hardwoodfloor

Hey guys it been a while. I just wanted to let everyone know we are working on the business and been away from website/blog pages. We will be updating some coming up shortly.  Check out our old blogs. They have good information.

Here is a good article on hardwood floor care tips. Palmetto Hardwood has some great article on our regular website as well.   For a quote on hardwood floors and floor care products call us or visit our website.

Why Choose Laminate Flooring?
By Colin Rooney

Laminate flooring has become one of the most popular types of flooring over the past several years. There are several reasons for this, which we will look at in this article.

First, laminate flooring is available in many different designs and styles. You can get laminate hardwood, tile, stone and various other patterns. Keep in mind that laminate hardwood is not the same as laminated wood flooring. Laminated wood is made from several layers of wood laminated together while laminate flooring consists of a fiber core with the pattern layered on top of it, then a layer of melamine.

Laminate floors can be made to look like almost any material, so if you’re looking for exotic hardwood or some other hard-to-find flooring style laminate can be much less expensive than the “real thing” while being much easier to source.

Laminate is also considerably easier to install than many other types of floors. Laminate tile, for example, is made to look like tile flooring - right down to the grout lines - but without the work involved in laying tile.

Laminate planks are fit together using a tongue-and-groove system, and they basically just clip together using glueless joints. They will float on top of older floors as well, so it can save a lot of work to remove older floors.

Most do-it-yourselfers with a reasonable level of skill can install laminate flooring themselves, so it can also save quite a bit in installation costs. But even if you do need to pay an installer to do the work for you, it can take a lot less time. At the price of labor in today’s construction market, this can really add up quickly.

Laminate floors are effective in many different parts of your home. They work equally well in the kitchen, living room or any other living area. They are durable so even if it is a high traffic location, they will stand up well over time.

Colin Rooney writes about various flooring related topics at http://www.bestflooringreview.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Colin_Rooney
http://EzineArticles.com/?Why-Choose-Laminate-Flooring?&id=2935803

I found this good article. For more information check out the articles on the blog. For great flooring prices call us or go to our website for more details.

Engineered Hardwood Flooring - The Basics
By Michael Russell

Engineered hardwood flooring is more popular these days than natural hardwood flooring. This is because the construction of engineered hardwood flooring gives it qualities that natural hardwood flooring does not have. This allows engineered hardwood flooring to be less expensive and more resistant to moisture.

There are several differences in the construction of natural hardwood flooring and engineered hardwood flooring. Natural hardwood flooring is constructed entirely out of a piece of hardwood. The only hardwood used for engineered hardwood flooring is for the top layer. The possible types of hardwood that are used for engineered hardwood include oak, pine, ash, teak, and bamboo. The top layer allows engineered hardwood flooring to have the same visual beauty as natural hardwood flooring. There is a core layer that is glued to the bottom of the top layer. The core layer consists of layers of replenishable and affordable wood. These layers of wood might be medium-density or high-density fiberboard or plywood. The number of layers that are used for the core vary from one flooring manufacturer to another. Most flooring manufacturers will use three layers of wood in the core. However, there are several flooring manufacturers that are beginning to construct core layers that consist of five to seven layers of wood. They are adding more layers of wood to the core because the extra layers will make their engineered hardwood flooring more durable.

During extreme changes in the weather, natural hardwood flooring can expand and contract so much that it will buckle or warp. The core layer of an engineered hardwood floor gives it the ability to expand and contract without buckling or warping as natural hardwood flooring would. This means that engineered hardwood flooring is less affected by environmental conditions and can be installed in more areas than natural hardwood flooring. For example, unlike a natural hardwood floor, you can install an engineered hardwood floor in a humid or damp basement. An engineered hardwood floor can also be installed over radiant heating system without suffering any damage. If you install a natural hardwood floor over a radiant heating system, the natural hardwood floor could buckle, cup, or shrink.

Engineered hardwood flooring can be installed as a floating floor. This means that you can install an engineered hardwood floor on a surface without using glue or nails. A floating floor will allow you to have a floor that is free of gaps between the hardwood panels. But before you install the engineered hardwood floor, you have to place a vapor barrier between the surface and the floor. A tongue and groove locking system allows the engineered hardwood flooring to be installed as a floating floor. With this system, you can just click and lock the engineered hardwood planks together. This means that the engineered hardwood flooring can be installed very quickly. Also, if you are moving, you can easily take the hardwood planks apart and take it to your new home. This locking system also makes it pretty easy to replace any planks that are damaged.

The finish of engineered hardwood flooring is durable. An engineered hardwood floor will still look good even after years of heavy use. However, if it is necessary, engineered hardwood flooring can be refinished. But this is not a task that you should take on yourself. This is something that you should pay a professional to do. But each engineered hardwood floor can only be refinished a limited number of times before you destroy the top layer.

Michael Russell

Your Independent guide to Flooring

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Michael_Russell
http://EzineArticles.com/?Engineered-Hardwood-Flooring—The-Basics&id=746295

I found this good article. For more information check out the articles on the blog. For great flooring prices call us or go to our website for more details.

