All About Engineered Wood Floors

By Jeff Hosking – Hosking Hardwood Flooring
© 2004, Copyright protected. All Rights Reserved

Engineered wood floors - How are they made?

The best engineered wood floors are built having multiple ply layers (see picture below) that are cross layered, glued and pressed together. The inner cores are generally either a hardwood and/or soft plywood type of material, which incorporates the tongue and groove system. The top thicker hardwood veneer wear layer is glued on top surface of the core and is available in almost any hardwood species.

Engineered wood floors are more resistant to higher moisture levels than solid wood flooring, which adds to their appeal to use in damp basements or in regions of the country that have higher relative humidity levels. Engineered flooring can be direct glued-down over (dry) concrete slabs above or below grade, or stapled down over a wood subfloor. On some styles of engineered wood flooring manufacturers have also come up with a unique newer installation method where the tongue and groove edges of the boards are simply Click Locked together for a very easy and fast floating installation. Engineered flooring can be installed on any grade level. Quality Engineered Hardwood flooring has the same resale value as 3/4 solid wood flooring if you ever decide to sell your home.

Engineered Hardwood floors range in widths from 3-7 inches wide and come in a wide variety of domestic and exotic hardwood species and some are even available in the popular hand scraped style. Some brands of engineered flooring have a thin wear layer that can only be re-coated and cannot be sanded and refinished new again once they get worn. They have an average lifespan of between 30 - 40 years depending on traffic. Other brands or styles can have a thicker 2 - 4 mil thick wear layer that can be completely sanded and refinished 2- 5 times if they ever needed to be. These thicker wear layer engineered floors can last from 40 - 100 years before having to be replaced which add to their appeal.

Engineered wood floors are manufactured two ways, one, where the top surface wear layer is Sliced/Sawn cut from the log like solid wood flooring is. Engineered hardwood flooring that has a Sliced/Sawn cut wear layer shows the truer natural look of the wood and finer graining. Sliced/Sawn cut engineered flooring also allows a thicker wear layer.

Engineered wood floors can also be Rotary cut, which the veneer hardwood wear layer is peeled off the log using big lathes. This peeling method can show dramatic wilder graining.

Some people think that engineered flooring is not as good as a solid 3/4 inch thick floor because of the thinner wear layer, which is not always true.  Remember that the sandable or renewable wear layer on a 3/4 inch solid wood floor is approx 5/16 before you start exposing the nails that were used to install it and you can sand and refinish 3/4 inch thick flooring approx 6-7 times. The average lifespan of 3/4 inch thick solid wood flooring is approx 100 years.

An engineered wood floor having a wear layer of 4 mil or 5/32 usually can be sanded and refinished 4-5 times. The average lifespan of an engineered floor having a thick renewable wear layer is approx 60-80 years.

Your concern should be what your demands are going to be for that flooring and match those demands to the flooring as best you can. If the area that the new flooring is going to be installed is it going to receive a lot of rough traffic with little or no care or maintenance then you will want a engineered floor that has a thick wear layer that can be sanded and refinished new again later if it ever needed to be. If the area is not going to be heavily trafficked and will be maintained properly then you may not need as thick a wear layer. Quality Engineered floors are very durable and are commonly used in shopping malls which receive a lot of foot traffic.

Engineered wood flooring is Green
Purchasing engineered wood flooring helps conserve expensive prized wood. For every 1 sq foot of 3/4 inch thick solid wood flooring manufactured you can manufacturer approx 4 times that amount into engineered wood flooring. Engineered wood flooring is the best flooring to provide people with to conserve our forests.

Engineered Hardwood Flooring Reviews

Q. What's the advantage of using an Engineered wood floor over a Solid nail down floor?

A. Engineered hardwood floors can be installed in areas where there is slightly higher relative humidity levels. Engineered wood flooring being more stable is a great choice to use in summer homes where the heat is turned lower when no one is there. Because manufacturing engineered flooring does not waste valuable prized wood below its wear layer purchasing engineered flooring also helps conserve our forests.

Q. Does it matter what size width board or color to use? Is one width better than another?

A. No. I would suggest using whatever width board you prefer aesthetically. The rule of thumb is that a narrower board will give you a more formal look and feel to your home. A wider board (over 4 inches wide), will give you a more Country look and feel.

Floor Color is a personal choice that would have more to do with your personal tastes and decor. A natural light colored wood floor will go with any décor and will lighten up any room. I usually suggest not using dark colored flooring if your room decor is very dark.

