Finish Wood

January 14, 2010 admin No comments

Finish Wood

How to Choose Wood Flooring

A timeless warmth and beauty, that unmatched welcoming look and feel, unique clean lines, inherent strength, durability that lasts a number of lifetimes and all other benefits make wood among the most popular flooring choices. However, not all wood flooring is created equal and would fit your New York home and living. So whether you are residing in Brooklyn, Long Island, Queens, Staten Island or Manhattan; looking into your different options and weighing the advantages and disadvantages carefully would land you with the best choice to fashionably and productively complement your lifestyle.

When considering wood flooring, the selection is wide ranging. Though this makes the selection a bit overwhelming, facing the task with a positive attitude would let you enjoy exploring your options. They can either come as hardwoods and engineered with the later a combination of natural and man-made materials. Some of the most popular types of hardwood include oak, walnut, maple, ash, Brazilian cherry, fir and southern yellow pine.

The factors to look into when exploring your wood flooring options include:

Budget

Wood flooring can be considered among the high end choices but proves to be a great investment not only by resale time but throughout the years as not only does it boost the overall value of your New York home but also enhances the family’s quality of living. With this said, project budget is a crucial factor that contributes greatly to success. In spending your hard-earned budget, the key to giving the most bang to your buck is spending wisely. Never sacrifice quality just to save some money, if you need to cutback then look for ways to get high quality for less like availing for sales, bargains, discounts, and promotions.

Location

The area where you plan to have wood flooring installed is another major consideration.
When choosing, make sure that your choice would be durable enough to efficiently serve the functions of the area. Ideally softer types are for places not much susceptible to scratches and other damages while harder types can be for any area. Though more popularly used in bedrooms, entertainment areas, and other less traffic receiving places; the warmth and style that this type of flooring affords can now extend to the kitchen and even bathrooms. With new finishes out in the market, spills and moisture does not pose much problems than before.

Finishing

This can be done to wood flooring on-site or factory-applied. With pre-finished wood flooring, you would not have to deal with dust, fumes and waiting for the floor to be walked on. This also proves to be tougher than that applied on-site. The downside however is that installation may be difficult with slight unevenness in thickness and leveling as the floor has not been sanded flat.

With finishes applied on-site, installation can be made in a more accurate manner without any unevenness. Another thing about this is the possibility of having the wood tainted with colors of your choice to bring out more richness to the floor.

No matter which wood flooring type you end up choosing, the full benefits would not be enjoyed if the floor is not properly installed. This makes the role of a qualified floor contractor crucial. Remember, this material does not come cheap, so to get the return on investment expected; ensure craftsmanship.

About the Author

Eugene Makeev uses his skills and expertise to help home owners in Brooklyn, Long Island, Queens, Manhattan, and Staten Island avoid the common wood flooring pitfalls by matching their needs with prescreened flooring contractors New York.

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What is the difference between using a wax vs. a stain to finish wood work?

I have stripped and sanded my stairs, and now its time to finish the wood work. But which is better to use a wax or a stain? what are the differences in finish?

Wax is a poor choice as it only goes on the surface. Stain penatrates deep, wipe off residue with spirit and use a gloss or satin finish polyurothane varnish. ( Wax will stain with any spillage or heat.)