Following are brief descriptions of the materials, construction, grading and installation methods for the different types of wood flooring.
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Solid Wood Flooring
As the description indicates, this type of floor is milled from "solid" pieces of wood.
The most common thickness is 3/4", although it is possible to obtain solid flooring in thicknesses as small as 5/16".
The "tongue and groove" mating system is milled into the edges of each board.
A wide variety of widths is available and the individual boards are generally of random lengths, usually ranging from 8" to approx. 96".
In the past, this type of flooring was can either be nailed or glued to the sub-floor substrate.
However, Ogle's Hardwood Flooring has extensive experience in the use of an extremely durable and long lasting, foam backed adhesive material (Elastilon) that can be used instead of glue over concrete subfloors. With elastilon, the wood floor is basically installed as a "floating" floor, and it can be installed either above or below grade. Please see the "Installation" tab for more details on this product / process.
Solid wood flooring is available as either "unfinished" or "pre-finished".
See below for further explanations of "unfinished" and "pre-finished".
A major benefit to solid flooring is that it can be sanded / re-sanded and finished many times.
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Engineered Wood Flooring
Engineered flooring is constructed of multiple, thin ply layers of wood that are glued together.
As with solid wood flooring, thicknesses can vary, although Engineered flooring is generally available in thicknesses ranging from 5/16" through 5/8".
The inner layers, or plywood layers of Engineered flooring may be a combination of both hardwoods and/or softwoods.
The tongue and groove mating method is incorporated into the construction of these inner layers.
The top layer (or wear layer) is a hardwood veneere and is available in almost any type of wood.
Installation methods for Engineered wood flooring include; nailing, gluing and in some instances, floating.
(See installation method definitions below.)
While Engineered wood flooring is slightly more dimensionally stable than solid wood flooring, one of the disadvantages of Engineered flooring is that it cannot be sanded and refinished as many times as solid hardwood flooring.
The amount of sanding / refinishing is dependant on the thickness of the top or wear layer.
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Laminate Flooring
Laminate flooring may be constructed in the same manner as engineered flooring, multiple thin layers, or the center core may be composed entirely of particleboard.
It should be noted that Laminate flooring does not contain any actual wood.
The top or wear layer of Laminate flooring is usually paper that has been saturated with resins and the design layer (immediately below the wear layer) is normally a reproduction of a photographed or patterned design.
An underlayment is attached to the bottom of some brands of Laminate flooring. This underlayment may be made of felt, foam or some other material.
The most widely used method of installation of Laminate flooring is floating.
Laminate flooring uses a variety of mating / locking methods. There methods are not usually consistent across brands.
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Unfinished Wood Flooring
Unfinished wood flooring refers to flooring that requires "on-site" sanding and finishing after it has been installed.
This flooring is generally "solid wood flooring" (although it is sometimes available as engineered flooring) and is usually 3/4" thick and employs the tongue and groove mating system.
It is available in a very wide range of wood types.
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Pre-finished Wood Flooring
Pre-finished wood flooring may include either solid or engineered flooring, and refers to flooring to which finish coats (stains, finishes, etc.) have been applied at a factory.
Neither sanding nor finishing of this type of flooring is required during installation.
Pre-finished flooring is micro-beveled on the upper edges. The amount of bevel will vary according to manufacturer.
Pre-finished flooring is available is a wide variety of wood types, stains and finishes.
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