Prefinished Hardwood Floors: How to choose!
I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been asked what brand of prefinished floor I recommend. Or how many samples I’ve gotten through the mail. These days there are so many choices out there it really is hard to tell the good floor from the mediocre and poor. For this discussion I will try to stay away from brand names (for once) and try to talk out these floors in a more generic manor. I will only talk about wood flooring, be they solid woods or laminated woods. I am not interested, nor do I install the laminate, or wood pictures encased in vinyl. They will have a short fast life, and soon folks will be on to the next fad. Wood floors are here to stay, if we learn to take care of them, and choose the ones that best suits our needs.
When most people say prefinished hardwood floor, they mean solid wood strip floor. These are generally in widths of 4″ or less. A prefinished plank floor over 4″ is a poorly designed product, and I’ve been hearing all winter of these amazing shrinking floors. Go to the plank floor section of the Hardwood Authority and you’ll soon realize that you cannot screw and peg a prefinished floor. It’s amazing to see these useless products in flooring showrooms, but it’s sad to hear the frustration when they start gaping and warping during the first winter, or humid summer. The exception to this would be a prefinished plank floor installed, and then face nailed with rose headed cut nails. This will not be as firm an installation, but it is the next best thing.
So that’s my first piece of advice, stick to the 2 1/4″ and 3 1/4″ sizes of the 3/4″ strip floor. While you are still in the comfort of the floor store, see if you can open a box of this flooring and assemble on a flat table or floor about 10-20 sq. ft. Some sales people will be reluctant to let you do this, but you wouldn’t buy a car with out a test drive would you? They do have the tools to repack the box, so this should be an easy request. There are a few things to look for. One is the fit, do the pieces slide together easily by hand? Are they well-milled, and stored in a dry environment? Look at how well the side edges fit, is there a bumpy feeling when you run you hand across the boards, or is it reasonably smooth. You should be aware that this product will look it’s best installed on a perfectly flat subfloor. Check to see if your subfloor is really that flat and level. If it isn’t, you should consider a sand-on-site hardwood floor.
Then the most important thing to consider is, do the ends all have a bit of a bevel, so that there are no splinter prone edges to catch your socks? Take your time, you’re going to put out big bucks for this floor and you’ll have to live with it for I hope the rest of your life. After all, the oak tree made these bones for 80 years, surely you can take a few days to find a well-made floor. Don’t depend on the display samples, these may be the best looking, but not typical examples of the wood you are about to choose.
After you’re quite convinced that you’ve found the floor with the right fit, let’s now discuss finishes. All the manufacturers claim to have the best, longest lasting, more coats, less coats but harder, and on an on. What’s one to do? The only real test for scratch resistance, (and isn’t that really what we’re concerned about) is to bring along a piece of extra fine steel wool. This may alarm some sales people in the showroom, but they will have some cut off samples for you to work on. So far the only finishes that will resist the scrubbing of extra fine steel wool are the Polynium ®, or aluminum oxide conversion finishes. It’s not really important how many coats they apply; it’s the finish itself. After you rub it with steel wool, has it lost it’s sheen, or turned white with small scratches. Imagine what it will look like in a few years with daily hard use. I have great reservation with aluminum oxide crystals in the film itself. They may be present in small amounts and be quite safe, until one day (and that day will come) when this floor is so full of dents and scratches, that it will have to be sanded and refinished. This is a normal routine for a strip floor. But the aluminum oxide dust that will be airborne during the sanding is a proven lung irritant, and a possible carcinogen. For solid wood strip floor I choose to avoid this by only using the Polynium® finished boards, as this film is polymerized titanium. The titanium oxide powder is much safer, as it is also used in cosmetics to sunscreens, and is only a skin irritant at worst.
So that takes care of the solid wood products. Then we ask, what about these so called laminated or engineered wood floors? Let’s not confuse these with the fake wood laminates, which are just pictures of wood encased in vinyl. Although imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, I don’t discuss them much at all in this wood floor site. There are two basic categories of laminated wood floor and that is either 3-ply or 5-ply. Both are about 5/16″ thick. The 5 ply is, in my opinion, the better of the two, simply because the 5 layers of 1/16″ hardwood make for a more moisture stable, longer lasting, and harder plywood. Now it’s true you could never re-sand this thin top veneer, but as long as it doesn’t get too dented, you can treat it with the professional prep and re-coat systems I mention in my cleaning article in the Floored News section. Re-coating these engineered floors with water based finishes is a little tricky. Apply the first coat thinly with a paint pad and be careful not to puddle up the V grooves too much, this could lift and damage the veneer. The second coat can be a normal snow plow application if you wish, and always use two coats when re-coating with these rather low build water based finishes.
The 3-ply laminated floors have a top veneer of as much as 1/8″ and some of the 1/2″ laminated strip floors have as much as 1/6″ in their top ply. So these you can sand and refinish later in the life of the floor. But as you notice the makers of these products mention professional sanding, and claim up to 6 or more sanding and refinishing cycles. Speaking as a professional floor sander of 23 years, I know caution is the word when approaching these laminated floors, with my 3 horsepower drum sander. On one hand the customer expects you to take out all the dents and deep scratches, and your sanding machine demands that the floor be leveled for the first time in it’s life. Now days you’re going to be using very coarse sandpaper to get through these factory conversion finishes. Once you sand past the over-wood and beveled edges to get all the finish off it leaves a little wood left on the top of the groove. So, yes I would say the 1/8″ top veneered laminated floors can be sanded and finished once, and the 1/6″ top veneered probably twice, but no more. And never the 6 times the manufactures suggest.
