| |
| |
|
Home Improvement Information |
|
|
|
Ten Things You May Not Know About Selecting Hardwood Flooring
1) Red Oak is not the only choice If you want your home to look like everyone else's, this is a great choice. If you want your home to be unique try hickory, cherry, walnut, white oak, maple or many others. Go to flooring retailers or search the Internet and see what is available. If you really want red oak try using wider widths or character grade for variety and uniqueness. 2) 2 1/4 inch is not the only size available If all you ask your builder for is a hardwood floor - you are going to get a 2 1/4 inch red oak floor. Why? It is the most common, most produced, most stocked, cheapest option available. You can buy sizes in 3" through 12". You can put down a single width for a uniform look or multiple widths for a more random look. Typical random flooring patterns are 3"-4"-5", 3"-5", 4"-5"-6". Have fun! Make your home unique! The wider the floor the more seasonal separations between the flooring planks can occur. 3) Import Species don't support jobs in the United States While there are vast amounts of imported species available, there are fantastic, interesting species of flooring available right here in the United States. Not all countries have managed forests and renewable resources. This is an important time to support our own economy. 4) All flooring is not select (clear) grade The most common floors are select grade. These floors contain none of woods naturally occurring character marks. Look around your flooring showroom, almost every display is showing clear flooring. There are warm and inviting options. Look at a character grade or other grades. Make sure to see a photo of what the floor looks like, not just one piece. 5) Prefinished flooring is convenient Have you ever been forced to leave your home for three days while the flooring contractor sands, stains and recoats your floor? If not ask a friend who has had it done. A professional flooring contractor will leave your home spotless, others can leave dust on all your furniture. Today's factory finished flooring can be installed today and entertained on tonight with very little mess. With prefinished flooring each plank is allowed to move independently with humidity changes in your home. This makes those seasonal separations (cracks) in your floor less noticeable. 6) Colors can be cool - but mother nature is hard to beat Some species of flooring are so beautiful in their natural color, they do not require any added color. Look up hickory, cherry or walnut flooring on the Internet and you will see what I mean. 7) Prefinish warranties are a gimmick 50 year warranty - WOW! Lifetime warranty - fantastic! Oh really? These are wear-through warranties only. Your floor will loose its "sheen" or luster and require refinishing long before you ever wear through the finish. The best way to make a floor last is to vacuum it often to keep away abrasive material that might scratch your floor. Remember a lower sheen floor shows less wear. 8) Not all flooring is smooth - texture is popular Hardwood flooring does not have to be smooth. Many companies are offering hand scraped, distressed and reclaimed flooring. These floors have a classic look and add great value to upscale homes. They do not show much wear or scratches since they have a great deal of character interest to draw attention to different parts of the floor. These floors will be a guaranteed conversation piece with your friends and neighbors and are often the focal point at luxury home tours. 9) In a basement use engineered flooring Most people use engineered flooring to glue down to concrete or in higher moisture areas. This flooring has a thin layer of hardwood with a cross banded plywood base. This makes the flooring more stable and does not require nailing like a solid hardwood floor. 10) Laminate flooring is not Hardwood flooring A great steak does not taste the same as a picture of a great steak. If you want the beauty and warmth of hardwood flooring in your home - buy the real thing, not a cheap imitation. About The Author Doug Bolton is the owner of Homerwood Hardwood Floors located in the heart of the Pennsylvania hardwoood region - Titusville PA. You can learn more by visiting their website at http://www.homerwood.com
MORE RESOURCES:
Home-Improvement - Google News |
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
