Wood is beautiful and fantastic for flooring. It looks classy and natural, and there are many different types of wood to choose from. From light coloured woods to dark, there is always a wood out there to suit your home and taste.
Any wood that you use for flooring will have been tested using the Janka scale. This tests the hardness of the wood and therefore determines its suitability for use on the floor because of the wear and tear it will get from people walking on it and putting furniture on it. At the top end of the Janka scale are woods such as Brazilian ebony and Bolivian cherry and at the bottom end are the softwoods such as Balsa and Eastern White Pine.
Undoubtedly the most popular is oak flooring and oak is available in two types: red oak and white oak. The red oak is still the most popular because it is warm colour and widely available, but the white variety is gaining in popularity with trends for paler colours. White oak is also good for areas of the house that may get wet such as the kitchen because it is relatively impermeable to water. Oak is an enduring flooring favourite and the flexibility makes it easy to lay. It also takes colour stains well if you want to change the colour.
Maple is a popular choice if you want something dent and scratch resistant. It is not as stable as oak so will possibly need a perimiter border to protect it from damage as it expands and contracts. The grain of this wood creates attractive patterns and if you choose this wood it will be partly because of this. The wood will not take a stain well so make sure you are happy with the colour and grain before you lay it in your home.
Warm coloured woods for the floor include cherry and walnut. Cherry, like oak, comes in two types: American and Brazilian. The Brazilian is the darker of the two and is very hard. The American is a soft pink and one of the softer hardwoods. Both can change colour after exposure to sunlight so don’t expect it to stay the same colour as when it was laid.
Walnut is a stunning wood but also very expensive. It is unlikely that you would lay a whole floor in walnut but it can be used as an accent in small areas. It is very strong and flexible with an even, fine grain. If you can afford walnut on your floor, you won’t regret it.
If you are more in to paler wood, ash or birch may be your answer. Paler woods are particularly good in small rooms because they make the room appear larger. If you couple this with a pale wall, the room will look much bigger than if you used darker colours. Ash is durable and very strong. It isn’t prone to splitting and has good shock resistance. An added advantage is that it also takes a stain well should you wish to vary the colour.
Birch can be creamy in colour but is also available in redder tones. Younger birch will be at the creamy end of the spectrum, whereas the older birch (the heartwood from the middle of the trunk) is at the redder end. It is a particularly good wood for high traffic areas of the house.
If reclaimed wood is more your thing, beech could be a good choice. It is one of the most popular reclaimed woods used for recycled flooring and it will take a lot of wear and tear. It is strong and resistant to splitting. You will often find floors of beech with a clear urethane coating to help protect it. The grain is straight and is also fine, giving it a uniform appearance. You will find it available in dark brown to pale white.
You can’t really go wrong with a wood floor, but make sure that you choose something that is suitable for your home and budget.
