Tips for a successful hardwood floor install

When getting new hardwoods installed in a room or your entire home, there are some things to consider, questions you may have and certain things to avoid. In this blog we will cover what you should do to allow yourself to have the most perfect floor installation experience for your room or home. The following are concerns people have often brought to Purdy or that we’ve run into while working on countless floors across Dacula and the surrounding areas.

My room is 500 square feet, but the suggestion is to go with 550 square foot, is this accurate?

Yes. With hardwood floors, or just about any other project that covers square footage you want to estimate about 10% waste considering cutting for angles and just to make sure you’re covered should you make a mistake. Which, let’s be honest, “measure once, cut twice” should be anyone’s motto who is cutting raw materials.

I’ve noticed some hardwoods fade over time, will this happen to my floors?

If properly taken care of the sheen or shine may fade somewhat, but the luster of the floor will last for decades. The process you are seeing is just the wood changing color, naturally, over time. This process is called patina and is a wonderful trait that makes wood floors the easy choice over other flooring alternatives. The durability of wood floors is a testament.

Which floor is right for me: solid wood or engineered wood?

Aside from climate and location, solid or engineered wood is just a matter of preference. Solid wood floors are exactly what the name implies, solid. Solid wood is one of the best options for floor covering as it is extremely durable and can be sanded and refinished many times. Engineered wood is comprised of layers of wood with each layer of grain facing perpendicular to the previous one. One advantage of engineered wood is that it handles temperature and humidity change very well. The different woods that make up the layers of engineered wood allow the wood to expand and contract so that it may adapt with the ever-changing seasons.

How do I pick which wood species to use?

The species of wood you choose may depend on what type of effect you’re going for in your home. If you want the desired area to look more open and light, you may want to choose ash or maple. If you prefer a dark, cozy feel you might want to go with oak or hickory. If stately and refined is what you want then walnut or rich mahogany may be right up your alley.

The experts at Purdy Flooring and Design will be happy to assist you with making all of your flooring decisions.