How to Deal With Contractors Not everyone is aware of how to deal with contractors. Imagine that your Home Improvement Loan has been granted. How to Keep Your Tools Useful for Every Season You don't want to keep your useless tools in your storage right? You will only fill up the room with broken tools, so you feel you want to throw everything out. Wow, that's really a good way to throw out money. Hardwood Floors - 7 Tips For Selecting Perfect Flooring DESIGN STYLESWith thousands of colors and styles to select from today it can seem like a daunting task to make the right flooring choice. To narrow the field down it is recommended that you select a flooring style that complements your overall interior design style. Building Permits and Inspections Probably the most intimidating part of building your own house is the permit process. Not only do the the requirements vary from township to township, but at times the decisions made seem so subjective that we find ourselves seething in frustration. Small Cabin Plans - Finding a Great Log Cabin Plan Online Small cabin plans - how do you find that special log cabin plan that is just right for you? Before the internet, you would buy some cabin plans books and look through the plans to see if any appealed to you. If you found one, you could order the log cabin plan you wanted by telephone or mail. Bathroom Wall Cabinets - Create Extra Space with a Touch of Style! Is your bathroom looking cluttered? How about fitting new bathroom wall cabinets to store all your toiletries and appliances? These days we all tend to have a myriad of lotions and potions to keep us looking our best, but the result of having so many bottles in our bathrooms is that our bathroom vanity surfaces can become untidy and crowded. Adding more bathroom storage cabinets can give you welcome space to store all your accessories, leaving your surfaces tidy and clutter free!The traditional bathroom medicine cabinet fitted above the sink is no long used just for storing medicines. Top Ten Air Purifier Questions 1. Do I really need an air purifier in my home? It depends on several factors, including your own comfort level and what the indoor air quality is in your home. About Lighting Your Home Lighting is such a critical part of any home improvement project. Whether it's a kitchen remodel or a brand new home, the lighting plan should be well thought out. Remodeling Online Remodeling PlansMaking remodeling plans for a house helps you to ensure that your home meets all your needs. It also adds value to your home in the long term. The Secret to Your Home's Interior Design The secret to your home's interior design is Love.If you love yourself, you create a home for your happiness. Making Space for Sacred Space When you read a great inspirational book, prayer, or article, don't you think to yourself, "What a great idea! I should do more daily rituals, prayer, meditation."? It always seems like a great idea, right? We know that sacred practices and sacred space bring peace, harmony, joy, and ease into our lives. 10 Spring Cleaning Tips For Your Kitchen The words "spring cleaning" can make the neatest person cringe. They mean more work. Corrugated Roofing Materials Used for Roofing Any Structure The roof is a very essential element of the house, building or any structure. They provide the shelter and the protection from nature's elements and factors such as rain, snow, sleet, as well as sunlight. Duct Cleaning - Proper Principals and Practices As a qualified duct cleaning contractor I have discovered that most homeowners feel that they are very uninformed when it come to the principals and practices of proper air duct cleaning hygiene.Let me begin by saying that the EPA as well as the National air duct cleaners association have stated that residential duct cleaning should take no less than between 4 and 8 hours to complete, anything short of that and you are probably not getting a thorough job. Clear Wax Candles vs. Gel Candles In the last five years a new type of clear candle has emerged - freestanding resin-based (aka clear wax) candles. Using a base of mineral oil, the candle uses a patented resin as the stabilizer, creating a candle that outshines both traditional paraffin and gel candles. Microwave Convection Ovens - Double Benefits Microwave convection ovens have both microwave and convection facilities. Microwave ovens cook the food with amazing speed by heating the food only and nothing else. Deck Building Ledger - The Secrets to Successful Deck Construction The Deck Building Ledger holds all the secrets to successful deck construction because it is the essential piece of wood that connects your deck to your home and from which all other measurements are taken.Choose the piece of lumber for your ledger carefully, hold it up and look down the side of the wood to check for irregularities like warping and twisting. Window Shutters On A Budget While there is great value in installing custom-made interior wood window shutters, sometimes they are still too expensive for certain applications. Some alternatives - including poly or vinyl shutters - are less expensive but also much less attractive. Basement Waterproofing Advice Basements need to be waterproofed for many reasons. Cracks in the walls, leaking windows and pipe condensation are probably the most common reasons basements have water build-up problems. Home Sweet Home All of us live in houses but how many of us know how to make it a real 'HOME'.You may have a very small house with a few rooms: not much to boast about? However, if you follow some very simple and practical steps you can make your house (big or small) a real home?and thus, a better place to live in?Read On:1.
|
| home | site map |
| © 2006 |