If I were installing a laminated wood floor below grade, I would stay away from a floor that has veneer layers that are thicker that 1/8″ and would prefer the 5-ply material. If the veneer layers are thicker, they will tend to act like solid wood, expanding and warping when encountering moist conditions. Above grade these new thick layered plies might be OK but time and customer complaints will tell, and I’ll hear about them soon enough. But basement installations of these floors is not a good idea. And on second thought I wouldn’t put any hardwood floor in a basement. All it takes is a pinhole in a water pipe while on vacation, and your wooden floors are toast.
Oh, and avoid the laminated wood planks that have softwood cores. This is the cheaper less moisture stable way of making plywood. The two woods have very different rates of expansion, so this could be trouble. The are easily recognized by the thick band of white softwood in the middle.
One very popular (until you walk on one) type of laminated floor is the floating floor. It’s cited as the answer to unsuitable or irregular sub-floors, which cannot handle the glue down operation of the normal laminated floors. These come as separate boards, like a strip floor, or a glued up panel. In most cases they are simply glued edgewise to themselves over a foam pad. The temptation will be to buy the larger easier to install panels, but these may prove unsightly in the future as bit of dirt lodge in the unnatural looking seams of these paneled floors. They have 2-3 factory glued up boards on the panel, but then an unsightly gap will appear, as the less than perfect installation proceeds. These floors only seem to look perfect in the showroom. And the simple PVA glue will fail in a decade or so in the constantly walked on seams. This type of glue has little flex, and this is where it is needed the most.
For a quick easy glue-less installation, some manufactures have now incorporated a locking system that clicks these panels together. But after being in the market for a few years these glue-less boards are starting to talk back. They pop, squeak, and shift in these amateur installations, and considering they were about the same price as a glue down floor. Remember that the removal and replacement of a floor is more expensive in the long run.
And then there is the less known Austrian-German product that has a clip fitted floating system. This is precision milled solid wood in various thicknesses. The 7/8″ material is a bear to install, and quite expensive, but is tough enough to allow removal and re-installation. Most people choose the thinner 9/16″ thick boards, which are easier to install because of their flex. But I cannot figure why you’d want to do that, unless you wish to surprise the buyer of your house. “My gosh!”, they’ll say, “I’m sure there was a hardwood floor here before”.
There is no ignoring a bumpy sub-floor with any of these floating floors. This will cause the popping, and too tight a fit to a metal doorjamb will cause a squeak. The overall hollow sound turns me off entirely from these floors. Although I have to admit a floating type of installation may be the best answer to installing a floor on a radiant heated slab. There are always better (albeit more expensive) ways to get good performance out of a wood floor in this rather tricky situation.
All the comments I made about factory finishes in the beginning of this article apply even more so to these laminated wood floors, pick a good long lasting finish from the start. You can buy the best prefinished product in the world but if you fasten it to the wrong subfloor, it will cause you no end of grief, be sure to read my article in the Floored News section on Installing Strip Floor. For the laminated plank floor, that are glued down to concrete (that’s their best application) you will really need to read my up coming article on Concrete Subfloors. I will recommend certain glues and methods for this rather pernicious subject. Suffice to say for now as long as you use a good adhesive like Dri Tac (www.dritac.com), these laminated floors, although light duty, should give you 25-50 years of service.
Warranties are certainly and important issue when buying these factory floors but seeing how this article is getting a little long and you need a break from looking at your monitor I’ll deal with them in a future article. So there you have my humble opinion on what prefinished floor I would choose. If I had to.
A Brief History Of Wood Floors
According to “THE ELEMENTS OF STYLE” encyclopedia as late as 1625 the ground floor of most European houses still lacked a wooden floor. Most houses had a beaten earth floor that required visitors to wipe their shoes on a entry mat to prevent this natural floor from getting muddy or dusty depending on the weather. The second floor, if you could afford one, had wooden joists and plank flooring sometimes 2 feet wide of oak or elm.
It wasn’t until the Barouque Era (1625-1714) that wooden floors became elegant, starting with the French parquetry and marquetry patterns. Illusionistic 3D designs were made from hand cut and laid pieces of contrasting coloured hardwoods. They were then hand scraped of their overwood, scrubbed with sand, stained and polished. These were only found in the most affluent and royal homes of their time. Some of the merchant class would imitate this by painting a plank floor with designs, but few of these floors survive today.
The great abundance of wood in North America brought common use of the plank floor on the main floor during the Colonial Era (1607-1780). At last the new Americans could get off the earthen floors and enjoy the resiliency and warmth of wooden floors.
These floors were not sanded or finisished, but because they were made out of slow growth pine, they were simply polished smooth by the feet of generations of colonists.
By the early 19 th century more parquet patterns were showing up, but only in the richest of rooms. Wooden plank floors remianed the norm and were treated with paint, and in the better homes laid in a tongue and grove configuration. More modest houses would have random width boards simply face nailed to the joists. The advent of the T. and G. meant the boards could be leveled before they were painted. The carpenter would affix a scraper to a 6 foot pole and using his foot as weight, pull ribbons of overwood off the edges of the boards. A final hand sanding, a good shellacking, and a team of servants to wax and buff the floor made these floors glow. All this was labour intensive but at the starvation wages paid to help those days why not if you had the bucks.
Wooden floors didn’t get factory mass produced until the American Victorian Era (1840-1910) and then only late in this era. A 1903 E. L. Roberts catalog shows “wood carpeting” consisting of 1 1/2″ by 5/16″ strips glued to a heavy cotton canvas. These came in rolls about 3 feet wide and were installed by tacking down each board every foot or so. They suggested many patterns of installation, most with fancy parquetry borders. Each of these small brads had to be set below the surface and filled. All these pieces were then scraped, sanded with the hand operated floor brush. This was a 25 pound block with natural bristles on it’s bottom. A broom handle attached, you pushed it across the floor, with sandpaper strapped to it. Slow but effective. Varnishes were usually slow curing tung oils introduced from China. These were not durable in themselves so the floors were hot waxed and buffed to a shine with the floor brush.
