topic Re: Engineered or solid wood flooring? Urgent advice needed. in Home

Engineered or solid wood flooring? Urgent advice needed.

AngibethSanchez — Wed, 12 Jul 2017 10:52:39 GMT

Fellow forum users,

I have an upcoming renovation project at home. Me and my sister in-law decided it'd be a good idea to surprise my recently deployed husband with something new around the house when he comes back. He has 3 months left on his mission and most of the details are clear in my mind - new pieces of furniture, wallpapers, paint in the hallways, etc. The one thing I still can't decide on is what type of flooring should I go for ? We've had a laminate until now but I think it'll be better to get an engineered wood floor, or a solid wood one.

I'd love to receive some tips and help as soon as possible, as there isn't much time left.

Angibeth

Re: Engineered or solid wood flooring? Urgent advice needed.

Trudey — Wed, 12 Jul 2017 11:21:58 GMT

I have solid white oak flooring. My home is 12 years old and my floors still look great...even with a Pug in the house. I would always choose solid wood. If I had to do it again, I would get pre-finished instead of the kind that I have that had to be finished after installed.

Re: Engineered or solid wood flooring? Urgent advice needed.

KentuckyWoman — Wed, 12 Jul 2017 12:48:31 GMT

Go with pre-stained hardwood floors. You can't go wrong and you will never regret it. We have solid hardwood throughout. When I remodeled the kitchen a couple of years ago, we had to use the engineered hardwood because the hardwood was too thick. Engineered is okay but there is no comparison to my beautiful solid oak floors.

Re: Engineered or solid wood flooring? Urgent advice needed.

evelyner — Wed, 12 Jul 2017 13:38:16 GMT

We have brand new engineered wood. What you have to be careful is the thickness so that you know in the far future they can be redone.

Re: Engineered or solid wood flooring? Urgent advice needed.

Beauty Maven — Wed, 12 Jul 2017 14:10:16 GMT

There's nothing like the feel of real hardwood floors. I have laminate floors in my condo and when I visit my friend -- who has real hardwood -- I can't believe the difference! The hardwood feels much more solid, and it's not as slippery as the laminate. I would choose real wood. Good luck!

Re: Engineered or solid wood flooring? Urgent advice needed.

Dusty1 — Wed, 12 Jul 2017 14:18:35 GMT

I overheard a discussion about this the other day. One couple has hardwood floors, but said it was too "hard". Laminate is too slippery. Engineered hardwood it was decided, was easier to take care of & had a bit of "cushion" to it.

I don't have either, so I didn't vote.

Re: Engineered or solid wood flooring? Urgent advice needed.

birkin baby — Wed, 12 Jul 2017 14:44:19 GMT

My floors are hardwood...over 100 years old. They are still awesome. My friend has engineered wood floors two years old. They feel so odd to me...kinda spongy or something softish that my feet do not enjoy.

Re: Engineered or solid wood flooring? Urgent advice needed.

Katcat1 — Wed, 12 Jul 2017 14:52:17 GMT

@AngibethSanchez, Whatever you do here is a tip: do not put wood floors in a kitchen and do not put wood floors at the entry door. Water seeps in both cases and can warp the wood. I bought a townhouse with wood floors in the kitchen because the floors where already in. Yes, it looks nice but like I said water or liquid ends up on the floor and there is trouble. Even if the wood has a seal liquids still get in. Good luck with your project. What a nice welcome home.

Re: Engineered or solid wood flooring? Urgent advice needed.

Krimpette — Wed, 12 Jul 2017 15:33:32 GMT

I've had pre-finished hardwood in my townhouse for several years now. All through my downstairs, including the kitchen. I've never had problem with water issues at all in my kitchen. And only slightly on a single board in my foyer. I had my upstairs hall and master bedroom done a couple of years after the downstairs. All my hardwood looks as good today as it did when it was installed (except for the single foyer board). In fact, a neighbor commented yesterday that my floors look like new. I've never regretted the decision for pre-finished hardwood.

Re: Engineered or solid wood flooring? Urgent advice needed.had

Fressa — Wed, 12 Jul 2017 15:52:51 GMT

I've had all three types of wood in my home in various rooms. They all work well in different rooms. There are so many types and qualities of the three. My opinion and budget is to get the best quality for my budget. I only want to do a floor once--

Solid wood is great if your kitchen in on the larger size. I had it in a small kitchen and it was hard to maintain.

Laminte is great if it is a good quality. It's an easy installation and there are so many choices for the floor. It holds up in the kitchen. I use my Hann steam mop on mine.

Engineered wood is very nice. I think it's a good solution if you really want solid wood but easier clean up.

My picks would be : Engineered wood (the look of wood but the ease of Laminte)

Laminate (more budget friendly)

Solid wood ( will last a very long time)

i don't think you can go wrong with any of your choices. Stick to your budget...Installation is a day with everythng but the solid wood. That might take a bit longer.

Good Luck!

Re: Engineered or solid wood flooring? Urgent advice needed.had

Sooner — Wed, 12 Jul 2017 16:33:14 GMT

We had engineered hardwood maple floors in our kitchen for 20 years, and no problem BUT we bought the expensive one with a thicker top layer of wood.

We live in an area where ALL houses are built on concrete slabs. Basements are NOT a good thing where we live. Every flooring expert and builder I have talked with says engineered is the way to go on a slab floor. The cross stacking of the layers below the wood helps a lot in keeping it from buckling. BUT go with a GOOD product that is able to be sanded and refinished at least 3 times.

