A wood floor can be a beautiful addition to your house. If you have decided that you want to have wood flooring in your home, there are a lot of choices open to you. Which one you take depends on things like cost, traffic, ease of cleaning, and what your family's style is.
Hardwood Floors
While most people consider all wood floors hardwood floors, they aren't. There are different classifications of wood, hard and soft. The difference between the two is how tight the grain of the wood is. Hardwood trees are deciduous trees, which means they lose their leaves every year, that would be trees like maples, oaks, and cherry. The trees grow slower, which means that the rings and the grain are more tightly packed together. Hardwoods make good floors because they are more durable. They can stand up to a lot of use. You still have to take care of them because they can still be damaged if you aren't careful, but they are very durable.
Softwood Floors
Softwood floors are made out of trees like pine or other fir trees. Evergreen trees grow quickly, which means that their rings and their grain are more spread out. Being a softwood tree doesn't mean that the wood itself is actually soft, because balsa, which is a very soft wood, is actually a hardwood. It's about the way that the tree grows and what the grain of the wood looks like. A softwood floor can look great, but you might not want to use them in a high-traffic area because it can get scratched and dinged easily.
Laminate Flooring
Laminate flooring is still a wood flooring. The flooring material is generally not the best wood, but on top of the flooring is either a thin layer of a different material or something similar. That helps the floor look like it's made out of a different kind of wood. Laminate flooring tends to be very durable, so you can use it in heavily-trafficked areas. They can also be easier to maintain, especially when it comes to cleaning it.
If you are going to get wood floors for your house, there are a lot of choices you should think about trying. Take a look at all your choices to see which one works best for you and which one will give you the look that you want to have for your house.
For more information about installing wood flooring in your home, check out a local business, such as New York Hardwood Floors.
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