup, or buckle. This is why it is important when installing a solid strip floor to leave the proper expansion area around the perimeter and to acclimatize the wood prior to installation.

Engineered wood floors – These floors are constructed from several wood plies that are glued together. The centre core is generally a softer wood material and is used to make the tongue and groove. A hardwood finish layer is glued on top of the centre core and another softer wood ply is attached underneath the core. This top ply is also called the finish layer and can be constructed of almost any wood specie.

Wood always wants to expand in a certain direction. In the presence of moisture solid wood planks will always expand across the width of the planks, rather than down the length of the boards. To avoid this problem, manufacturers of engineered planks place each ply in the opposite direction of each other. This is called cross-ply construction. Once the wood layers are glued together the plies will counteract each other which will stop the plank from growing or shrinking with changes in the humidity. Engineered wood floors are designed for the floating installation and can be glued together or some now come with a click system.

Veneer wood floors are very similar to laminate floors. The only difference is that with a veneer flooring to top wear layer is a thin piece or real hardwood instead of a photographic image as in laminates. Veneer flooring is usually around 8mm in thickness with the top hardwood layer being around 0.7mm. Advantages of a veneer floors are that they are fast and easy to install and you have a real hardwood floor.

Factory Pre-finished Wood Flooring

Most factory finished hardwood floors have several coats of finish applied to the wood’s surface. As example, many wood floor companies are applying 6-10 coats of a ultra-violet (UV) cured urethane. This would be extremely difficult for someone to duplicate on a job site finish, not to mention how many days it would take. This is one of the reasons why many flooring mechanics, flooring retailers, and builders are pushing pre-finished hardwood floors. Instead of taking several days to install and finish a new hardwood floor a pre-finished hardwood floor is generally done in one day.

The most common finishes are:

UV-cured – Factory finishes that are cured with Ultra Violet lights versus heat.

Polyurethane – A clear, tough and durable finish that is applied as a wear layer.

Acrylic-urethane – A slightly different chemical make up than Polyurethane with the same benefits.

Aluminium Oxide – Added to the urethane finish for increased abrasion resistance of the wear layer, which is becoming extremely popular on the better grade wood floors.

Acrylic Impregnated – Acrylic monomers are injected into the cell structure of the wood to give increased hardness and then finished with a wear layer over the wood.

Unfinished Wood Flooring

If you want a custom stained hardwood floor, or a wood floor to match existing trim than a unfinished hardwood floor is your answer. Unfinished means you start with a bare hardwood floor and than the floor is sanded, stained, and finished in the home. This can be quite a mess and the process does take several days, but your floor will have a finish to you requirements.

Installation Options

Nail Down – Secret nails are used with a wood flooring nailer and mallet to attach the flooring to the sub floor. Solid Strip floors or Plank floors can only be installed on wooden sub-floors or on batons.

Glue Down – Engineered wood floors and parquets can be glued down. This is when you spread the recommended glue all over the sub floor and lay the flooring into the glue.

Floating – This is when a thin underlay is placed between the wood flooring and the sub floor. A recommended wood glue is then applied in the tongue and groove of each plank to hold the planks together. Engineered