The factory mills said in their ads “Any one familiar with the use of a saw, hammer and varnish brush can lay and finish them. A servant of average intelligence can keep parquetry floors as if they were newly laid with but little effort” Sure and at 10 cents an hour why not ? These floors were touted as easy to install and yet as elegant as the time proven European parquetry. But few of these floors survive today. All that face nailing of small strips made for a sqeaky and split ridden floor. At the same time mass produced 3/8″, 1/2″, 3/4″ strip hardwood flooring was cheaply available at 10, 15 and 20 cents per square foot respectivly. Why most folk in this city of Toronto chose the 3/8″ strip (saving about 80 dollars in the average house) I have no idea. A poor choice of hardwood by one generation is then foisted on the next. Most of the 3/4″ strip floor on the other hand is still around and is being carefully and happily restored by this generation.
By the Edwardian Era (1901-1914) wooden tongue and grove floor boards were the most popular domestic flooring. Parquetry patterns were found framing the edges of carpet (back then carpet was much more expensive than wood). Block hardwood floor could be laid on top of concrete using hot tar as an adhesive. Some block floors survive today and can be removed, cleaned of the tar and relaid in a modern mastic. Herringbone is a similar form of tongue and grove type floor popular in this era.
By the 1920’s and 30’s wooden floors came into competion with linoleum and cork floors, which offered a more basic geometry, and less maintenance. This modern movement continued to emphisize hard durable surfaces. Varnishes improved hardness and curing time with the addition of alkyd resin and in the 1930’s polyurethane was the ideal no-wax finish for floors. This allowed wood to play a prominent role throughout the Modern Era (1920-1950). Even then wall to wall carpeting was still terribly expensive.
The close of World War Two brought a housing boom which ironically spelled doom for the wood floor trade. New housing built for the vets could have the broadloom cost included in the loan. So although for a while hardwood was still laid, sanded and finished it was promptly covered up with wall to wall carpet before the new owners moved in. And soon with the use of plywood as a subfloor they just forgot about the hardwood altogether. So for about 30 years (1950-1980) the wood flooring industry struggled just for survival, most companies had to install carpet to stay in busines at all.
This was the time the industry tried to compete with the low price of synthetic carpeting by lowering it’s labour standards. For years the production installer got faster and sloppier and piece work payment dropped in 1970 from 6 to 4 cents a square foot for a parquet installation. The workers found thenselves trying to install up to 1000 square feet in a day just to make 40 bucks, for two guys. This was the highrise apartment work that used the basic mosaic pattern parquet. This turned the public off these poorly laid and finished floors. Parquet was now branded as cheap and common.
When I first started my business I got as little as 17 cents per square foot to sand and refinish these floors, and to my surprise we got undercut on this price in 1980. A lot of production but not much quality at these prices.
Prefinished flooring had already been around for some time. With the downgrading of skills (and in some regions lack of any floor sanders) by the late 1980’s prefinished grew in popularity until they make up at least half the newly installed hardwood floors today. Prefinished started out employing deep V groove at the edges of the planks but as customers demanded a smoother floor those edges became only slightly chamfered. I learned of several large jobs that used this “eased edge” flooring. In just a few months edge splinters developed and well known manufactures found themselves in warranty disputes. In the early 90’s one of my own jobs developed this same problem and all I could provide my customer was my sympathy and a touch up kit. As long as the defects didn’t involve more than 5 % of the total floor the warranty was totaly useless. At best the warranty provided only for the supply of some new material, not it’s more expensive and time consuming repair.
Now after 10 years of dominating the wood flooring industry most prefinished manufactures have greatly improved their quality control. Unfortunately some of the smaller brands have tweaked their milling tolerences to the point that some of the boards will no longer fit together easily. But the finishes have improved greatly . Some of the aluminun oxide finishes should far out last most any of the site applied finishes. But I’m sorry I still prefer the smooth, warm glow of a finished on site hardwood floor. The bumpy feel of a prefinished floor with it’s “paneled” visual effect leaves me cold. Each board reflects the light at a different angle giving these floors an unnatural appearance. But I am totally biased, make your own choice.
By the Edwardian Era (1901-1914) wooden tongue and grove floor boards were the most popular domestic flooring. Parquetry patterns were found framing the edges of carpet (back then carpet was much more expensive than wood). Block hardwood floor could be laid on top of concrete using hot tar as an adhesive. Some block floors survive today and can be removed, cleaned of the tar and relaid in a modern mastic. Herringbone is a similar form of tongue and grove type floor popular in this era.
By the 1920’s and 30’s wooden floors came into competion with linoleum and cork floors, which offered a more basic geometry, and less maintenance. This modern movement continued to emphisize hard durable surfaces. Varnishes improved hardness and curing time with the addition of alkyd resin and in the 1930’s polyurethane was the ideal no-wax finish for floors. This allowed wood to play a prominent role throughout the Modern Era (1920-1950). Even then wall to wall carpeting was still terribly expensive.
The close of World War Two brought a housing boom which ironically spelled doom for the wood floor trade. New housing built for the vets could have the broadloom cost included in the loan. So although for a while hardwood was still laid, sanded and finished it was promptly covered up with wall to wall carpet before the new owners moved in. And soon with the use of plywood as a subfloor they just forgot about the hardwood altogether. So for about 30 years (1950-1980) the wood flooring industry struggled just for survival, most companies had to install carpet to stay in busines at all.
