What to look for in wooden flooring

Nothing makes a house interior look better than wood flooring but what should you be looking for when picking or installing a wood floor? In this article we’ll briefly look at the key points.Firstly, nothing is more important than your own preference and personal choice.

It is after all you who has to live with it. It is not only the look that is important but also the feel and little aspects like the sound. Have a look at some examples and get an idea of what you like. A good hardwood wooden floor will last a long time, a lifetime even and when it starts to look old and damaged it is quite easy to refinish to get it looking new again.

The type of wood and the type of flooring are very key factors. They tend to come in three types and these are plank, strip and parquet. Planks are the most traditional but used a little less these days. In this type of flooring the planks of wood which are usually at least three inches wide if not more, are screwed or nailed to the flooring material below. Parquet is composed of little strips of wood patterns, often in geometric designs which are laid out to form an entire floor and the most popular flooring, strips, are similar to planks but thinner and again are nailed to the base flooring underneath.

Once you have looked at how you want your wood floor laid out, the type of wood, the hardness and the grains are now key factors. The type of wood will influence the colour and the durability and the colour can further be affected by where on the tree the wood is cut from. Of course, wood flooring can be stained later to adjust the colours and this can be adjusted and altered slightly in the future if you don’t like the stain any more or fancy a complete colour change.