Hardwood Flooring for a Home
Perhaps it’s time for a remodel and update a home. How about a remodel that will transform homeowners’ home, add lasting value, beauty and elegance and be something they will be proud of? Think about hardwood flooring.
Generally hardwood floors come pre-finished; this is when the manufacturer applies a finish at the factory. This finish is generally at least four coats of ultraviolet cured urethane resin. Hardwood floors are generally easy to clean with a simple sweep of a dust mop or vacuuming. People need to protect their hardwood floors from scratches as much as possible. Putting protective rugs under their furniture is an excellent way to prevent scratches on the floor. Hardwood floors are meant to last a lifetime.
Homeowners will want to choose a color of hardwood floor that will accent their home and home furnishings. As a rule lighter colors go with country, contemporary and casual settings. Darker colored wood floors are for formal or traditional interiors. But, of course, anything goes! The decision should be based on personal visual preference.
Lighter wood would be a white ash, sugar maple or southern yellow pine. Darker colors are beech, birch, red oak, heart pine and mesquite.
Homeowners want to make sure that their hardwood floor will be able to withstand denting and wear. Of the woods mentioned above, mesquite is the hardest wood and a southern yellow pine would be the softest. In the middle of these fall the yellow birch, heart pine and beech.
If homeowners are going to be hiring a contractor to install their hardwood floor make sure they ask for references. Go take a look at a floor that they have installed. Make sure that they are comfortable working with the type of word floor that they want installed.
Make sure that they thoroughly inspect the hardwood floor after the installation. Look at the floor from a standing position and with normal lighting. Deep swirls or sander marks or splotchy areas may mean that the floor wasn’t finished properly. There will however be some irregularities on any wood floor. However, these irregularities won’t seem obvious and will only add to the character of the floor.