If you are considering hardwood floors, you may want to look at a couple of other options. Laminate flooring and engineered wood floors are two good alternatives. Laminate flooring has many advantages. Not only is it easy to install, the maintenance is very easy as well.
There have been many improvements in laminate flooring in recent years. Visually they are much improved, as some even have a texture that mimics the look of real wood quite well. In addition, the "clicking" sound that was characteristic of the early generations of laminate flooring has largely been eliminated. Of course, you do get what you pay for; the pricier laminates are more durable and are visually more pleasing.
Engineered pre-finished flooring is becoming more and more popular. Basically these are constructed with a veneer hardwood over plywood like substrate. The result of this design is that the flooring is more stable than solid hardwood flooring. Depending on the conditions and product designs, some engineered hardwood flooring is approved for installation over concrete, such as a basement environment. The one obvious disadvantage is that the thickness of the top layer of hardwood is limited so the number of times the floor can be refinished is limited.
Almost everyone loves the look of hardwood flooring. But there are downsides. The cost and maintenance can be considerable. And the moisture conditions have to be just right or the entire installation is at risk. Laminate flooring and engineered wood flooring share the same great look of solid hardwood, but are much more versatile in terms of moisture and substrate.
Paul Eden is a mechanical engineer who enjoys home improvement projects. He has also recently written about flat screen wall mounts and LCD TV wall mounts.
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