Hardwood flooring has been popular for many years. Face it, if your floors look bad your home looks bad. Hardwood flooring adds a naturally elegant look to your home. Naturally beautiful hardwood flooring is durable, easy to care for, and increases the value of your home. Here are some facts to consider when thinking about installing hardwood floors in your home.
Hardwood floors come in many colors and textures. Often we see three and a half inch floor boards. This isn’t due to a lack of other sizes, hardwood floors can be made from boards as wide as twelve inches. The larger boards contract and expand more than smaller ones so cracks between boards will be larger with the larger boards.
Allergy sufferers prefer hardwood flooring because dust mites and mold do not get trapped in the floor like they do with carpet. Homes that have a musty smell are often hanging on to germs in the floors. Hardwood floors do not give germs, dust mites or spiders a place to hide.
Warmth and flexibility is added to your floors with hardwood. Other materials are often cold to the touch. Hardwood flooring is actually quite warm, even on bare feet. The flexibility wood floors have is missing in other flooring that is installed over concrete. This flexibility helps reduce back aches along with hip and knee pain in people who stand on these floors throughout the day.
The ease of care is another reason hardwood is a popular choice of flooring. Cleaning hardwood floors with routine sweeping you should use a mild cleanser, like Murphy’s Oil Soap, to mop when needed. After cleaning always leave the floor dry. When spills happen clean them with a damp cloth immediately then dry with a paper towel or rag. A properly sealed hardwood floor shouldn’t drink liquids that are spilled on it. Liquid should bead up on the surface. If liquids are being soaked into the wood you need to reseal the floor.
Hardwood flooring is durable. Once you have a hardwood floor installed routine maintenance is simple. Unlike carpets that wear out, hardwood floors do not need to be replaced after a few years. In fact, after you have your floor installed if it is damaged, faded, or you decide a different stain would look better you can refinish the floor. A little sanding and stain and you have a new floor.
If your floor is scratched, gauged, warped due to water damage, or you find a hardwood floor under the tile in one of the rooms in your home it isn’t difficult to bring hardwood floors back to their original glory. Several sites online give detailed information on refinishing hardwood floors. Basically you will need to make sure there are no nails sticking above the surface, sand the floor smooth, apply the stain, and seal the floor.
With the ease of care, the longevity, durability and beauty of hardwood flooring it is no wonder they are a popular choice. Hardwood flooring increases the value of your home. Often times the increase in value is more than the original cost of the floor.
Published by Rob Bernabe on July 31, 2007 12:16 PM
