Sunday, April 27, 2008

Installing Hardwood Floors



Hardwood floors can be secured using various installation methods such as floating, glue-down, nail-down, and staple-down. The ¾ inch solid floors can be nailed down. Adapters are used for thin flooring. The hardwood flooring can be stapled down over wood subfloor. The staple-down method is simpler than nail-down.

Before securing hardwood floors, read the installation instructions provided by manufacturer for the right tools and methods. In glue down installation, the hardwood floor is glued onto the subfloor or cured and dry concrete slabs. Staple-down and nail-down methods are best for solid wood plank floors and solid wood strip floors. Parquet and engineered wood floors can be secured with glue.

Floating is a quick and easy method of floor installation, in which hardwood floors float over different sub floors. The floor is not tied to the subfloor. A slim pad is inserted between subfloor and wood floor. The pad cuts noise level, and protects from moisture. Only groove and tongue of planks are glued together. Floating is used to install longstrip floors.

The flooring should be acclimated in the room where it will be installed. If you are installing during the damp season, keep the wood indoors for minimum of three days. In summers, flooring can be stored in a garage.

Hardwood floors can be installed using four different methods, such as glue-down, nail-down, staple-down and floating. You are advised to read installation instruction carefully.

Exotic Hardwood Floors


Beautiful floors can often make the difference between a nice home and a breathtaking one. Nothing can add to the aesthetics of your home like the natural beauty of exotic hardwood floors. Installing exotic hardwood floors to your home is also an excellent way to increase the value of your home. Installing hardwood flooring in your home provides a solid return on investment (ROI) of about 70-80 percent on average.


Exotic hardwood floors are made from hardwood species that are not found in the United States. They most commonly come from Australia, Africa, Brazil and Asia. Types of exotic hardwood floors include bamboo, eucalyptus, cork, Bolivian mahogany, Bolivian teak, Bolivian rosewood, Brazilian cherry, Brazilian walnut, Brazilian maple, and Brazilian koa.
Installing exotic hardwood floors is a project of low to moderate difficulty that many homeowner will be able to do themselves.


Exotic Hardwood Floors
First, you’ll want to decide where you want to install the exotic hardwood floors. Do you want to install them in the entire home or just in select rooms? Then measure the square footage you will need.


Once you know the square footage you will need, do some research online and in local home improvement stores to find the type of exotic hardwood you want and the best prices. When you find the type you want and a good price, buy however much you need. You’ll want to find out from the merchant what methods of installation are feasible with the particular type you buy.
After obtaining the hardwood, you are ready to begin installing it. There are 5 main installation methods. They are nail down, staple down, glue down, glue less, and floating.


Depending on the subflooring you have, concrete slab, wood, etc., some options may not be feasible. The quickest, easiest, and cleanest method is floating, but not all types of exotic hardwood floors can be installed in this method.


Installing exotic hardwood floors is a great way to dramatically increase the aesthetics and value of your home. The project is relatively simple and can be accomplished by most homeowners. There are virtually limitless combinations of installation methods and exotic hardwood species. With so many combinations, you’ll be able to find the right one to match your style.

Hardwood Flooring Choices


If you are a home owner considering redesigning your home or you just bought a house that needs new floors, then hardwood flooring is definitely a good choice. There are some hardwood basics you need to know about. The best case for installing hardwood flooring can be classified in three ways: profound sheer beauty, excellent strength and pure durability.


You can be sure that genuine hardwood flooring will add significant beauty and quality to the value of your home. A hardwood floored house possesses the rich look and smooth feel that can never be possible with any other flooring material. Unlike the other flooring materials, the value of your Hardwood floor if maintained properly increases with time. And it will be amazing to see your house value increase tremendously just because you installed wood floors.


In hardwood flooring there are two types, the solid hardwood and engineered hardwood. Solid hardwood flooring is a single piece of a 100 percent solid wood that is easily sanded and refinished. It is a 100 percent Wood product. On the other hand engineered hardwood flooring is a higher-performance product made by bonding several wood layers with the featured species showing distinct designs. Numerous, but not all engineered wood floors can be refinished.


To begin with you must think like a designer as you have options to choose the colors and textures of the hardwood. Hardwood colors range from cooling yellows, to warm reds, to neutral umbers or naturals. Most hardwood floors will change color overtime, so you can select your own color according to your taste and match it with your home. The show off of your floor will depend on the lighting system in your home. You can choose low gloss, satin gloss or high gloss as finishing touches.


Some hardwood floors come in rustic, hand- scraped or smooth tailored contemporary styles. You can use hardwood flooring styles throughout your house to get that special magnificent style. The surface texture and the natural designs on the hardwood will definitely add to the decor of your House. It is desirable to use solid wood at or above ground level so that you can avoid damages occurring due to moisture. Engineered wood can be utilized virtually anywhere, even over concrete.


So now you have the facts, selecting hardwood as your flooring will add magnificent beauty to your house while providing a true sense of increased value to all that visit your welcoming home

Hardwood Flooring Basics

If you are a Home Owner on redesigning your home, or a person who is about to decide about the flooring for your new Home, then Hardwood Flooring is worth considering. There is some Hardwood Flooring basics which we need to know. The Hardwood as a Flooring material is the best choice due to its sheer beauty, super strength and long life than any other flooring material available on Market today.

You can be confident that genuine Hardwood Flooring will add significant beauty, quality and value of your home. A Hardwood floored house has the rich look and smooth feel that can never be possible with any other flooring material. Unlike the other flooring materials, the value of your Hardwood flooring increases with time, and you will see that your house gets valued many times over what you have invested now for installing the Hardwood flooring.


In the Hardwood Flooring there are two types namely Solid Hardwood Flooring and Engineered Hardwood Flooring. Solid Hardwood flooring is a single piece of a 100 percent solid wood species easily sanded and refinished. It is a 100 percent Wood product. An Engineered Hardwood Flooring is a higher-performance product made by bonding several wood layers with the feature species showing distinct designs. Many, but not all, engineered wood floors can be refinished.


To start with you must think like a designer as you have options to choose the Colors and textures with the Hardwood. Hardwood has color, ranging from cooling yellows to , warm reds to and neutral umbers or naturals. Some wood change its color overtime, so you can select your own color according to your taste and match it with your home. The show off of your floor depends on the lighting. You can choose low gloss, satin gloss or high gloss.


It is part of the look, as are the rustic, hand-scraped or smooth, tailored contemporary styles. You can use Hardwood floor throughout the house to get magnificent looks. The texture and the natural designs on the Hardwood will definitely add to the décor of your House. It is advisable to use solid wood at or above ground level so that you can avoid damages occurring due to moisture. Engineered wood can be used virtually anywhere, even over concrete.


So, select the Hardwood as your flooring and live a life of peace and happiness of having selected the best the nature has to offer.