Tell me about your wood

Blaze

Blaze

The Jeeper Reaper
Joined
Aug 9, 2005
Location
Wake Forest, NC
Flooring. I know some of you guys deal with hardwood flooring so I have a couple questions. My house has hardwood floors now and we hate them. They are the thinner planks (2"?) and are a color that we hate. We don't like the narrow planks and the color we hate. I know we can refinish them, but we really don't like the narrow planks. I guess our only real option is to tear them up since you really can't put anything on top without interfering with the door swings.

My cousin builds houses down in Nags Head and he build an awesome house for himself and used engineered hardwoods. I know they are a little cheaper and easier to install. I plan on doing it myself so that makes me happy. :lol:

What do you guys think of them?
 
Bondo every other joint line, paint it primer red, and call it a barn find.

Wait, wrong thread.
 
Blaze said:
Even when you factor in that you don't need to finish them after intalling?
Click to expand...
Thats prefinished. After factoring the addituonal cost of engineered vs solid, glue, sealer. A lot has to do with wear layers and the substrate it's applied to.
 
we had engineered acacia hand scraped put down. It was not fun for the installer it used a special stapler instead of a cleat nailer and it would not walk up easy at all. It was Lumber liquidator product 5.99 a square or so. The dogs nails have dented it but not scratched it yet.
 
from what I understand, the pre-finished engineered wood cannot be refinished in the future, or only once if so (because top layer is so thin). Also, it can be a harder more durable finish, as it is done in factory in several coats. But that also makes it so that you can't do a field refinish/repair in a small area.

Only advantage is, if you put it down in an already-occupied house, you don't have to deal with the mess and dust of sanding, and finish fumes.
 
Spinoff of the selfie thread?



Ok ....
 
I am a pine guy... Love it. This is in my house. I prefer sand and finish but I will admit the prefinished has it's place.
IMG_20160923_093845340.jpg
IMG_20160923_093752150.jpg
IMG_20160923_093845340.jpg
IMG_20160923_093752150.jpg
IMG_20160923_093845340.jpg
IMG_20160923_093752150.jpg
IMG_20160923_093630977.jpg
 
It's not a traditional wood - but I put some of this "fossilized bamboo" in the hallway
Grey Hardwood Floors - Moonlight Fossilized® Bamboo - Cali Bamboo
and I gotta say we love it. It is super hard. After 3 years, not a scratch or dent anywhere. I'm not sure how you'd classify it b/c its a solid consistent material all the way through, but the top is definitely pre-finished, and it comes as a click-together format. I suppose it could be refinished but it's hard to imagine what that process would be like, or what would even necessitate it.
We have conventional oak hardwood in the den, and a 12mm super sturdy laminate in the living room, and I like the Cali Bamboo better than either one.
 
I've installed bamboo flooring. I think it was 2.5" or whatever, tough stuff (and splintery fragments get embedded when cutting, no soft sawdust. It was bamboo through and through, but kinda like 9 pieces glued together, no filler so presumably refinishable). then there was the teak flooring, 5", and it was hard hard hard stuff with a "hand scraped" surface. Also red oak un & prefinished. All laid with a flooring stapler and came out great. Of course that was over a decade ago. All lumber liquidators stuff.
 
RatLabGuy said:
It's not a traditional wood - but I put some of this "fossilized bamboo" in the hallway
Grey Hardwood Floors - Moonlight Fossilized® Bamboo - Cali Bamboo
and I gotta say we love it. It is super hard. After 3 years, not a scratch or dent anywhere. I'm not sure how you'd classify it b/c its a solid consistent material all the way through, but the top is definitely pre-finished, and it comes as a click-together format. I suppose it could be refinished but it's hard to imagine what that process would be like, or what would even necessitate it.
We have conventional oak hardwood in the den, and a 12mm super sturdy laminate in the living room, and I like the Cali Bamboo better than either one.
Click to expand...
Bamboo is grass, not wood.
 
Most engineered hardwoods will scratch and dent easily. I don't see why you wouldn't do real hardwoods if it's an option.

Also there is an ad for flooring at the bottom of the page for me right now....
 
jyaks said:
Most engineered hardwoods will scratch and dent easily. I don't see why you wouldn't do real hardwoods if it's an option.

Also there is an ad for flooring at the bottom of the page for me right now....
Click to expand...
Huh? Never knew thato_O

Everything has its advantages and disadvantages. If you want really wide planks above 5 in go with an engineered floor. They are much more stable two environmental changes. Solid wood floors are cheaper because there's no added process in the manufacturing. Site conditions are more important when using solid products. Engineered products work much better on concrete slabs or for low clearance issues then solid do. With an engineered floor, it's all about the wear layer. Some of your better engineered floors have a similar wear layer as solid hardwood floors.

oh and by the way, check your Lumber Liquidator products for recalls due to high levels of formaldehyde especially in your engineered and bamboo floors. They are the Olive Garden of fine Italian restaurants.
 
7"x5/8" engineered unfinished vs 3 1/4"x3/4

This is a cheap engineered product in my inventory.
20190215_081146.jpg
20190215_081241.jpg
2019-02-15 08.14.59.jpg
 
GotWood said:
Looks good! I like the walnut plugs and slats on the vent. Whoever did the work likes their trade.
Click to expand...

Thanks. The plugs, slats and boarder is mahogany... Sapele actually, but everyone still calls it mahogany. I did everything you can see in those pics. I did not finish the floors tho. I have a crew who does that for me. You cannot do everything I guess.
 
jyaks said:
We put them in new construction homes and that was the thing most homeowners complained about. Dogs tearing them up or furniture scratching them.

Could just be the difference in brands.
Click to expand...
Maybe the finish, but oak should hold up like oak!
 
I think the narrow planks have a classic look, I prefer them. Wouldn't want to install them, but if they are already there, I'd keep em and refinish.
 
GotWood said:
Maybe the finish, but oak should hold up like oak!
Click to expand...

We had the "builder grade" engineered oak and our 85lb lab/Golden tore them up. Actually it was the grain that came up. It was softer than the rest so it was not just straight line scratches from his nails but followed the grain.

We now have bamboo (grass) from lumber liquidators. 45lb Boxer hasn't made a mark on them.
 
Back
Top