What you should know about wood flooring and hardness.
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While it’s certainly true that wood flooring can increase the overall value of your home, it’s also an expensive investment. So before you decide on which type of wood floors to install, you need to know you’re getting the kind that best suits you and your family.
Hardwood floors can last for decades, even centuries, under the right circumstances. Or they can need refinishing – or worse yet, replacing – in a relatively short period of time. So how can you make sure that the wood flooring you choose will provide beauty and utility for years to come?
Although virtually all wood will scratch, some wood is much more resistant to scratching and other wear. One of the most important aspects determining wear is the hardness of the wood.
Wood hardness is evaluated using a measurement called the Janka Scale. It measures how much force it takes to press a .444” steel ball into the wood until it reaches half its diameter.
This calculation translates into a number that represents the pounds per square inch of force required to embed the ball. Most often, the ball is pushed into the side of the plank, resulting in a measurement of the “side hardness.” But sometimes, the end of the wood is also tested. The result of this measurement would be “end hardness,” which is obviously less important for wood flooring.
The results are expressed differently in different countries, so if you’re comparing results, make sure they’re all stated the same way.
The higher the number, the greater the wood’s ability to resist dents and other wear. It also indicated how hard the wood will be to saw and nail. Some wood that would be great in terms of wear would be very difficult to install. So if you’ve chosen extremely hard wood for your floors, you may want to leave the installation to a professional.
There are several other factors that affect wear, especially if you’re using engineered wood flooring. The thickness of the top layer, the material used in the core, and the direction of the grain will all make a difference.
The more traffic you expect in a room, the higher the Janka rating you should consider. With a Janka score of 690, Southern Yellow Pine is not a great choice for high-wear areas. A high-heeled shoe, dog paw, or pebble stuck in a sole could easily damage a pine floor.
Red Oak, the most popular American wood flooring, has a Janka score of 1290. And it’s durable enough to work well in most situations. If you need something more wear resistant, hard maple scores 1450. It’s used for basketball courts and bowling alleys. Santos Mahogany scores 2200; Brazilian Cherry scores 2345; and Brazilian Walnut scores 3680.
Although there are exceptions, the harder woods are often more expensive.
Understanding the Janka Scale and the importance of hardness in wood flooring will help you select a floor that performs beautifully in your home.
Read more about hardwoods here.
Timber flooring made from reclaimed wood.
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The term timber flooring means different things to different people. But in this article, it refers to wood flooring made from reclaimed wood. It’s sometimes also called barn board. But whatever you call it, the nail holes, cracks, warm holes, saw marks, and other characteristics of timber flooring make it very distinctive.
Most of the reclaimed boards that are used in wood flooring today are over 100 years old and were originally used in barns, farmhouses, and other construction in American northeast and midwest. Typically, timber flooring planks are wider than most of today’s flooring. In fact, widths of 10’, 12” and even wider are common.
Around the turn of the 20th century, builders weren’t often choosing lumber for its appearance. So not much first grade or clear wood was used for flooring. As a result, these old boards have lots of imperfections like knots , cracks, and uneven or coarse grains. This is all part of what makes timber floors one of a kind. No two boards are alike.
Because wood is a sustainable product and reclaimed wood is recycled from a previous use, timber flooring is also ecologically responsible.
The most common reclaimed woods are red and white oak — still the most popular woods for flooring today. Oak is hard, even grained, and works well in almost any situation. Because it’s readily available, it also has the advantage of being more affordable than some other species.
Not all reclaimed flooring is hardwood. In fact, softwoods like eastern white pine, hemlock, and Douglas fir make beautiful wood floors, those are less durable than hardwoods. The color ranges from light to dark brown, and older boards have a rich patina. These make especially popular timber floors for kitchens and family rooms.
Although it’s technically a softwood, heart pine is almost as soft as oak. In fact, it’s the hardest softwood. There are usually lots of knots and coarse grain. And the pale, golden color sets off furniture and area rugs. It was originally used in docks and warehouses, so it’s quite rustic and creates an informal, casual room.
One of the most widely planted share trees after the Civil War, the American elm is pale with a tight, straight grain. Most of the trees were wiped out by Dutch Elm Disease, so supply of Elm is limited. But it makes a less rustic timber floor than most other reclaimed woods.
If you can find it, old chestnut is one of the most desirable reclaimed wood for timber flooring. A fungal blight in the early 20th century wiped out American chestnut, so the supply is scarce. Not only is chestnut extremely durable, it has a rich, dark color that only comes with age.
