FOCUS ON WOOD & LAMINATE
Why Choose Wood?
Richard Aylen, Technical Services Manager at wood flooring specialist
Junckers, explains why hardwood is a solid option for homeowners looking for a stable and stylish flooring solution.
The most persuasive argument in favour of real hardwood floors is the fact that house buyers love them and cite them as a major factor in choosing a home. Solid wooden floors have become an icon of contemporary design and consumers see them as conferring a stamp of luxury on any property, whether new build or refurbishment.
Wooden floors are sometimes seen as the first piece of furniture in the room. Walk into a show house which has real hardwood flooring and the eye is immediately drawn to the beauty of the floor, which, coupled with a well-designed interior, is very impressive.
Providing an extremely wide choice of different species and natural colours, wood floor manufacturers are also increasingly offering specially-developed finishes such as a white tone or matt finish. Timber is a warm, stylish, but essentially neutral, backdrop to whatever interior style the buyer may ultimately choose.
If they subsequently change
that style, the wooden floor can remain in situ and, even if it has been neglected or damaged, a simple sand and reseal will restore it to pristine condition.
It is important, though, to make a very clear distinction between solid hardwood, plastic laminates and engineered multi-layer floors with only superficial hardwood content. Solid hardwood flooring is a top-quality finish which buyers will recognise as having a virtually limitless lifespan - whereas the cheaper, shorter-lived, 'look-a-like' products can create the impression of having made cutbacks in the finish. Just walk on them to feel and hear the difference! As the difference between the high and low end product is so apparent to the eye, developers and builders who take the cheaper option can actually be putting good properties at a disadvantage. This explains why the trend now is to upgrade the specification to include real solid hardwood flooring, as opposed to the laminate look.
Looks aside however, real, solid, hardwood floors offer considerable performance benefits in both the short and the long term. Factory-applied finishes are available, which mean that floors can be fitted, ready to walk on. Fitting systems too are now quick and easy and, whilst solid hardwood floors are available as structural surfaces, the easier choice for most locations is a solid board laid as an overlay floor floated over a subfloor. Here again, solid hardwoods score as, unlike
30 | Tomorrow’s Retail Floors
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Junckers Wide Board Oak (Danish interior) med
www.tomorrowsretailfloors.com
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