From cork to mahogany, you have lots of options
Solid hardwood floors work well in high-traffic areas of your home, while softer types like cork and pine suit low-traffic spaces like bedrooms.
Engineered wood and bamboo flooring resist moisture better than solid hardwood, making them smart choices for kitchens, bathrooms, and basements where humidity fluctuates.
Different hardwood flooring types offer unique benefits: reclaimed wood adds rustic character, parquet creates elegant patterns, and tropical woods bring rich, luxurious colors to your space.
Hiring a local wood floor installing professional keeps your installation smooth and ensures proper material selection, custom finishing, and flawless fit throughout your home.
Hardwood floors are timeless, adding warmth, elegance, and value to any home. When it comes to choosing the right type of hardwood flooring, the options can seem overwhelming. From solid hardwood to cork and reclaimed wood, each material offers unique characteristics to suit different preferences and needs. Let’s explore the various types of hardwood floors, their benefits and drawbacks, and the best possible choice for your flooring project.
Hardwoods are a category of wood derived from deciduous trees. Characterized by their dense and durable nature, they’re ideal for applications like flooring where they’ll likely take a daily beating. Woods like oak, maple, walnut, and hickory are popular hardwood choices due to their natural beauty and strength. They’re a good choice for high-traffic areas like kitchens, hallways, and entryways, as well as households with pets that scratch against the flooring when they walk.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Long-lasting | Prone to scratches |
| Increases home value | Moisture-sensitive |
| Natural beauty | High upfront cost |
Best for: High traffic areas like kitchens, hallways, and entryways, as well as households with pets.
Hardwood or other solid wood floors are not good candidates for wet areas of a home. Liquids can soak into natural wood floors and cause finishes to discolor or fail, particularly at the joints between the boards or near the ends of the boards next to the baseboards.
A type of wood primarily sourced from coniferous trees, softwoods are known for their relatively lighter weight and lower density compared to hardwoods. Softwood floors, made from trees like pine, cedar, and fir, offer a rustic aesthetic and, when it comes to wood floor grading, they tend to show their character marks beautifully.
Softwood floors are also affordable, and these woods grow faster, making them more renewable and eco-friendly than hardwoods. However, they shouldn’t be used in rooms that get a lot of traffic since they are less durable than hardwood floors. They are ideal for quieter areas like bedrooms and home offices.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| More affordable | Less durable |
| Easier installation | Prone to scratches |
| More eco-friendly |
Best for: Low traffic areas like bedrooms and home offices.
Engineered wood floors consist of layers of wood veneer bonded together, providing stability and resistance to moisture. They are favored for their easy installation and affordability, making them suitable for high-traffic areas around your home. They can even be installed over concrete basement floors since they withstand moisture and humidity changes better than other types of hardwood floors. However, engineered wood has a shorter lifespan than solid hardwood floors.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Resists moisture | Limited refinishes |
| More affordable | Quality varies |
| Easy installation | Shorter lifespan |
Best for: Spaces with high moisture and humidity fluctuations, like entryways, basements, sunrooms, and kitchens
Known for its sustainability, comfort, and insulation properties, cork flooring is made from the bark of cork oak trees and is a sustainable flooring option. It’s much softer underfoot than most other flooring options and, since it has natural insulation, it remains a comfortable temperature as well. With cork’s soft construction, it absorbs sound for quieter use, but it also scratches easily. Cork’s benefits make it an excellent choice for hallways, bedrooms, and children's rooms.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Eco-friendly | Scratches easily |
| Soft underfoot | Fades in sunlight |
| Thermal insulation |
Best for: Hallways, bedrooms and children's rooms.
Derived from the fast-growing plant, bamboo flooring offers a contemporary look coupled with eco-friendly peace of mind. Along with its impressive sustainability, it's also easy to install, easy to maintain, and even resists pests. High-quality bamboo is incredibly durable and moisture-resistant, so it’s ideal in high-traffic rooms like the kitchen and bathrooms. However, if you use inexpensive bamboo for your floors, you’ll find that it’s prone to dings and scratches and it doesn’t do well in moisture-rich environments.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Sustainable | Prone to scratches |
| Easy installation | Limited styles |
| Pest-resistant | Quality varies |
Best for: Bathrooms, kitchens, utility rooms, sunrooms, and other moisture-prone spaces if high-quality material is used.