Engineered Flooring - Is it Just As Easy to Install As Laminate Flooring?
By Chris Smitts

Engineered flooring is a great flooring option. There are plenty of horror stories out in the world about people who have tried to install their own hardwood floors. Between ripping up the old flooring, installing a sub-floor and then going through the process of nailing it down, sanding and finishing the floor, people feel as though they have been in a war. Two options that you can use instead of going through all of this is to use laminate flooring or engineered flooring.

While laminate flooring is a viable and cheaper option, it will not give you the same true look of hardwood floors that engineered flooring will. This is because engineered flooring is real hardwood flooring that has already been prepared for you. Instead of having what is in essence paper and wood flakes, you will have a genuine wood floor.

Engineered flooring is hardwood flooring without all of the work. It is the most expensive of all of the three options that you have for hardwood floors, but it is a true hardwood floor and does not have nearly as much work involved as a standard hardwood floor. It is also more durable that a laminate hardwood floor and can be fixed after scratches and dings whereas a laminate floor would be ruined if that happens.

The convenience and ease of installing this type of flooring over regular hardwood flooring is well worth the price for many DIY’ers. Instead of having to rip up your old floor and lay down a sub-floor to secure the flooring, you can actually put this type of flooring down right over top of your existing flooring. This saves you a ton of work.

Not only that, but you also do not have to go through the trouble of sanding and finishing the floor. Since it is already done, you do not run the risk of destroying the floor with an uneven finish or have to worry about the family pet running across the floor before the finish is dry. These are some pretty attractive benefits that more than justify the price.

If you go with the thicker pieces, they will cost you a little more, but you can avoid having to do all of the manual work of nailing down the floor. The ½” pieces can be installed by gluing them down and the 5/8″ pieces can be installed by either gluing them down or installed as floating floor. Either way, it is quicker and easier than spending your day on your hands and knees with a hammer.

If you want the look of hardwood flooring without all of the work, engineered hardwood flooring is your best bet. While laminate flooring is good for certain areas that will see a lot of moisture, there is really no need to install it anywhere else.

Engineered flooring will give you both the look of hardwood flooring and the ease of installation that laminate flooring offers. While it will cost a few extra dollars, you will realize that it is money well spent once the flooring is installed…

Want to learn more? Click Here for Discount Engineered Flooring.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Chris_Smitts
http://EzineArticles.com/?Engineered-Flooring—Is-it-Just-As-Easy-to-Install-As-Laminate-Flooring?&id=2837477

I found this great article on Engineered Hardwood Floors.  For a great price on hardwood flooring visit my website.

Engineered Hardwood Floors Can Dramatically Speed Up Your Installation
By Chris Smitts

If you are considering redoing your home with hardwood floors, you may want to consider engineered hardwood floors instead of standard flooring. While you may pay a few more dollars for the engineered hardwood floors, they can actually save you a lot of money in the long run. Not only that, but installation will go much quicker than it would for standard flooring.

Engineered hardwood floors are identical to regular hardwood flooring in every way except that they are already sanded and finished when you purchase them. This is a critical component as it takes several cost factors out of the equation and also makes the entire installation process much quicker. Instead of waiting days or possibly even as long as a week to see a finished product, you will be able to walk on your floors the moment that they are down on the floor.

There is sometimes a misconception that engineered hardwood floors are laminate flooring. This could not be further from the truth. Laminate flooring is actually a combination of melamine infused paper and wood chip composite. Now I don’t know about you, but that hardly sounds like hardwood flooring to me.

Engineered hardwood flooring is made from real wood and is genuine from top to bottom. As we stated earlier, the only difference is that it is finished and sanded before you purchase it. That being the case, you will not have to sand it once it is down and you will not have to put a finish on it as well. If you have ever been through this process, you know that you are more than likely going to have to leave your house during this process, especially if you have children and pets.

If you are using standard flooring, you are not only going to have the cost of the flooring, the professional to put it down and the extra supplies that are needed, but you are also going to have the extended time that you cannot use the floors and possibly a hotel bill for the time that you are out of the house during the process.

Of course flooring like this is going to cost a little more, but you can still get it in every style that you would like and in reality, it may be cheaper when you add all of those other costs to the cost of the standard flooring. For some, the fact that it does not have to be sanded and finished is enough for them to be able to put it down themselves. You can see where the savings can start to add up.

If you are considering changing your floors over to hardwood floors, you should seriously consider using engineered hardwood flooring as an option. It can save you time, money and may even turn an expensive contracting job into a nice DIY project. This is another alternative to laminate hardwood floors that will give you the true enjoyment of wood instead of a synthetic floor.

Would you like to learn more? Click Here for Discount Engineered Hardwood Floors

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Chris_Smitts
http://EzineArticles.com/?Engineered-Hardwood-Floors-Can-Dramatically-Speed-Up-Your-Installation&id=2837194