What Kinds of Wood Make the Best Flooring
Wood flooring has, and remains to this day, one of the most popular flooring types for homes. The beauty of wooden flooring lends it’s own natural charm to every style of home. While hardwood floors can require more care than carpet or vinyl, it tends to speak volumes about the homeowner as a person. Hardwood floors have a natural warmth and beauty that simply cannot be found in any other flooring material.
Freshly installed hardwood floors add beauty and warmth to your home. Photo taken by: Denny Schmickle
If you’re building a new home and make the decision that hardwood is for you, you might find that choosing with type of wood to use can be a bit more daunting than you would expect. Not only are there many different types of wood to choose from, but wooden flooring also can take different forms. From species of wood, to solid wood versus engineered boards, there is a lot to choose from. Here are a few tips to consider when looking at what hardwood to use for the floors in your new home.
Species of Wood
Just like different species of animals, wood also has a variety of species. Every different species of wood has it’s own set of characteristics. There are close to 50 different varieties of hardwood to choose from when it comes to flooring, so there’s a lot to pick from. Depending on the look you’re going for, it can greatly help you to narrow down the choices.
The color of wood plays a big role in determining the feel of your home. Lighter colored woods such as maple or ash can make a room feel airy and more open. Medium colored woods such as hickory and oak create a warm and cozy feel. Walnut, mahogany and other dark colored woods leave a refined impression. When designing your home, consider the overall look you want to achieve, which will help you pick the wood for your floors.
The Janka Scale
Another important factor to consider is how your floor will be used. Floors that won’t see a lot of heavy traffic, such as homes for retired couples or business professionals don’t require the same hardness level as homes that have small children or pets. The hardness of a wood determines how susceptible the floor is to scratches and dents and the Janka Scale is a means of measuring the hardness of wood. A domestic cherry, for example, is ranked at 950 on the Janka scale, where a Brazillian cherry is nearly triple that amount at 2,820. So while a domestic cherry floor would be a good choice for an older couple, it would be ravaged by a house with small children.
Price
Price is another important factor to consider when choosing what type of wood to use. Domestic woods will be less expensive than imported woods, but some of the imported woods can offer a wider range of color to create a more unique design. It’s important to remember when installing hardwood floors that it’s suggested you order 10% more flooring than what you measured for. This accounts for cracking, splintering and general wastes that can accompany the installation, which while is important to consider, can also make it a more costly endeavor.
While there is more that goes into installing hardwood floors, the effort pays off. When your new home is finally finished, you can appreciate both the beauty and the effort of choosing the right wood.
+Ken Uhrich likes houses. In fact he lives in one. You can drop him a line at the Custom Home Group website.
