Engineered Hardwood Floors

Hardwood has always been prized as flooring because of the diversity in selection, natural beauty and durability. But solid hardwood flooring has certain drawbacks, like possibility of buckling and shrinkage that may occur over time. Some types of solid hardwood floors are also expensive both to buy and install, requiring professional installation and several days to prepare the floor for use. Talk to your local flooring professional to see if solid hardwood floors are right for your needs and climate, as engineered hardwood may be the next best thing for your home.

Engineered hardwood flooring is an alternative manufactured product which has the look and feel of solid hardwood floors. It has singular advantages over the genuine product in that it is dimensionally more stable and typically better able to withstand changes in temperature and humidity. Engineered hardwood is available in strips and planks.

Engineered hardwood flooring is made up of a core ranging from five to nine layers of softwood, hardwood or plywood, topped with a solid wood veneer. The layers are laminated together, with adhesive under high heat and hydraulic pressure. They are laid in a cross-ply configuration for dimensional stability which also makes the product better able to resist moisture. The top layer of solid wood veneer comes in different thicknesses that determine the number of times the flooring can be refinished.

Because it is topped with a veneer, engineered hardwood flooring comes in a wide variety of species, colors, and types. An unfinished floor allows the user the flexibility to stain it to the desired color then finish the floor with a polyurethane coating. Prefinished engineered hardwood floors come stained and coated and are ready for immediate use after installation.