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Hardwood Flooring Basics to Beautify Your Home
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By Larry Johnson
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Hardwood Flooring Basics to Beautify Your Home Hardwood flooringcan beautify a home like almost nothing else. By following a fewsimple rules you can install and maintain hardwood flooring thatwill look magnificent for decades to come.
With all of the many different types, styles and colors offlooring available today it can be a monumental task in choosingthe right flooring for your home. Hardwood floors, laminate,vinyl, linoleum, bamboo, antique, prefinished, which one isright for you? Oak, maple, cherry and birch are popular types ofhardwood flooring, but there are many others.
Cheap flooring or the wrong style or design of hard wood floorcan clash with other home interior design features. But awell-chosen hardwood floor can accentuate and beautify almostany style or design of a home.
Carpeting has a few advantages over wood floors, the main onebeing softness when walked upon. But hardwood flooring can beaccented with durable and beautiful rugs that have that samecushy feeling. So if it's a soft comfy feel you're after don'tthink that hardwood flooring is not an option. It's possible tocombine the functionality of a carpet with the beauty,durability and shine of a hardwood floor.
Hard wood floors come in all different sizes and colors. Andthere are also many different types of wood grains that you haveavailable to you. When deciding on the type of hardwood floor toinstall in your home you must first choose the color and type ofwood. This is usually the most important consideration.
The color must be complimentary to the furniture, wall hangings,plants and other items that you intend to furnish your homewith. But choosing a color of wood is not necessarily a straightforward and easy task. Different types of wood staindifferently. Some wood flooring will stain darker than others,some lighter than others. So when choosing color you mustconsider the stain in combination with the type of wood flooryou want. Do your homework and you will lessen the chance ofinstalling a floor that has a different color and look than youexpected.
Another major factor concerns functionality. A pine floor maylook great, but pine is a soft wood that will dent very easily.This would certainly be a poor choice in a high-traffic area.When considering woods for flooring you want to install a floorthat is long-lasting. Your hardwood flooringshould last a lifetime and that means choosing a floor that willbe durable, easy to keep clean and will continue to look newwithout a lot of labor on your part. If you are uncertain gowith flooring that will be harder than you think is necessary.Hardness rankings according to the Janka scale can help youdecide on which type of wood you need for the amount of trafficyou expect to have.
The most popular styles of hardwood flooring are parquet, stripand plank. Parquet flooring is a series of wood flooring piecesthat create a geometric design. Strip flooring is linear and isusually between 1 ? inches to 3 ? inches in width. Stripflooring often gives the room the appearance of being largerthan it actually is. Plank hardwood flooring is usually widerand is typically 3 to 6 inches in width. Wider planks may beused, but often have issues with moisture.
You must choose the style and size that you think looks mostattractive. Take your time and view all styles, designs, sizesand colors of wood floors before making your selection. Onceit's installed it is not a cheap job to tear out and replace.It's also a good idea to get different samples and lay them outin your home. Without actually seeing the floor next to your ownfurnishings and wall colors it's near impossible to make a smartchoice.
If you are interested in installing your own hardwood floor besure you have enough knowledge and experience before attemptingto do so. You must know what type of subflooring to install,whether it's wood or concrete. You should learn about humidityand temperature and what affect they have on floors. To preventwarping it is important to keep your floors well-ventilated withregulated temperatures throughout the year. When the weathergets too cold it can cause the floor boards to separate. Beforeinstalling it yourself talk to some professionals in your areaand find out what precautions you need to take that will helpensure a lifetime of satisfaction with your new woodflooring.
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