Solid hardwood floors are among the most desirable features of any home. Hardwood flooring can make your home look more stylish. When it is laminate flooring, it will add a touch of freshness. Nonetheless, the biggest concern of many homeowners in regard to wooden floors is the way they age. Hardwood flooring requires maintenance works such as sanding every few years. Before investing in a hardwood flooring, you need to consider where you want to install it in your house. If you want to buy wood floors for damp areas such as the kitchen and the bathroom, you should avoid solid hardwood, because it is quite sensitive to moisture, so it won’t last for too many years in humid environments.
If you are still keen on buying hardwood flooring for your bathroom or kitchen, choose a processed wood flooring solution. These engineered hardwood floors have the top surface of plywood covered by a thin layer of finished hardwood. There are lots of varieties of engineered hardwoods available. Depending on your specific needs and on your budget, you can choose from 2 ply to 10 ply floors. Laminate flooring is also very attractive, thanks to its wide variety of colors, styles and patterns. You’ll surely find something to match the other interior decor elements in your home. Nonetheless, laminate flooring can’t withstand moisture as well as engineered hardwood. Furthermore, it isn’t real wood, so you won’t be able to sand it.
There are three main types of solid hardwood flooring solutions: parquet, plank and strip. If you want a patterned solid hardwood, parquet is the way to go. Each square of parquet wood will bear an individual geometric pattern. Together, they will contribute to creating the desired flooring pattern. Strip wood doesn’t have these patterns. The simple wood can come in various sizes and thickness ranges. The width may vary between one and a half inches and 2.75 inches. If none of them is wide enough for your hardwood flooring plan, you can choose plank, as it is wider than strip. It also comes in various thickness options ranging from 3 inches to 8 inches.
Once you’ve chosen and installed the type of hardwood flooring that suits best your home, you need to learn how to maintain it in order to keep it looking like new for a very long time. Fortunately, solid hardwoods are very easy to maintain. Make sure your floor is always free from dirt and grit as they can scratch the surface. For best looks for a very long time, clean your floors regularly. Would it be safe to clean your laminate flooring everyday with water? To start with, check the floor and look for scratches of dents. If you see some imperfections, avoid using water. If there aren’t any problems with the finish, you can safely mop it with water to make it shiny and fresh. The best method to keep your hardwood flooring free from dirt, place doormats in the doorways. This will help you keep your floors clean and your home free from germs.