Engineered wood flooring consists of two bonded layers of plywood core and hardwood on the top. With versatility, dimensional stability, core quality, environmental friendliness, high performance, manifold finishes, and installation ease, this is a foremost option for any floor surface.
Whether you’re renovating a residential or commercial area with wood flooring, you’ve to be mindful of different essential considerations. This comprehensive guide by PVC Vinyl Flooring will cover the integral factors and queries you should consider when buying engineered wood floors.
7 Most Important Queries to Ask Before Buying Engineered Wood Floors
If you are getting this composite hardwood flooring, some basic possible queries can pop up in your mind. Depending on the basic analysis, we’ve listed answers for some of the mandatory questions for a convenient purchase:
1. How Engineered Flooring is Manufactured? What Are Thicknesses and Different Layers?
Market standards and manufacturing practices significantly vary depending on the use of materials and their quality. When you hit the market for shopping, you must inquire about the manufacturing strategies to check out the sustainability. When researching, always look for the retailer’s membership in any professional association.
Also, you must ask about the different types of top and core layers that are bonded together to create this most stable flooring. Make sure the top wear layer is made from real wood. Also, don’t forget to pay attention to the thickness which can range anywhere between 2 to 6mm according to the space’s daily foot activity.
2. Is Engineered Wood the Right Option For Me?
This wood-made flooring is designed to resemble and feel like hardwood flooring from its appearance. However, its construction only involves a thin veneer of hardwood, and its stabilizing and balancing cores provide firmness, stability, and exceptional performance.
Installing this flooring in your residential and commercial spaces is a valuable investment that improves the visuals and value instantly. It is the right option since it can survive the test of time and can be installed in heavy foot traffic areas. Depending on the manufacturing quality and maintenance you provide, it can last for generations.
3. Where Can I Install Engineered Wood?
Compared to solid hardwood, this composite wooden floor is considered a better choice for high-moisture places. It boasts strong resistance to moisture as well as temperature fluctuations. The kitchen, living room, foyer, staircase, bedroom, basement, and other indoor rooms can all be treated with these wooden floors.
Aside from residential spaces, these floors can be installed in commercial settings including workspaces, hospitals, restaurants, banquets, theaters, libraries, and laboratories due to their structural stability and easy maintenance schedules.
4. What Type of Glue Was Used to Sandwich the Layers?
Most of the manufacturers use poor-quality glues or adhesives for compacting the flooring layers. The usage of unquestionable quality materials has a direct influence on the stability and resistivity of your flooring treatments.
Before buying, check the material and what type of glue is used to attach to the layers. Pick a formaldehyde-free product that will be non-toxic to the environment and offer good bonding, resulting in the lifetime enhancement of your flooring.
5. Is it Possible to Refinish Engineered Floors?
Quality hardwood floors are best for the top layer thickness and are more suitable for the refinishing process. With a thick wear layer, it is possible to refinish the hardwood planks two to three times over its lifespan.
However, refinishing the less than 2mm wear layer more than one time can cause potential damage. So as for consequences it just depends on the frequency of refinishing and also on how wide and slim it is. Depending on the plank’s quality, they can be sanded, stained, and refinished multiple times in their entire lifetime.
6. How Do I Maintain And Survive These Floors From Damage?
Regular mopping, sweeping, and vacuuming are the key to keeping the dirt, dust, grease, and stains away from their surfaces. Also, you can deep clean the wooden flooring periodically to remove the settled dirt and retain a fresh appearance.
To keep their effectiveness for a long time, you must avoid harsh chemical cleaners. Also, you can use carpets or rugs on floors or soft pads on furniture’s feet to avoid all kinds of potential damages including dents, scuffs, and scratches.
7. What Are The Benefits Of Choosing An Engineered Wood Floor?
The pinpoint consideration is the benefits that this flooring can unfold after purchase. Functional features like damage resistance against heavy use must be inspected before shopping so that it can accommodate perfectly according to the intended space usage.
Also, inquire about the environment-friendliness, underfloor heating, and moisture-resistance. Check if it can cope well against temperature fluctuations and varying humidity levels to prevent movements, swelling, and shrinking.
What to Consider Before Buying Engineered Wood Flooring?
Here are the few essential factors that you must consider before buying this flooring:
1. Style and Appearance
Consider the style and appearance of this wood-designed flooring from a wide range of wood species, finishes, and plank width options that complement overall aesthetics. Multiple surface texture options are smooth, wire-brushed, hand-scraped, or distressed.
2. Surfaces Finish
These wooden floors are available with different finishes with either water or oil-based polyurethane. Water-based comes with high-gloss, satin, semi-gloss, matte, and oil-based with shiny finishes.
3. Durability
It’s important to pick the right flooring with a stabilized bottom and core layer that must be capable of withstanding the intended foot traffic and usage intensity in any residential or commercial setting.
4. Moisture Resistance
It’s very important to evaluate the moisture resistance of the flooring material. Must buy flooring that can withstand the highest moisture level in the installation area so that temperature fluctuations won’t affect their performance.
5. Noise Reduction
Some products have built-in underlayment or sound-dampening features that can help decrease noise transmission between floors, providing you with comfortable walking surfaces without any hollow sound.
6. Environmental Impact
To verify wood used in flooring originates from ethically managed forests, inspect if they that have received certification from agencies like the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC). Always opt for the renewable options.
7. Installation Method
Assess the installation methods for fitting different types of engineered wood flooring including gliding, glue-down, and nail-down that work best during a DIY project, saving you money by not hiring professionals.
9. Maintenance
Take into account this wooden flooring’s cleaning and aftercare needs and opt for the one that demands low maintenance and periodic refinishing or cleaning schedules, offering long-term convenience and serviceability.
10. Warranty
Ask about the warranty period that the manufacturer has listed. A longer warranty period determines the product quality and can provide customers peace of mind about the valuable investment while purchasing.
Closing Thoughts!
When purchasing this flooring, it’s integral to consider your budget, durability, intended buying purpose, aftercare requirements, installation techniques, and flooring’s impact on the environment.
Also, the 7 must-asked questions in this guide will help you make a well-informed and satisfactory decision. Hope, you can select the best engineered wood flooring that best suits your needs and preferences by going through the essential details in this guide.
