Hardwood Flooring

No other flooring offers the warmth, beauty, and value of wood. Wood flooring enhances the décor of any room, and provides timeless beauty that will increase in value throughout the years. In fact, in a national survey of real estate agents, 90 percent said that houses with wood flooring sell faster and for higher prices than houses without wood floors. That’s money in your pocket!

Maintenance of today’s wood floors is easy! New technology in stains and finishes call for regular cleaning that takes little more than sweeping and/or vacuuming, with occasional use of a professional wood floor cleaning product. See our Care and Cleaning section for details.

Wood floors are ecologically friendly. Since it is a natural resource, wood is both renewable and recyclable. Many of yesteryear’s old wood ships, warehouses, barns, and other structures often find a second life in wood flooring. And, because wood does not collect dust and other allergens, many leading health associations agree that wood floors are the perfect choice for a healthy home.

Today’s wood floors are affordable. Over time, wood floors maintain their value. When other flooring options are looking tired and worn out, wood floors will still look beautiful and timeless.

Wood floors have come a long way in the past few years. Today, with more than 50 species, both domestic and exotic, there are more styles and colors available than ever before and spanning the spectrum of color, hardness and price ranges. No matter what the look you want to achieve, including unique, one-of-a-kind looks, there are a variety of species to meet your needs. Visit our showroom to see the many samples available.

Hardwood Flooring is produced in both solid and engineered planks and strips. The type of wood selection is vast and therefore a bounty of colors and textures are available. To assist in determining which type of floor would be best for your particular situation depends upon the location in your home and the type of subfloor that location has.

Solid wood floors are one solid piece of wood and are generally 3/4" thick, available in several widths, and made from woods such as Red Oak, White Oak, Cherry, Hickory and Maple, to name a few. Solid wood floors can also be refinished or recoated several times, so once installed they can last for many years. Moisture and humidity need to be taken into consideration when selecting Solid Wood Flooring.

Engineered Wood Floors, on the other hand, are made by laminating several hardwood plies together to form the planks. Most engineered floors can be glued-down, stapled-down or floated over a variety of subfloors including wood, dry concrete slabs and some types of existing flooring. Engineered hardwood floors have cross-ply construction which reduces the expansion/contraction of planks caused by variations in humidity and allow these floors to be installed anywhere in the home.

Engineered Wood Floors are chosen when people want the look and feel of solid wood, but don’t want the associated problems solid wood is susceptible to. Both types can come with a pre-finished surface that can not be duplicated by finishing at the job site, and renders easy maintenance. These pre-finished surfaces assure lasting beauty, elegance and maximum protection for years to come.

Unfinished floors require several days to install, stain and finish the flooring. Prefinished floors are less messy and can be installed and completed the same day. A factory-applied finish is extremely durable.

Wood floors come in a variety of styles to meet the demands of today's busy lifestyles - factory finished, unfinished, solid, engineered, strip, plank, parquet, and acrylic impregnated. Choosing the style that is best for you is an important decision, and will be based on a variety of issues including your lifestyle, your decorating style, and the area in which you live. Stop by our showroom and consult with one of our wood flooring professional to weigh the advantages of each alternative.

Things to think about during the selection process:

Is this a high traffic area?
The finish and color will be affected by this. Darker colors tend to show traffic quicker, where as natural wood colors of oak and maple do not. High traffic areas need more attention than other areas. Satin or low shine varieties tend to show less traffic patterns than do the higher gloss finishes. Walk-off mats are strongly suggested for these areas, for example, working areas of a kitchens, entry ways, foyers and doorways from the outside.

What type of wood do you like or will fit the area?
Some types are more traffic friendly than others; Is this species to "grainy" or busy looking? Some species are harder than others. Maple is harder than oak; has less grain, yet maple can not be stained. Remember, the type of finish and number of coats can also determine how well your floor will fair in high traffic areas.

What color will work with the decor?
Some darker colors make rooms look smaller and show traffic patterns quicker. Lighter, or natural color (oak and maple being the most popular of wood floor species) can give an open, airy feeling, making the room appear larger. With today's color trends these are the most popular selections now being made by consumers, in home and office alike. Your floor should complement the fabrics, furnishings and accessories already present in the space, as well as enhancing the unique personality of the room as a whole. The most popular color is red oak natural, maple natural running second, but with today's many individual tastes, anything goes. Trends suggest, Darker colors - Formal or traditional interiors, Lighter colors - country, casual and contemporary settings. There are many choices when selecting the right floor for the rooms in your home, as there are many species, colors and grain variations for you to consider. Come and see the many selections available at our S and G Flooring Warehouse showroom.