This was the time the industry tried to compete with the low price of synthetic carpeting by lowering it’s labour standards. For years the production installer got faster and sloppier and piece work payment dropped in 1970 from 6 to 4 cents a square foot for a parquet installation. The workers found thenselves trying to install up to 1000 square feet in a day just to make 40 bucks, for two guys. This was the highrise apartment work that used the basic mosaic pattern parquet. This turned the public off these poorly laid and finished floors. Parquet was now branded as cheap and common.
When I first started my business I got as little as 17 cents per square foot to sand and refinish these floors, and to my surprise we got undercut on this price in 1980. A lot of production but not much quality at these prices.
Prefinished flooring had already been around for some time. With the downgrading of skills (and in some regions lack of any floor sanders) by the late 1980’s prefinished grew in popularity until they make up at least half the newly installed hardwood floors today. Prefinished started out employing deep V groove at the edges of the planks but as customers demanded a smoother floor those edges became only slightly chamfered. I learned of several large jobs that used this “eased edge” flooring. In just a few months edge splinters developed and well known manufactures found themselves in warranty disputes. In the early 90’s one of my own jobs developed this same problem and all I could provide my customer was my sympathy and a touch up kit. As long as the defects didn’t involve more than 5 % of the total floor the warranty was totaly useless. At best the warranty provided only for the supply of some new material, not it’s more expensive and time consuming repair.
Now after 10 years of dominating the wood flooring industry most prefinished manufactures have greatly improved their quality control. Unfortunately some of the smaller brands have tweaked their milling tolerences to the point that some of the boards will no longer fit together easily. But the finishes have improved greatly . Some of the aluminun oxide finishes should far out last most any of the site applied finishes. But I’m sorry I still prefer the smooth, warm glow of a finished on site hardwood floor. The bumpy feel of a prefinished floor with it’s “paneled” visual effect leaves me cold. Each board reflects the light at a different angle giving these floors an unnatural appearance. But I am totally biased, make your own choice. Which Way to Lay Wood Flooring – Yes it Matters – Case Study
Well I guess , all’s well that ends well. I spent quite a bit of time with my client, coaching him on his upcoming Small Claims Court lawsuit. He has spent a fair bit of his time this summer gathering estimates from other companies and making a video of the bumpy floor using a spirit level to demonstrate just how bad this job was. I reviewed the video the night before the Pre Trial and I could clearly see the problem. It was indeed evident , along the quarter round molding at the edge of the floor, that the thin molding couldn’t follow the severe undulations on the prefinished wood and had gaps under it as much as 1/2″. The audio portion easily allowed you to hear the squeaking of the floors as they were walked on.
We also went over the two contracts that the firm had given him. They were all unsigned (by either party) and even though they decribed the same job there were two different prices. One a had a hastily penned addition to bring the total to what was actually charged. There was also a poorly worded amendment in the contract that stated that the flooring company could charge extra if they found unseen repairs to be done on the subfloor. That was to prove their undoing in the Pre-Trial hearing.
I made sure that he was ready and able to quickly and easily present all this physical evidence. We went over and over all the important points. Joe ( I’ll call him by a fictitious name to protect his innocence) wrote everthing down that he needed to present the next day and kept file folder with all the contracts, quotes and court documents. We set things in the folder so that they would be easily reached to show the judge. One of these documents was a specious counter suit that the errant company my had filed. They had claimed that their reputation was being besmirched by Joe’s lawsuit and asked for $3,000 in compensation. Even though there was no basis to this claim (no published documents naming this company) Joe had to take this seriously and even prepared a defense for this counter suit.
The next day I met Joe at the court house to join him at the pre trial hearing. This is essentially an informal hearing in front of a judge in a small room between the parties only and not open to the public, so I had to stay out. The judge is there to determine if the case on either side has enough merit to go to trial. There is a discussion about the evidence. Unfortunatly Joe had not mentioned his video tape before and dicovered that it couldn’t be shown in this venue. Scince this meeting was not open to the public I can only dicuss the generalities of what happened there. Both sides were fairly heard, and then the judge suggested a possible settlement. In just a few minutes of kibitzing he had them batting offers back and forth until, voila’ ! A settlement !
Because I respect the closed nature of this settlement I cannot expose the amount, but Joe figures he has barely paid the wholesale price for the wood floor itself, and didn’t have to contribute one cent to the installation debacle. The company on the other hand wasn’t too severely punished for it’s mistakes and avoided a public trial, that if lost, would have given me the right to publish their name on the internet. So they really avoided a fate that would have affected their future bottom line. They will, I’m sure, tighten up the wording of their contracts, and strongly suggest, maybe even insist on a sub floor evaluation before they begin their work. All in all a very cheap lesson for everyone installing their own or about to hire an installer of pre-finished hardwood floor.
Laying Wood Floors the Right Direction – Yes it Matters – Case Study Part One
Here we have a situation that could have been avoided with a little planing and knowledge. In our video section you can see me preparing a sub-floor on the main floor, of a Toronto home, before installing a new oak floor. Well believe it or not, (because of my busy schedule) the owner hired a major Toronto based firm to install a similar floor on the second floor. He was quite happy with my work, but by the time he decided to replace the upstairs floor, I was already booked 6 weeks in advance. He had to move in within a week or two at most.
What a disaster this big company created ! By the time I saw the work that they had done it was too late for any simple remedies. These flooring contractors had chosen to install a cheap pre-finished floor and had run the boards in the wrong direction. The new floor had large gaps , was terribly uneven and squeaked. It reminded me of the old floor that it had replaced. Actually it was worse, because the wide pre-finished strips had no bevels on the ends, so as you walked on it your feet felt every undulation of this poorly milled material (made by a major North American manufacturer).
