How To Choose Hardwood Flooring To Suit Your Style

Choosing the right hardwood flooring for your home may seem like an endless debate. Picking the right color, width, and grain can be time-consuming and a little frustrating. All you want is to pick the right floor for your home, why does it have to be so complicated? Here are a few tips to help pick the right style wood flooring for your home.

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Color, Finish, and Texture

Let’s start with the basics. Always remember your personal style when picking new flooring. Choosing a color or texture because it looks a certain way will not make you happy in the end. Pick a flooring that can grow with you, your personal style, and your lifestyle in the long-term. In short, opt for hardwood flooring stains, finishes, and textures to bring in more of your own personality.

Also consider the space you are working in. If you prefer a darker flooring it is important to remember that darker flooring is more formal and will show scratches and dust more than any other color flooring. If you’re easy on your flooring and can keep up with it’s maintenance, dark flooring is perfect for your home. Light color flooring highlights texture within the wood and brightens up a room. Beyond the choice of color is hardwood finish. Playing around with the finish can really personalize a room, as this can add either a glossy effect or a more natural matte finish.

Species of Hardwood

There are over 20 species of domestic hardwood to choose from. Each species has a different character and are better suited for different lifestyles. Consider three main factors in choosing hardwood: durability, style, and budget. Durability being the most important, repairs can be costly and hinder style. The harder the wood the more durable it will be.

Keep your lifestyle in mind, buying new flooring will not magically cause you to be easier on your floors. If you have pets or host guests frequently you should consider hard hardwood floors. Hickory, Maple, or Oak are among the strongest hardwoods. If style is your biggest concern go for a lighter wood that can be easily stained. Ash, Birch, Black-walnut and Cherry are beautiful light woods, but tend to be more expensive.

Flooring Budget

Hardwood flooring is pricey but it will increase the value of your home. The average cost to install hardwood flooring is around $4,000, but consider it an investment in your home’s value. Before you start shopping for hardwood flooring create a realistic budget.

Home projects typically cost more than anticipated, so work in extra room for unexpected costs. The worst thing you could do is start shopping around and accidentally fall in love with flooring way out of your budget. Use hardness as a cost scale; the harder the wood the more budget friendly it will be. But be sure to shop around to find the best deal. Get multiple quotes from different companies to ensure you get more bang for your buck.

“Healthy” Hardwood Flooring

Your hardwood floors are not the place to cut corners. You will be glad you spent more to enhance both the character and health of your home. You can’t go wrong if you focus on quality products that are sustainably sourced and manufactured. In short, understand what you need and what you are paying for. Choosing the right Toronto hardwood flooring for your home may seem like an endless debate.

Look for flooring with low or no VOC’s. Volatile Organic Compounds are found in many items already inside your home, and flooring is no exception. VOC’s emit a gas into your home, and these compounds are found in flooring, cabinets, paint, cleaning products, and many other building materials. It’s important to remember that these gases are unavoidable and at reasonable levels, absolutely harmless. But there are things you can do to limit exposure.

One is choosing an eco-friendly low VOC flooring. Fortunately, low VOC engineered hardwood flooring is more than just a trend, and many brands like LIFECORE specialize in healthier alternative flooring options. Other ways to pay attention to quality is choosing the right underlayment and wood type. Underlayment provides a base for the flooring, this limits noise and insulates the flooring. Contractors will provide several options based on budget. Also, it’s important to look for solid wood with many layers. Solid hardwood can be sanded and stained repeatedly as your tastes and preferences change. Solid hardwood is more durable and will last for decades.

Plank Width

Hardwood flooring is available in a variety of sizes and widths. Choosing a specific width will bring more style and edge to your home. 2-3 inches used to be the standard width, now homeowners are getting much more creative. There is no right width, this is where you can show your personal style. Patterns in your flooring make the room more formal. Choosing narrower widths will give the space a classic look, but using random width flooring is very versatile and can work in almost any room. Play around with patterns to fit your style and preference.

Final Thoughts on Hardwood Flooring

When choosing a new hardwood floor for your home, think of yourself and your family first. Always choose a type of hardwood species and style that will make you happy in the end. Hardwood floors add character to your home and will increase its value all while making the space more of your own. Not all hardwood flooring is equal. Speak with an expert before making any purchases to ensure a smooth and cost-effective renovation,