Several small lumber and flooring companies sell timber flooring. If you can’t see the actual boards before you purchase them, be prepared for the color and texture to be different from the samples in the showroom.
Read more about antique oak flooring here.
How to refinish oak flooring.
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Oak flooring is extremely durable and easy to maintain. But with continuous use, even a well-cared for oak floor will start to show some wear. One of the best things about wood flooring is that it can be refinished. So unlike carpeting or tile, which must be replaced once it starts looking tired, wood floors can easily be brought back to life again.
How do you know when it’s time to refinish your oak flooring? The finish will start to lose its luster and you’ll see lots of superficial scratches on the surface. The next step is figuring out what kind of finish your floor has now. Because you’ll need to use the same kind when you refinish your oak floors.
Can I refinish my wood floors myself?
Refinishing hardwoods floor isn’t hard. But it is messy because it produces a lot of sawdust. And if you use an oil-based polyurethane, the fumes can be pretty noxious. So if you have respiratory problems, it’s probably best to hire professionals to refinish your floors.
Professionals usually charge between $1.50 and $3.00 per square foot. That price should include materials.
If you do tackle it yourself, you’ll need to rent a sander or two, buy sandpaper, miscellaneous supplies like tack cloth, and whatever stain or finishes you choose.
No special skills are required. But you will need to take care in order to get results that you’ll be happy with for years to come.
Sanding your oak flooring.
First, empty the room, removing all furniture, carpets, window treatments, etc. Remove the nails from any baseboards or quarter round, and take them off. To make them easier to reinstall, number them and put the corresponding number on the wall.
Go over the wood flooring and remove or countersink any nails, carpet tacks or staples. These can tear the paper you use to sand the floors – which is annoying, because you have to stop work, and expensive, because it wastes sandpaper.
Once your room is prepared, your next stop is the equipment rental store. There are several types of sanders you can rent. A drum sander is the choice of professionals, but they can be hard to control. And if you don’t keep them moving they can sand down one spot so quickly that it will leave a dip in your floor. Or worse, remove the entire veneer.
An orbital sander is easier for beginners to manage. Have the person you rent the sander from demostrate it for you and make sure you’re comfortable with it before you leave the shop. Most big sanders won’t reach all the way to the edge of the floor, so rent an edging machine or a palm sander for the hard-to-reach spots.
You’ll need several grades of sandpaper, usually 36-, 60-, 80-, 100-, and 120-. Start with the coarsest (36). Run the sander back and forth with the grain in smooth, even strokes. Always keep the sander moving when it’s turned on. Otherwise, you may sand one area too deeply. And be sure to use a respirator every time you sand.
When you finish sanding your wood floor, vacuum up all the sawdust with a shop vac, and go over the floor with a tack cloth to make sure all the dust has been removed. Then, repeat the process with every grade of sandpaper. By the time you get down to the 120-grade, your oak floor should be soft as a baby’s bottom.
Use the edger or palm sander to prepare the parts your couldn’t reach with the bigger sander. Then, clean the floor as thoroughly as you can, removing any remaining dust. The cleaner you get the wood, the better the finish will be.
Finishing your oak floors.
If you want a shade that’s darker than the natural color of your wood flooring, you’ll need to apply a stain. For subtle changes, apply the stain with a rag. For a more dramatic difference, use a brush and remove the excess with rags. Do a test in the back of a closet or some other inconspicuous place to make sure you like the color.
Let the stain dry completely. Then apply a second coat if you want more color.
Otherwise, you can start applying the polyurethane finish. There are two main types of polyurethane used for finishing hardwood floors: oil-based polyurethane and water-based polyurethane.
Oil-based is a little easier to work with because it takes longer to dry, so it’s easier to blend and go over any mistakes. It yellows a little with age. The downside is that the fumes can be quite strong. Water-based product dries very quickly, which can sometimes result in streaks where wet polyurethane was applied over partially dried finish.
Stir the polyurethane well, don’t shake it – that can cause bubbles that will end up in the finish. Then apply it evenly with a brush or roller. Go with the grain, working as quickly as you can.
When the first coat has dried thoroughly, sand lightly with the finest grade of sandpaper and then apply another coat. Wait at least three days before reattaching the baseboards and moving furniture and rugs back into the room. Then, sit back and enjoy the renewed beauty of your wood flooring.
Read about finishes for wood flooring here.
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