Just like on the main floor , the second floor originally had an old thin 3/8 ” by 2″ strip floor , full of gaps and very squeaky when I first saw it. The two things the owner insisted was that the floor be level and quiet , period. The most sure way to achieve this was to remove the old hardwood , level the subfloor , add plywood underlay , and install a new narrow 3/4″ by 2″ strip . This floor would then be sanded to level and finished to perfection.
All these steps were necessary because the pine planked sub floor had a pronounced “barreling ” or convex surface. There is also a long narrow hallway in which the subfloor followed. If the new flooring were to run across the hall instead of down it you would get a unsightly “ladder effect” The simple solution would be to install 1/4″ underlay (or better yet 1/2″ if you can add that much height to the floor) then you can install the new strip floor any way you want changing direction as you come into a different room.
But instead the speedy Toronto company spent little time preparing the sub-floor, when it could have been easily sanded fairly level and renailed with 3″ spikes( at least two nails in every board on every joist). They went ahead and inslalled a poorly milled pre-finished floor, when a sand -on- site floor would have been more suited to this job. And to top it all they laid the 3″ oak strips in the same direction as the sub-floor, without the benifit of underlay plywood to seperate them. The result squeaks for itself.
The owner feels quite misled by this firm who assured him this was the ” industry standard ” they were following. I can assure you it is not and I will be preparing myself for the up coming Small Claims Court action my angry client intends to persue. This will be the third case that I have offered my services as an expert witness ( I helped win the first two) . I only hope this errant company settles out of court and avoids the public exposure I will give the case on this Web Site. These cases take almost a year to end up in the courtroom. So although I can’t name the contractor until they are found culpable, I can keep you abreast of the events as they unfold.
Tool Review: Health and Safety – ProKnee Knee Pads Model 07
If you are a professional wood floor contractor, you need a pair of knee pads that is going to last and you won’t need to replace every few months because you have worn them down. You need a pair of knee pads that will deliver support, comfort and protection to your joints.
The answer is simple: ProKnee brand Knee Pads Model 07. The people at ProKneee Corp. understand the ergonomics of kneeling and have designed their knee pads accordingly. They have developed a high quality, durable knee pad that delivers in comfort and protection. When you wear ProKnee knee pads on the job, you are protecting your knees from injury.
The design of ProKnee knee pads works in harmony with the typical movements of a flooring contractor. When you wear ProKnee knee pads, they force you to kneel properly. The knee is held firmly in place by the cup when you go down to kneel. It is important to keep the knee in place or else the knee cap may dislocate. This is a very painful injury that does not always heal properly. If you kneel improperly overtime you may tear tissue in your knee.
Another important feature of the ProKnee knee pads is that when you kneel, your body weight is not concentrated on your knees. The knee pads distribute the weight throughout your shins.
A common knee injury from concentrated weight when kneeling can result in a swollen knee. The reason for this is that you are putting the majority of your body weight onto your knee. In between the bone and the joint is a thin layer of cartilage that acts as a cushion to prevent the bone and joint from rubbing together. The more concentrated weight and impact you put on your knee, the more that layer of cartilage has the ability to wear away.
Concentrating your body weight onto your knees will commonly result in swelling. Sometimes a surgery for this injury involves draining the knee of fluid. This correctional procedure may take more than one operation.
Because the ProKnee knee pads redistribute your weight through the length of your shins, you will not encounter this problem. You will not experience swollen knees because you will never concentrate your weight onto your knees. Further, when resting on your calf muscles, the weight now brought into the shins allows you to prevent overstretching of your ligaments and muscles in your feet.
Another selling feature of the Pro Knees is the straps. It may seem less important but some knee pads have poorly designed straps. The result is frequent pinching and perhaps even a loss of circulation to your lower legs. Not only is this uncomfortable, this means that you are restricting the blood flow throughout your body when you are wearing your knee pads. The ProKnee knee pads are custom fit and the straps are placed 3″ below the knee joint. This allows you to kneel comfortably without being pinched at all. Your blood flow will be normal when kneeling in your ProKnee knee pads.
The material that Pro Knee knee pads are made with is another important feature that emphasizes the ability to cushion. They are constructed from a variety of both soft and resilient cellular urethane as well as a thinner layer of high-density cellular urethane. This enables the knee pads to absorb shock every time you go to kneel down. This means that your joints will be relaxed every time you kneel.
Many injuries are caused because of tension and rigidity. Think of a cat falling. When a cat falls, its body is extremely limp. Imagine what a cat’s fall would result in if its body was tense. Now think of kneeling in the same light. If you kneel with a relaxed joint, you will reduce the possibility of injury. If you anticipate shock when your knees are about to hit the floor, naturally your body will tense up. Think of the potential for injury when your joints are rigid.
Proper sizing is also necessary. Some come in assorted sizes but the majority of knee pads on the market come in one size fits all or in very basic sizes. This is unfortunate because things fit different people differently. An advantage of ProKnee knee pads is they are custom fit and come in 17 different sizes.
Measuring to determine your size for your new ProKnees is easy. All you do is remove your shoes. Place your foot flat on the floor. While standing, measure the distance from the floor to the top of your kneecap. Your knee must be straight. Also, when wearing work pants, in a standing position with straight knees, measure the widest part of your calf muscle. All you need are these two measurements and you are good to go.
Though ProKnee knee pads are in the more expensive range for knee pads, costing $230 per pair they are designed to last. Another great feature about them is if a component breaks overtime, it can be purchased and replaced from the company. From replacement straps and buckles to entire replacement part kits, once you purchase your pair of ProKnee knee pads, you will be certain you will have a pair for life!
It doesn’t matter how old you are. If you are younger, chances are that your body is more resilient However, when you purchase protective gear for the job, you are not only preventing injury now but for the long-term too. Not every symptom from an injury is expressed immediately. You can perform the same repetitive action, like kneeling down on a hardwood floor, and not feel pain. Then, suddenly one day you wake up with knee and back pain and wonder why!