Featuring intricate patterns created from small wood pieces, parquet flooring offers a unique and elegant aesthetic. It's also exceptionally durable and adds value to your property, making it ideal for highly visible and high-traffic entertaining spaces like foyers, living rooms, and dining rooms. However, parquet flooring is prone to scratches, and once it’s damaged, it’s difficult to repair.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Stylish appearance | Higher upfront cost |
| Customizable design | Prone to scratches |
| Durable | Difficult to repair |
Best for: Foyers, living rooms, and dining rooms.
Sourced from old barns and other structures, eco-friendly reclaimed wood flooring adds character and charm to a space and is ideal for homes with a rustic or farmhouse style. However, the appearance of reclaimed wood floors may not suit every style of home, and they may require extra preparation before being installed. The material itself as well as installation with a local wood floor installer may be a bit on the higher side.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Eco-friendly | Doesn’t suit all decor styles |
| Unique | Complex installation |
| Adds character | Higher cost |
Best for: Living rooms, dens, and farmhouse kitchens.
Tropical wood encompasses rare and unique species sourced from various regions around the world, such as Brazilian cherry, teak, mahogany, and tigerwood. These woods are highly prized in flooring due to their exceptional durability, rich colors, and striking grain patterns, adding a touch of luxury and sophistication to any space. However, tropical wood floors can be more challenging to maintain, and the cost of hardwood flooring made with tropical wood is often higher.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Highly durable | High-maintenance |
| Rich, unique colors | High cost |
| Luxurious appearance | Limited availability |
Best for: Low traffic areas like bedrooms, dens, and home offices, where the beauty of the wood can be appreciated without excessive wear and tear.
Another factor to consider when you’re considering buying hardwood floors is whether to purchase pre-finished or unfinished wood flooring. The choice between these two options depends on your personal preference and your project’s requirements.
Unfinished wood allows for custom staining and finishing to match existing flooring, trim, and decor. However, pre-finished flooring offers faster installation and eliminates the need for on-site finishing, reducing fumes and mess in your home.
This company does it right. Firstly, I want to say that Landan was a joy to work with. He was so kind, transparent, and had everything under control. His entire team showed up ready to work and they were all very respectful of the fact that we were in an office space. A little backstory – we...
Krumlauf FloorsTerrible experience. Walls/trim/floors/cabinets/doors all have drip marks, overspray, etc. Tiling at the fireplace had to be redone by another vendor due to incorrect and shoddy install by Profect. Contractor had his children in our house while he was on site without prior authorization or...
Profect painting & exteriors**Would rate a 0 if i could** NEVER USE THIS COMPANY!!!!! They shattered my tv console and dresser, lost a mirror, and never finished the move. The broken furniture cost me over $600 to replace. They left me with 6+ hours of personal labor moving my 1BR apartment, when I was quoted a FULL...
All My Sons Moving & StorageFinished Basements Plus was wonderful from beginning to end! First, they came out quickly for an estimate. I had 4 estimates and theirs was by far the best. (2 of the estimates were more than $20K higher than for the exact same work). Beyond their fair pricing, the work was excellent. They...
Finished Basements Plus Inc.AFS was excellent from start to finish. Jess, the sales associate, was fantastic...very knowledgeable and very professional. The installation crew was excellent. I couldn't be more pleased with the process. Best of all, my new floor looks fantastic!
America's Floor SourceIt was wonderful working with Yordy and his team. They were very professional and are experts in what they do. They have completed the work on time, with better quality and with in fairly reasonable price. We just started with backsplash work , but liking his work, we went on to provide...
Flooring SolutionsWe were having 2”x 2” tile installed . There was a small installation error and the new additional replacement tile was from a different lot and the colors didn’t match. Joe assured us that he would rectify everything , which he did without hesitation. We decided to go with the 18” x 36” tile...
CarifaTileWe hired Jim to replace our hardwood floors with new hardwood. He and his helper Jerry did a fantastic job. Their work ethic is impeccable!! We would highly recommend McColl Floors!
Description says they handle window repair including rotten hardwood - they called me back right away but didnâ t leave a voicemail. I followed up 3 days later and they said they donâ t do that kind of work.
Window-GurusChaz, the owner, was very responsive and he communicated with us throughout the entire process. The overall cost was in the middle compared to the three estimates we received. The installation crew was very professional. Chaz was considerate enough to send a crew back to our home to repair...
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