Why Install Wood Floors?
Real wood floors made of Maple, Oak, Hickory, Pine, Beech, Elm, and Pecan should be familiar to you as the countless city streets that are named after these trees. Their rich natural colors and handcrafted quality are what we have come to expect in American homes. Over the last few years wood flooring technology has improved to a place it has never gone before.
Some quick reasons why you should choose real wood:
Natural, warm, authentic color.
Simple, yet decorative for any room in the house.
Rugged, yet charming.
Durable, yet easy to care for.
Beauty that's hard to tire of.
Lifetime guarantee.
Adds real value to a home.
Wood vs. Carpet
Carpeting is more economical, right? Actually, carpeting lasts between seven and ten years under normal residential use. Hardwood floors can last a lifetime and are always in style.
Here's a 30-year comparison test you can use when trying to decide between carpeting or wood flooring. Say you installed a hardwood floor. It would typically last for 30 years. During that same period you probably would have to install new carpeting four or five times. At that rate, the hardwood flooring actually costs less than the cumulative cost of all the carpeting you would have to install.
Another thing you need to consider is the cleanliness of your home. A large American company that recycles old carpeting has stated that most used carpeting it receives for processing contains at least 35% of its weight in household dirt. The families who owned this old carpeting were actually walking, or crawling on dirt. Hardwood flooring is simply cleaner. If it is dirty, the dirt is plainly visible to the eye, not hidden within carpet fibers. Hardwood flooring my be your best buy and most solid investment.
Engineered Wood vs. Solid Wood
It's a well-known fact within the flooring industry that engineered wood flooring is much more stable than solid wood flooring in environments where moisture is a concern. Wood and water, however, do not mix. Damp conditions undermine all types of floor coverings. Oak lumber floors, for instance, can have many problems in the presence of moisture, including gaps between planks, squeaking, cupping, buckling, and cracking. Hardwood Floors' Cross-Locked Engineered planks are eight times more stable than solid wood planks, so there is no need to worry about squeaks or buckles in normal indoor environments.
