Carpet Giant design consultants help with hardwood flooring selection

Wood flooring is any manufactured product made from timber that is designed to be used as flooring for either aesthetic or structural purposes. Wood is a flooring material that is a common choice. Hardwood floors come in various species, cuts, colors, and styles.

It’s hard to compare engineered and sold hardwood floors because of the wide range of qualities in both products. There are some limitations with solid hardwood. Solid hardwood is prone to gapping, crowning, and cupping. It cannot be installed below ground level, or used with underfloor radiant heat. However, solid hardwood remains widespread and common. The thicker wear surface of solid hardwood allows a wood floor to be sanded down and refinished more often than engineered hardwood floors.

Engineered hardwood is made of two or more wood layers in the form of a plank. Running the grain of each layer, at a 90-degree angle to the layer above, increases the stability of engineered hardwood.

The stability is what makes engineered hardwood a universal product. It is the most common wood flooring used globally. Engineered hardwood can be installed over any subfloor and below ground level.

Solid wood is often site-finished. It is installed by nailing. Engineered wood is rarely site-finished. It is installed as floating, or with glue installation. Engineered hardwood floors have benefits beyond universal use and dimensional stability.

Installation systems allow installation to be faster and easy to replace boards. A floating installation further increases the ease of repair and reduces installation time. Underfloor radiant heating systems are suitable for engineered hardwood.