How to Choose the Right Hardwood Flooring
Hardwood flooring never goes out of style. It can increase a home’s value and boost aesthetic appeal. It comes in many wood species, colors, and finishes, which can make it hard to pick the best flooring option. Consider the factors below before making a choice.
The Perks of Hardwood Flooring
Most homeowners choose hardwood flooring for its classic aesthetic and potential to increase a home’s value. Hardwood flooring is a more tenable alternative to carpets and tiles by most comparison standards.
- Hardwood floors are solid, durable, and withstand heavy foot pressure.
- Hardwood flooring is easy to clean and maintain.
- It adds an aesthetic appeal to your home. Hardwood flooring comes in different color options, design styles, and species.
- Homes with well-maintained hardwood floors have a higher resale value.
Top Considerations When Choosing Hardwood Flooring
Types of Hardwood Flooring
The main types of hardwood flooring are solid wood and engineered wood. Solid wood consists of wood from the top to the bottom of the plank. It comes either finished or unfinished in various widths and lengths.
Engineered wood is a manufactured wood product with a core of five to nine layers. The top layer is a thin veneer of real wood. It’s a more customizable flooring alternative and provides the same visual appeal as actual wood.
Wood Species
The wood species impacts your floors’ appearance, durability, and aesthetics. Here are the popular wood species for hardwoods:
- Oak: Oak has attractive grains and natural colors that are elegant and pleasant to the eye. The durable wood species comes in two popular types: red and white.
- Hickory: Hickory’s has a distinct grain and color variations. It has notable shock resistance and density, making it the hardest domestic wood species.
- Ash: Ash features a pale white to medium brown color variation. Its graining is bold and may appear straight, wavy, or curly. Its durability is ideal for manufacturing stiff veneer planks.
- Teak: Teak is a water-resistant wood with beautiful, rich golden-brown colors. It comprises natural oil, which makes it shine with a minimal finish.
- Bamboo: Bamboo is grass often classified as hardwood and valued for its ecological qualities.
- Pine: Pine is durable and considered an ecological flooring species because it’s easy to grow. Its knotty grain gives it an aesthetic rustic look.
- Walnut: Walnut boasts a rich, chocolate-brown color and detailed graining.
- Maple: Maple is a sturdy wood with a natural creamy color. It has a smooth, fine grain that complements many interior designs.
- Mahogany: Mahogany has a rich reddish-brown color. Its warmth, richness, and beautiful wavy grain make it unique.
Cost
The materials and installation costs for hardwood floors range from $5 to $28 per square foot. The wood species, grain, pattern, style, size, thickness, and width affect the final cost.
For engineered wood, you’ll pay an average of $6 to $23 per square foot for materials and installation.
Grain & Texture
Wood grains vary depending on the direction the tree’s fibers grew. The most common grain types are:
- Flat grains: These have parallel stripes that create a uniform pattern.
- Straight grains: They’re durable since they have more fiber layers.
- Curly grains: They have twisted woodcuts from a tree and produce wavy, spiral, and irregular markings.
The texture of hardwood flooring affects the floor’s appearance. The most common texture types are:
- Smooth texture: A smooth texture highlights the wood’s natural beauty with no surface imperfections. It’s a classic choice that suits various design styles.
- Distressed texture: Manufacturers produce distressed hardwood using scraping, denting, and saw marks. Distressed hardwood flooring textures’ hand-crafted, worn, and aged appearance makes them most noticeable.
- Wire-Brushed: A wire-brushed texture creates a surface with unique grain patterns that are semi-smooth. It’s hand-crafted to showcase the beauty of a flooring plank. Wire bristles brush the wood to remove the softer wood and show the tougher grain.
Lifestyle & Usage
Choose harder wood species like oak, hickory, or maple for high-traffic areas and if you have pets. These varieties are more resistant to dents and wear. Pick engineered hardwood or wood species with better moisture resistance for areas prone to spills.
Room Aesthetics
Choose hardwood flooring made of a conventional wood species like oak or maple if you want a traditional appearance.
Pick hardwood floors with a smooth, dark stain for a modern or contemporary look. For a more rustic design, choose hardwood flooring made of a darker wood species, such as walnut or cherry.
Color and Finish
Lighter colors of wood flooring create a more open and airy feel, while darker colors can add warmth and coziness to a room.