Wooden flooring is among the best flooring choices for your house or business. It not only provides character and appeal but also is durable and easy to maintain. Looking to update your flooring and don’t know where to start? At Live Timber Flooring, we have collected the following factors you might need to consider when choosing a wooden floor:
1- Which Flooring Color Best Fits Your House?
One of the advantages of the wooden flooring is that natural look of the boards fits well into any decoration style. No matter you prefer a traditional or contemporary design, you have a wide range of patterns, colors and wood species to choose from. However, you should not solely rely on your decoration scheme for choosing the best color for the flooring. White and pale gray floors are best for low-traffic areas and their light color will make the room look bigger and more modern. The drawback is that they will get dirty fast. So, light color is not the perfect choice for children room or dining room. Dark wooden floors create a more traditional and rustic feel. They can be used in open and large spaces and areas with high foot traffic such as kids or living room. As an advantage, dark-colored floor disguise dirt and are low maintenance. You can make a more contemporary and industrial style look using a dark floor as the background of light-colored furniture. Need a more balanced or relaxed color scheme? Use warm, honey-toned wooden floors. They are ideal for open spaces and create a more comfortable feeling.
2- Which Flooring Boards Width and Length for your house?
The width and length of wooden floorboards contribute to the overall appeal of your flooring. Wide planks are in trends and increasing in popularity. Because wide and longboards make the room feel bigger, they are more suited for small spaces. At the same time, wide planks reduce the number of gaps in the floor making it almost seamless. Narrow-cut timber floors provide a more sleek and sophisticated style. Narrow and long planks look more traditional and are preferred for large or extra-large spaces. Short parquet boards have been always in trends. You can use them to update the visual appearance of any room. You can even mix planks with a different width to get unique flooring. It is not only more attractive and appealing but also cheaper(on average) than installing a floor with uniform planks.
3- What Is the Most Durable Wooden Flooring Option?
When most people think of wooden floors, they think of solid flooring. This type of wooden flooring comes in a range of species such as maple, oak, cedar, and pin. You have also the chance to choose from exotic species like teak, Brazilian cherry, or Australian cypress. Generally, hardwood or solid wood floorings are more durable than softwood species that are commonly used for furniture or decoration. If maintained properly, they can last for decades. Species such as oak, maple, and cherry are among the most durable hardwood floorboards but they are more expensive. If you prefer a more affordable option, you can choose softer woods such as pine. They are less resilient and tend to scratch more quickly. To decide on the durability of a wooden floorboard you should look at the wood’s Janka rating. A higher Janka rating indicated that the wood species is harder and thus, more durable. For example, Janka rating of white oak is higher than red oak. It means that a white oak planks withstand better test of time.
4- How Much You Want to Spend on the Flooring?
As it is said: “You get what you pay for”. If you have a small budget for the flooring, you should think of buying laminate flooring. Engineered flooring is more expensive but more durable. You can also buy reclaimed hardwood flooring at a reasonable cost. If you aimed for the best appearance and quality, you can spend more buy solid timber flooring for your house. It is considered as a good long-term investment that improves the resale value of your house.