The answer is simple: ProKnee brand Knee Pads Model 07. The people at ProKneee Corp. understand the ergonomics of kneeling and have designed their knee pads accordingly. They have developed a high quality, durable knee pad that delivers in comfort and protection. When you wear ProKnee knee pads on the job, you are protecting your knees from injury.
The design of ProKnee knee pads works in harmony with the typical movements of a flooring contractor. When you wear ProKnee knee pads, they force you to kneel properly. The knee is held firmly in place by the cup when you go down to kneel. It is important to keep the knee in place or else the knee cap may dislocate. This is a very painful injury that does not always heal properly. If you kneel improperly overtime you may tear tissue in your knee.
Another important feature of the ProKnee knee pads is that when you kneel, your body weight is not concentrated on your knees. The knee pads distribute the weight throughout your shins.
A common knee injury from concentrated weight when kneeling can result in a swollen knee. The reason for this is that you are putting the majority of your body weight onto your knee. In between the bone and the joint is a thin layer of cartilage that acts as a cushion to prevent the bone and joint from rubbing together. The more concentrated weight and impact you put on your knee, the more that layer of cartilage has the ability to wear away.
Concentrating your body weight onto your knees will commonly result in swelling. Sometimes a surgery for this injury involves draining the knee of fluid. This correctional procedure may take more than one operation.
Because the ProKnee knee pads redistribute your weight through the length of your shins, you will not encounter this problem. You will not experience swollen knees because you will never concentrate your weight onto your knees. Further, when resting on your calf muscles, the weight now brought into the shins allows you to prevent overstretching of your ligaments and muscles in your feet.
Another selling feature of the Pro Knees is the straps. It may seem less important but some knee pads have poorly designed straps. The result is frequent pinching and perhaps even a loss of circulation to your lower legs. Not only is this uncomfortable, this means that you are restricting the blood flow throughout your body when you are wearing your knee pads. The ProKnee knee pads are custom fit and the straps are placed 3″ below the knee joint. This allows you to kneel comfortably without being pinched at all. Your blood flow will be normal when kneeling in your ProKnee knee pads.
The material that Pro Knee knee pads are made with is another important feature that emphasizes the ability to cushion. They are constructed from a variety of both soft and resilient cellular urethane as well as a thinner layer of high-density cellular urethane. This enables the knee pads to absorb shock every time you go to kneel down. This means that your joints will be relaxed every time you kneel.
Many injuries are caused because of tension and rigidity. Think of a cat falling. When a cat falls, its body is extremely limp. Imagine what a cat’s fall would result in if its body was tense. Now think of kneeling in the same light. If you kneel with a relaxed joint, you will reduce the possibility of injury. If you anticipate shock when your knees are about to hit the floor, naturally your body will tense up. Think of the potential for injury when your joints are rigid.
Proper sizing is also necessary. Some come in assorted sizes but the majority of knee pads on the market come in one size fits all or in very basic sizes. This is unfortunate because things fit different people differently. An advantage of ProKnee knee pads is they are custom fit and come in 17 different sizes.
Measuring to determine your size for your new ProKnees is easy. All you do is remove your shoes. Place your foot flat on the floor. While standing, measure the distance from the floor to the top of your kneecap. Your knee must be straight. Also, when wearing work pants, in a standing position with straight knees, measure the widest part of your calf muscle. All you need are these two measurements and you are good to go.
Though ProKnee knee pads are in the more expensive range for knee pads, costing $230 per pair they are designed to last. Another great feature about them is if a component breaks overtime, it can be purchased and replaced from the company. From replacement straps and buckles to entire replacement part kits, once you purchase your pair of ProKnee knee pads, you will be certain you will have a pair for life!
It doesn’t matter how old you are. If you are younger, chances are that your body is more resilient However, when you purchase protective gear for the job, you are not only preventing injury now but for the long-term too. Not every symptom from an injury is expressed immediately. You can perform the same repetitive action, like kneeling down on a hardwood floor, and not feel pain. Then, suddenly one day you wake up with knee and back pain and wonder why! Guide to Health and Safety
This is meant to be an article about avoiding health robing practices when installing a new or sanding an old hardwood floor. But it may turn out to be a treatise on how to learn from the mistakes of others. Namely, my own really deadly mistakes.
What prompted me to write this, was a previous article I wrote some time ago called Lacquer Finish Floor Fires, in the Floored News section. I realize now what I have done to my health over the years is similar to what these poor floor men did in just a few seconds, when they were burned alive, applying a cheap lacquer sealer on a basement floor.
My brush with death came in the spring of 1998, when after recovering from a serious bout of pneumonia (that took 6 months), my blood tests were still not normal. After a battery of tests, the docs discovered I had Hairy Cell Leukemia. Don’t be too alarmed, I dying so slowly it will take 20 years or more. This should give me quite a bit more time than these guys had to warn you about potential health concerns. But I usually don’t mention brand names specifically, only the deadly components, when talking about ill-advised products. It will be up to you to discover the toxic components in these finishes and floors, and avoid them. That’s what the MSD sheets are for.
Let’s begin with protecting your toes and work north. Steel toe and shanked work boots are a real pain to wear, and I see most wood floor mechanics wearing nothing but running shoes these days. The piercing pain of a nail in your instep or the crushing fall of some part of the heavy drum sander will teach you this much too late. One of my employees had the 100-pound motor of the drum sander fall from his hands, and land squarely on his foot. But thank goodness he was wearing running shoes WITH steel toes. He was only away from work for a week, with a sore foot, instead of smashing the bones, and walking with a permanent limp.
