When choosing what type of flooring to use, with many choices available from oak, ash, walnut, maple and iroko to name a few can be overwhelming. The next decision would be what type of floor: laminate, engineered or real wood making the decision difficult. The easy to follow guide below explains the different types of wooden flooring available.

Laminate Flooring:

The appeal of laminate flooring has increased over time due to it being cost effective, good quality and simple to install. Laminate flooring is made up of layers of HDF (High Density FibreBoard) under an ultra protective thin layer of film. The protective film is usually a printed photographic image of wood effects. A laminate floor simply clicks together and usually is fitted with an underlay. An advantage with fitting laminate floors is that they can be lifted and re-laid without fuss as well as having a vast selection of effects and finishes. When selecting a laminate floor the location must be taken into account as some laminate floors are suitable for light traffic areas and others for all areas.

Engineered Flooring:

Engineered wood flooring is made up of several layers of wood and then glued together at right angles and finished off with a real wood veneer top layer. The benefits with engineered wood floors are that they are as durable as solid wood floors and during their construction they are treated so as not to swell or contract but cheaper than solid wood floors. As such if they become scuffed or worn over time they can be simply sanded back and treated.

Real Wood Flooring:

Real wood flooring is made up of a single piece of solid wood usually 18mm – 20mm thick. When choosing what type of floor you would like a good point to remember is that real wood flooring should not be laid in areas of high humidity. This is due to the fact that as the planks of wood are a natural product then they would swell and contract according to the moisture level. Benefits for selecting real wood flooring would be that over time if it was to become worn or damaged similar to engineered wood flooring it can be sanded back and treated and should last for years.