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What You Need To Know About Engineered Wood Flooring

You are not familiar with engineered wood flooring? Here are the basics. 

There are two main types of wood flooring: solid wood and engineered wood. As the name suggests, solid wood flooring is made of solid wood throughout its thickness, usually a hardwood species, such as oak, maple, or walnut. 

Engineered wood flooring looks very similar on the surface, but it is made from a relatively thin layer of hardwood bonded over a substrate of high-quality plywood or OSB (oriented-strand board). You have endless options of finishes and colours to choose from and it’s almost always sold pre-finished.

Why Should You Consider Installing engineered hardwood flooring?

The price is certainly one of the reasons why you should consider it, engineered wood can be much cheaper than solid wood. Also, if you want the look of hardwood and don’t have the budget it is a good trade-off. Especially if you dream of a rich dark exotic wood, an engineered wood version can make it possible. Aside from being some of the easiest flooring to install, engineered wood can also absorb a significant amount of weight and noise, in particular if you spend extra for a high-quality acoustic underlay to be placed under the floor.

Where Can I Install Engineered Wood Flooring?

You can install this type of flooring nearly anywhere! Hi quality engineered wood flooring will have good flexibility and is less susceptible to swell and warp from heat and moisture. This makes it a better choice for areas that might be damp, such as kitchens or basements. Plus, engineered wood can be installed directly on top of concrete subfloors.

What Are the Trends In Engineered Hardwood Flooring?

Hand scraped and distressed looks have started to take a back seat in popularity to the softer wire brushed look. The brushed look does not show aging and it is appealing to those who have children or pets running around. Another trend that has become increasingly popular is to have longer planks in your flooring. With a longer plank, it opens your room, but it also makes it so much easier to install the flooring throughout an entire level of your home. If you decide to install the same flooring in multiple rooms, longer planks make it feel as though your home is much more brought together and modern. In addition, the natural look of wider planks has taken a dramatic rise in popularity. Plank width can be ordered up to 12” wide, and the great thing about this is that wide planks do not have to be installed in a big space to look right. In fact, wide-plank installation makes your space look bigger and more open.

What Are the Disadvantages of Engineered Wood Flooring?

For all the benefits that it offers, there are some disadvantages. Solid hardwood floors can be refinished over and over again. However engineered wood floors may also be refinished, but there is a limit to how many times.  If the veneer layer is thick, it can be refinished a few times. If the veneer layer is too thin, you will be lucky to refinish it even once or twice. So, if you want to refinish your floors, we’d recommend looking for a minimum veneer layer thickness of 3/16.”

In Summary

Engineered wood flooring was once regarded as a pale imitation of solid hardwood, but improvements in the product quality have eliminated this perception. The lower cost, the stability and easier installation of engineered wood flooring gives it the edge over others. Furthermore, engineered wood uses less hardwood, a fact that appeals to environmentally conscious consumers.

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