HOW TO CHOOSE A WOODEN FLOOR – So you fancy new flooring in your house but how do you go about choosing the right one? There are so many different types of flooring, hardwood, laminate, colours, shades and so on. This guide gives practical advice that will help you in picking a new wooden floor for your home.
Step 1
Wooden floors can be expensive so you need to be realistic regarding your budget. The cost, per square meter will generally depend on the species of wood you want and the quality. Wood is not just wood, there are different ways in which to treat wood, such a pressure treating and each method has costs attached that has to be passed onto the customer.
Step 2
Think about the room you want to install your flooring, for instance the kitchen is a warmer room than most and a bathroom is high in humidity. Each room will require a wood that is treated in a different way, such as pressured treated or kiln dried, as explained in Step 1 and again the cost will invariably rise and fall with the specific type and room requirements.
Step 3
If you want to fit wood flooring in the kitchen and living room, you should be aware that these are rooms that generally have the most foot traffic. You need to consider how hard wearing the wood needs to be in each room that you choose.
Step 4
Consider the coloration and size of a room. Choosing a dark wood floor may not work well if you have a particularly small room. Dark colours tend to make a room look small and oppressive, so you need to carefully consider the size of the room when picking wood colours.
Step 5
Wood floors do need a fair amount of looking after fitting, if they are going to retain their good looks, so you need to be prepared to put in effort in maintaining your wood floors. Most people are not fully aware of just how much work a real wood floor takes, in terms of maintenance and the level of maintenance will depend on a number of factors, including if you have children and pets.
Children love to play and in their activities they can scratch or stain a wood floor. Pets also cause problems because their nails can scratch the surface if they are not clipped on a regular basis. Also think about what you will do if you buy, for instance a new puppy. Puppies need house training but accidents are going to happen and these accidents can stain wood floors.
Before you do decide to fit a wood floor take a look at the guide below, it provides full details on preparing, sanding, cleaning, staining and varnishing a wood floor, it will give you an excellent idea as to what’s involved in the maintenance and care you’ll need to give your wood floor.
Step 6
Real wood floors, in the right setting, will look stunningly beautiful, but as you can see, from the steps above, there is a lot to consider before buying and laying a wood floor. Think carefully about your home, the size, the family members, the pets and whether you have the time to really look after a real wood floor. One of the principle reasons people lay laminate flooring is that these are generally more suitable for most households and life styles, regarding wear and tear and overall maintenance.