Q. Can I use a Engineered wood floor in my basement?

A. Yes, as long as the moisture content of the concrete does not exceed 4%. Basements are known to have higher relative humidity due to being under the ground. It is recommended to use a Floating engineered wood floor with a 4-6-mil plastic vapor barrier in any areas where there is a slightly higher moisture conditions.

Q. Can I install a Engineered floor over other floor coverings such as vinyl or tile?

A. Yes, as long as the other flooring is a hard surface, secured well and is flat. You cannot install any wood flooring over carpet.

Q. Can I glue down an Engineered wood floor over my concrete slab that is on grade?

A. Yes, you should make certain that your slab is dry and that the moisture content does not exceed 4%.

Q. Are all Brands of Engineered floors the same?

A. No, like anything else you purchase there can be big differences in quality. Some manufacturers use a lower quality wood along with low grade, cheaper bonding glues for their ply layers. Their milling could also be off and their finish quality could be poor. I suggest staying away from names you never heard of and only use Name Brand hardwood flooring from manufacturers that have been around for a long time. They will be the ones who will generally stand behind their flooring if something should go wrong.

Q. Can I install my own Engineered Floor?

A. Yes, installing prefinished wood flooring is very easy. If you can measure a board, cut and glue it to another board, then you can install our hardwood flooring. It is an easy and rewarding way to save a lot of money -- doing it yourself. Our flooring comes with easy to follow instructions. Standard tool knowledge and common sense would naturally help. If you purchase your flooring from Hosking Hardwood Flooring, we will gladly take the time to walk you through your installation.

Q. How much flooring do I need to order? Why do I have to add 5% to my square footage?

A. We provide easy to follow instructions as to how to measure your rooms, see our Measuring Tips page. It is important to remember that all manufacturers recommend adding 5% to your actual square footage. This added 5% is recommended to cover boards that you may not want to use, that may have gotten by the inspection process at the factory and for cutting and fitting waste.

If you want to run the flooring at a 45-degree angle in the room then you would want to add approx 15% for a waste factor for the added cutting waste.

Q. What tools am I going to need to install an Engineered wood floor?

A. Some flooring styles may require more or less tools that are mentioned here but generally you will need some small basic tools such as, a Combination Square, Miter saw, Hammer, Jig saw, small table saw, a pull bar, a few packages of small wood shims and a tapping block. For Staple down styles or installation method you would need a pneumatic stapler.

Q. Are there different styles of Engineered flooring?

A. Yes, aside from their smooth surface styles some wood flooring manufacturers also produce character or hand scraped versions that are available, which would show more light and dark boards along with more pronounced character -- with the possibility of small pinholes and knots. What is extremely popular nowadays is a rustic or hand scraped look.

Q. What are the benefits of using Prefinished flooring rather than Unfinished flooring?

A. Purchasing prefinished flooring eliminates the time consuming chore of the sanding and refinishing and gives you the added benefit of a perfect finish all done for you at the factory. Most of the brand name manufacturers carry a variety of stained colors to choose from and are coated with a durable 7-10 coats of the Aluminum oxide finish, which is far more durable for wear than anything that can be purchased in a hardware store, or home center. Using prefinished flooring allows you to move right back into the room after installation. No waiting for days while the finish is being applied and drying!

All wood floors will react to the presence of moisture. In the dry winter heating months, moisture leaves the wood causing the floor to contract, which can leave 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 wood floor to and to acclimate the wood prior to installation and leave the proper expansion area around the perimeter. It is also important to keep the relative humidity at between 30 - 65% with all engineered flooring.

At Hosking Hardwood Flooring we Only Retail 1^st Quality Hardwood Flooring, we do not sell 2^nds, or mis-milled flooring.

Review on the benefits of buying an engineered wood floor:

1. The best engineered floors have a Lifespan anywhere from 30 - 100 years.
2. Using an engineered wood floor allows you to have a wood floor on any grade level.
3. Engineered hardwood flooring can be used on wood subfloors or dry concrete slabs.
4. Better suited for humid areas of the country.
5. Engineered floors are very easy and fast to install.
6. Engineered wood floors are more dimensionally stable than solid wood floors.
7. Engineered floors are available in many different sizes, colors and styles.
8. Some of the best engineered floors can be sanded and refinished if ever needed.
9. Hardwood flooring is the only floor covering that increases the value of your home.
10. Hardwood flooring does not cause allergies, recommended to use by allergists.

(Look for JEFF HOSKING'S RATING:  at the top of every product description.)

Our Website Visitor Statistics indicate that 86% of people that visit our Website purchase their Flooring from us. Thank you! Provided by Live-Stats Inc.

See what people like you are saying Customer Reviews

Click here to go to the top of the page

All content copyright protected www.hoskinghardwood.com