Million dollar homes and all new construction uses this around here.

If you want a wood floor, you need to make some small effort to take care of it. If you want to drop stuff on it, wear heels all overit (high heels), and not wipe up larger spills, wood isn't for you.

To me, it has never been a bother, but to some it might. Just consider how you will use it. An ice chip melting won't hurt it, a big spill left for house or a water pipe break will. BUt that will hurt tile too, so just consider what your tolerence is. A pipe break and you'll have to take up any floor.

We LOVE wood!

Re: Engineered or solid wood flooring? Urgent advice needed.

Lilysmom — Wed, 12 Jul 2017 18:18:53 GMT

I agree with @KentuckyWoman. Prefinished hardwood all the way except if you have concrete underneath. If you do have concrete, you must choose engineered hardwood, not solid wood. Engineered hardwood has a limited life unlike real wood. You can only refinish it a certain number of times. I also agree that you should buy the best you can afford if it is engineered as opposed to real wood.

Laminate comes in different grades of thickness. Go for the thickest you can afford. Also, there is an insulation called 'quiet walk' you can use for cushioning beneath laminate that makes it quieter to walk on.

if you go for a good quality laminate floor, you can pay almost as much as you would for real hardwood.

When we build our retirement home, we used prefinished hardwood everywhere except kitchen, laundry, bathroom, entry and hallway. We have a large dog. We used tile there, hardwood in bedrooms, LR, dining room.

since engineered hardwood has limited life refinished, we used a high grade laminate in our walkout basement.

HTH. LM

Re: Engineered or solid wood flooring? Urgent advice needed.

Big Sister — Wed, 12 Jul 2017 23:45:14 GMT

I would have the hardwood floors in my home. You will never regret spending a bit more money for the hardwood, but you will probably regret not spending more if you put in a laminate.

Re: Engineered or solid wood flooring? Urgent advice needed.

itiswhatitis — Thu, 13 Jul 2017 04:23:55 GMT

@Katcat1 wrote:
@AngibethSanchez, Whatever you do here is a tip: do not put wood floors in a kitchen and do not put wood floors at the entry door. Water seeps in both cases and can warp the wood. I bought a townhouse with wood floors in the kitchen because the floors where already in. Yes, it looks nice but like I said water or liquid ends up on the floor and there is trouble. Even if the wood has a seal liquids still get in. Good luck with your project. What a nice welcome home.

I have hardwood floors in every room (except bathroom). That means I have solid hardwood in my kitchen. Beautiful. Actually one of the better places to install 3/4 inch solid hardwood. No bathroom, but kitchen YES.

Re: Engineered or solid wood flooring? Urgent advice needed.

AngibethSanchez — Thu, 13 Jul 2017 10:37:23 GMT

Thanks for the lovely comments and advices.

Your opinions seem to be in line with what my sister in-law is telling me to get. She and her wife recently bought a new hardwood flooring for their house in the UK ( it was one of the products of that weird sounding brand https://www.flooringsuppliescentre.co.uk/browse/real_wood_flooring/1/solid_wood_flooring-junckers/index.html ). They are happy with it so far, but I was looking for opinions from people who've had that type of floors for longer. And you guys delivered!

Thanks so much, I hope my husband will be as happy as I will be when he first sets foot in our renovated home.

Much love,
A

Re: Engineered or solid wood flooring? Urgent advice needed.had

haddon9 — Thu, 13 Jul 2017 11:01:15 GMT

@Sooner wrote:
We had engineered hardwood maple floors in our kitchen for 20 years, and no problem BUT we bought the expensive one with a thicker top layer of wood.

We live in an area where ALL houses are built on concrete slabs. Basements are NOT a good thing where we live. Every flooring expert and builder I have talked with says engineered is the way to go on a slab floor. The cross stacking of the layers below the wood helps a lot in keeping it from buckling. BUT go with a GOOD product that is able to be sanded and refinished at least 3 times.

Million dollar homes and all new construction uses this around here.

If you want a wood floor, you need to make some small effort to take care of it. If you want to drop stuff on it, wear heels all overit (high heels), and not wipe up larger spills, wood isn't for you.

To me, it has never been a bother, but to some it might. Just consider how you will use it. An ice chip melting won't hurt it, a big spill left for house or a water pipe break will. BUt that will hurt tile too, so just consider what your tolerence is. A pipe break and you'll have to take up any floor.

We LOVE wood!

We just did our family room, foyer, living & dining rooms. My husband told me we had to get engineered wood because our family room is on a slab. Since I wanted it all of the flooring (the kitchen has tile) to match so we got the same floor throughout.

It's only been a year but I'm very happy with how the wood floor looks. If you plan on placing flooring on a concrete slab, you'll need to go with the engineered.

Re: Engineered or solid wood flooring? Urgent advice needed.

Lipstickdiva — Thu, 13 Jul 2017 19:14:44 GMT

There are different grades of whatever you choose from solid wood to laminate to engineered wood.

We bought engineered wood for our kitchen which will also go into our living room and entryway. We have several friends and relatives who have engineered wood and because they bought top of the line, you can't tell the difference.

Even laminates can be really nice as long as you buy a good laminate.

Re: Engineered or solid wood flooring? Urgent advice needed.

IHeartFashion — Fri, 14 Jul 2017 02:26:11 GMT

I had no idea they could be prestained. I feel like everything was harder for us because installed things and had to stain it after. I wish I knew this was an option!