My knees have suffered tremendously over these 23 years in the floor business. I’m often asked, “how are your knees?”, and I will quip back “what knees?” All joking aside there was a point about a year ago when I thought my sensitive and painful knees would spell the end of my floor career. I’ve tried just about every kneepad available, and about the only thing they accomplish is to make sweaty knees. Well along comes Pro Knee (at www.proknee.com) and I’ve got another couple of decades of use out of my sorry old leg joints. I’m not kidding when I say thesereally work. They have a
hard shield to protect your knees and lower leg against the harm. But here’s the real magic: They lift your feet just off the floor as you kneel so that your feet swing free. I’ve never seen or felt anything like it. They are expensive, and must be custom fitted to your leg, but my knees thank me every day. Check it out, before you are crippled. Just go to the web site and take a look at these easy to order orthopedic kneepads. You will not long remember how much you spent protecting your knees, but you will thank the guy who invented these every day you wear them.
Lets talk about your skin, after all this is the biggest organ of your body. Expose it to too many toxic solvents, and you may end up with a oncologist as a second doctor, just like I have. In one of my early articles about the Dura Seal 1000 water base finish (in the Floored News), I mention all the nasty chemicals in this comparatively safe finish. But when the Dura Seal company rep read it, he remarked “We really don’t like to emphasize this aspect of our product”. While I may have lost a potential corporate sponsor, I was simply trying to warn you of the hazards with even water-based finishes. Skin contact with this stuff is not a good idea, but don’t pour it down the drain, the fish cannot handle these deadly solvents either. Even with water based finishes you will need to wear rubber gloves. Some of the most durable water based finishes have a azridine hardener (ETHYLENEIMINE) additive. Come into contact with this stuff and you risk skin irritation, tumors and even cancer. Who said all water-based finishes are safe?
When you clean up after water based finishes, you can dispose of the wash water by pouring it into a large tray, and letting the water evaporate off. The left over film will be fairly safe to dispose in the landfill. This goes double when you use oil based floor finishes. Wash your brushes with solvent, and keep the solvent. When you have enough, bring to your local solvent recycle station, run privately or to your toxic waste disposal transfer site, run by your town or city. Some municipalities have a toxic taxi, which will pick up your solvent wastes once a year. Be sure you store them in a safe place, in the mean time. Or you can let the solids in the solvent settle, filter it and reuse it yourself. This could make oil based finishes a lot less polluting.
Your lungs can suffer from the dust and the fumes of finishing a floor. It’s like a double toxic whammy. If your old floor finish was applied before about 1970 it may contain lead acetate in its metallic driers. This dry film is fairly safe, until you fill the air with the dust of this finish, during resanding. It may be worth your while, to test the finish for lead BEFORE you begin. Then figure what alternative methods besides sanding you should use to restore this floor.
I get a lot of inquiries about how to remove the old back adhesive used before the 1960’s to glue down many tile floors over a nice old hardwood or softwood floors. Very commonly these adhesives (black or brown) contained asbestos, and should never be sanded. They are called asphalt cut back adhesives, and should only be wet stripped. So how does one do this? Read on.
There are alternatives to sanding off an old finish. I wrote an article on how to safely chemically strip wood floors. The lead and asbestos content on these floors are yet another reason to use this method. You’ll find the article in the Floored News section. Using the products I mention in this article will give you little or no toxic exposure to the lead in the finish. Disposal of the used stripper poses little problems, as the left over goo contains only doubly diluted lead. But frankly, with the asbestos cut back adhesive, you should call in a local expert to confirm that this is a safe method. The stripper itself at least is only mildly toxic (Citristrip).
But even if the lead content in the finish is low or non existent there are several things you can do to minimize your exposure to wood dust. Wood dust itself is a suspected carcinogen. The large drum sander is not so prone to creating dust. It has efficient and powerful vacuum, and as long as you don’t have a hole in the dust bag, the dust is minimal. The real culprit is the little edger. It simply spews dust, due to its rapid removal of floor material. Pro Sand ® floor machines (www.bonakemi.com) have come up with an elegant and simple method of eliminating this dust. This may even allow of the safe sanding of leaded paint and varnished floors. It consists of a industrial vacuum attached to the edger, with a power cord and switch, all integrated. I’ve managed to imitate this system myself, until I can afford to buy a Pro Sand ®. Simply hook up your edger to the hose of a really big industrial vacuum, turn it on, and enjoy dust free edging.
As side benefit, you are able to see the perimeter of the floor much better as you go. The light on the edger finally will show you your fine edger marks, so you can keep them to a minimum. I hope to see this system in the more enlightened rental stores. You can also get a floor buffer that attaches to the vacuum in the same way from Pro Sand ®. This will allow the floor mechanic to be truly dust less in the final sanding or screening between coats. With the Pro Sand buffer you can screen and re-coat old finishes, and assure yourself and your client a really dust free job. This will avoid having to use all those mildly toxic and expensive liquids that supposedly chemically etch the floor in preparation for re-coating.
One more thing about sanding dust before I move on. I’m a little alarmed to see most prefinished wood floor makers using aluminum oxide as an additive in the factory applied conversion finish. This will not be toxic in the manufacturing process, or in daily use of your floor. But think for a second, what happens when these floors are sanded some time in the future. Aluminum oxide is a lung irritant and a possible carcinogen. Oh, you may think I’m never going to have to sand a floor with a 25-year warranty on it. The next article I’ll write is all about the reality and fantasy of these warranties. Suffice it to say here, that depending on how you treat the floor, all those little dents and gouges will only go away with a resanding. How soon you will need to resand a floor depends on how you care for it. Please read my floor maintenance article in the Floored News, so that you can put off this sanding almost indefinitely.
