Revelion 2010

Unfinished or prefinished hardwood floors?

It is not easy task to  decide what kind of hardwood floors install in your house. There is a lot of different kinds of floors, there are domestic floors like oak, cheery, maple, walnut and exotic such as Brazilian cheery, bamboo, teak and much more. You can see samples of hardwood floors in the showrooms or order one online and compare the look. Make sure you take in consideration the hardness of the wood.
Here is the list, the higher the number the harder the wood:

Ipe / Brazilian Walnut /  Lapacho                        3684
Cumaru / Brazilian Teak                                   3540
Ebony                                                                       3220
2900
Red Mahogany, Turpentine                                   2697
Brazilian Cherry  / Jatoba                                   2350
Santos Mahogany, Bocote, Cabreuva           2200                                                       
Cameron                                                           1940
Rosewood                                                           1780
Kempas                                                           1710
Wenge, Red Pine                                                   1630
Zebrawood                                                            1575
Hard Maple / Sugar Maple                                   1450
Natural Bamboo (represents one species)            1380
White Oak                                                           1360
Ash (White)                                                           1320
American Beech                                               1300
Red Oak (Northern)                                              1290
Carbonized Bamboo  (represents one species)      1180
Cocobolo                                                           1136
Teak                                                                       1000
Douglas Fir                                                           660
Larch                                                                       590
Chestnut                                                           540
Eastern White Pine                                               380

After you have chosen which species you like you have to decide from unfinished or prefinished hardwood floors.

Have you ever wondered how to install hardwood floor panels to make your home beautiful inside? There are many methods of installing hardwood flooring currently in use. One of the best do it yourself hardwood floors is the floating hardwood floor. The term floating doesn’t refer to a floor that is sitting in liquid. Floating means that, while the floor is fastened to itself, it is not fastened down to the subsurface.

A floating hardwood floor has some disadvantages you should be aware of before proceeding with your installation. These floors will sometimes feel like you’re walking on a bubble. And, each bubble you step on will have a creaky sound.

On the other hand, those bubbles give the floor a much softer feel than a well-fastened hardwood floor. And, the floating floor is much easier to maintain. Best of all, it is one of the cheapest types of hardwood floors to install.

Before continuing with the installation of a floating hardwood floor, we highly recommend that you consider using oak as your hardwood floor material. Oak looks beautiful and provides lasting durability.

-Tools Needed to Install a Floating Hardwood Floor

Broom and Dust Pan – It is important to keep everything clean as you go. It is particularly important to keep the saw dust out from under and between your panels where it can really throw things off kilter. If it gets in there, there is no way to get it out without the very difficult process of hardware floor disassembly.

There are different ways of keeping your hardwood floors on its tiptop shape. Maintaining the original condition of your floor can prevent you from experiencing future problems.

Having hardwood floors has always been nice. It makes us feel closer to the nature. It makes our house look more elegant and rich. And more importantly, it gives our house a homey feel. Most people think that having this kind of floor is hard to maintain. Fortunately, it’s untrue! Simple maintenance is required.

The condition and lifespan of your floor depends on how you take care of it. Few things must be taken into considerations in taking care of your hardwood floors. Different wood finish requires different kind of care. However, there are also some general ways of taking care of your hardwood floors:

* Keep your hardwood floor dry. Never let spills or any kind of fluid sit on your hardwood floor. This can cause warping on your floor. When spills occur, make sure to wipe it off right away with soft cloth. Never use dripping rugs or even damp rugs on your floor. Wet rugs can cause dullness and discoloration on your hardwood floors.

* Keep your hardwood floors away from too much sun exposure. Too much exposure to sunlight can cause damage to any organic material. This can make the color of your floor lose its original color. It is best to use curtains or blinds to keep sunlight from getting through your house.

* You should place fabric or any felt materials under the leg of your furniture to avoid scratching your hardwood floor. Lifting furniture when moving them can also avoid scratches on floor surfaces.