Hardwood flooring selection guide: What you should know

No one can dispute the appeal of wood flooring. These floors add warmth, charm, elegance, and glamour to any room and come with countless benefits, but selecting suitable floors takes more than choosing the color. You should consider the following things, and feel free to visit our hardwood flooring store if you have further questions.

Decide which version you want

Solid or engineered? Engineered wood floors appeal to those who want both beauty and practicality because they're stable and better able to handle moisture, with a little more versatility in that they can be installed in some higher-than-normal moisture areas. Yes, these floors are genuine wood, can be refinished, and add value to a property.

Domestic or exotic wood species?

There are hundreds of wood species from which to choose, broken into two categories. Like hickory, maple, or oak, Domestics are harvested within North America and tend to be warmer and more traditional. Exotic species, like Brazilian cherry, are gathered in locales like South America, Indonesia, Africa, and Southeast Asia and are darker, dramatic, and, some say, more contemporary.

Also, consider:

1. Grain pattern. Logs are cut three ways, each with a distinctive pattern, including Plain-sawn, the most traditional with fluctuating grains and creating cathedrals. Rift-sawn planks have long, linear grains, while quarter-sawn boards are somewhat of a mix between the two, being linear but with some irregular figuring.

2. Pre-finished or on-site? When it's pre-finished, you'll know what you're getting right away, and there's no mess or odor. On-site finishing offers a greater variety of sheens and shades.

3. Thickness: This determines the number of times solid or engineered hardwood can be refinished. For solid hardwood, the best is ?-inch thick, which allows for refinishing five times. Engineered ranges from ?-inch to ?-inch, and thicker is better. Depending on that number, it can be refinished up to four times.

Tile Liquidator showrooms have it all, with great hardwood brands from well-known and trusted companies like Mohawk and DuChateau. Come into our showrooms in any of the following locations: Sacramento, Folsom, Fresno CA; Orem, UT, and Phoenix, AZ, with more coming soon in San Jose and Roseville, CA, and North Houston, TX. In addition, we're convenient to Sacramento, Folsom, Eldorado Hills, Roseville, Granite Bay, CA; Orem, American Fork, Lehi, and Salt Lake City, UT.