But when you have to sand, at least wear good dust masks. I rarely find decent ones at my local hardware store or big box store, they are just trying to sell you the cheapest model. Go to www.leevalley.com and search their site for chemical and dust masks. You might find yourself spending as much as 2-3 dollars a day to save your lungs when floor sanding. If you find this too pricey, try buying a set of lightly used lungs when yours are worn out.
It’s quite a nuisance to wear but use a activated charcoal mask when applying any floor finish. Be sure to bring a kerchief with you so that the condensation that inevitably leaks from the mask doesn’t drip into the finish.
Or better yet get one of those fan driven face masks, that blow the filtered air over your face covered in a Plexiglas mask. This you should use for the most toxic moisture cured urethanes and Swedish finishes. You may find your vision too restricted by this sort of mask in every day use with water based or oil based finishes. So a normal respirator will do with these coatings. And yes, you even should use masks when applying water based finishes, these contain toxic solvents too. Be sure to read the Dura Seal Article in this site if you doubt this.
I’ll end this article at the top of your head, where your ears and eyes are. I only hope you are still listening. I suffered hearing loss early in my career when it was considered not manly to wear earphones. But it didn’t take me too long to get over that. All the machines including those industrial vacuums have ear-damaging decibels coming from them. Once you’ve lost your hearing you will never get it back. What’s that you say? YOU NEVER GET IT BACK, I SAID !!!!!!
Why don’t you try one of the new types of ear protectors. You can enjoy your favorite tunes, with the more expensive models that have FM stereo radios (available at www.leevalley.com). With it’s built in loud sound protected microphone you can hear normal conversations easily when the loud noises cease.
Your eyes need to be protected while hammering nails. All it takes is a sliver of metal to impair your vision for life. And the silicone carbide sanding particles coming off the edger will harmlessly bounce off your safety glasses, IF YOU REMEMBERED TO WEAR THEM.
Oh, and let me go back to your knees once again. It has been discovered by knee surgeons that too much walking on hard surfaces causes damage to knee joints. Genetically speaking, we are more suited to the grassy savanna, and need some cushioning for our feet. And guess what floor surface promotes this knee damage, yes, our beloved hardwood floors. I see too many houses these days with acres of hardwood, and not a soft area carpet in sight. My knees just ache at the sight. Add area carpets generously, and wear cushioned indoor shoes. Apparently Burkenstock or Mephisto sandals are just the thing.
All in all, I believe that you will enjoy your work more by feeling more comfortable and protected. You will be able to take your time and do the job well the first time. The real expensive job is the one that needs to be done over and over because the tradesmen rushes through the essential steps. Rushing because of knee problems, back aches, or trying to finish before the toxic fumes overwhelm them. If trades people refuse to protect themselves, how will they treat you and your floor? As far as I know, we are given only one body, and one life, this is not a dress rehearsal. Why not be comfortable in you own skin, and make this journey called LIFE, last as long as possible?
hard shield to protect your knees and lower leg against the harm. But here’s the real magic: They lift your feet just off the floor as you kneel so that your feet swing free. I’ve never seen or felt anything like it. They are expensive, and must be custom fitted to your leg, but my knees thank me every day. Check it out, before you are crippled. Just go to the web site and take a look at these easy to order orthopedic kneepads. You will not long remember how much you spent protecting your knees, but you will thank the guy who invented these every day you wear them.
Lets talk about your skin, after all this is the biggest organ of your body. Expose it to too many toxic solvents, and you may end up with a oncologist as a second doctor, just like I have. In one of my early articles about the Dura Seal 1000 water base finish (in the Floored News), I mention all the nasty chemicals in this comparatively safe finish. But when the Dura Seal company rep read it, he remarked “We really don’t like to emphasize this aspect of our product”. While I may have lost a potential corporate sponsor, I was simply trying to warn you of the hazards with even water-based finishes. Skin contact with this stuff is not a good idea, but don’t pour it down the drain, the fish cannot handle these deadly solvents either. Even with water based finishes you will need to wear rubber gloves. Some of the most durable water based finishes have a azridine hardener (ETHYLENEIMINE) additive. Come into contact with this stuff and you risk skin irritation, tumors and even cancer. Who said all water-based finishes are safe?
When you clean up after water based finishes, you can dispose of the wash water by pouring it into a large tray, and letting the water evaporate off. The left over film will be fairly safe to dispose in the landfill. This goes double when you use oil based floor finishes. Wash your brushes with solvent, and keep the solvent. When you have enough, bring to your local solvent recycle station, run privately or to your toxic waste disposal transfer site, run by your town or city. Some municipalities have a toxic taxi, which will pick up your solvent wastes once a year. Be sure you store them in a safe place, in the mean time. Or you can let the solids in the solvent settle, filter it and reuse it yourself. This could make oil based finishes a lot less polluting.
Your lungs can suffer from the dust and the fumes of finishing a floor. It’s like a double toxic whammy. If your old floor finish was applied before about 1970 it may contain lead acetate in its metallic driers. This dry film is fairly safe, until you fill the air with the dust of this finish, during resanding. It may be worth your while, to test the finish for lead BEFORE you begin. Then figure what alternative methods besides sanding you should use to restore this floor.
I get a lot of inquiries about how to remove the old back adhesive used before the 1960’s to glue down many tile floors over a nice old hardwood or softwood floors. Very commonly these adhesives (black or brown) contained asbestos, and should never be sanded. They are called asphalt cut back adhesives, and should only be wet stripped. So how does one do this? Read on.
There are alternatives to sanding off an old finish. I wrote an article on how to safely chemically strip wood floors. The lead and asbestos content on these floors are yet another reason to use this method. You’ll find the article in the Floored News section. Using the products I mention in this article will give you little or no toxic exposure to the lead in the finish. Disposal of the used stripper poses little problems, as the left over goo contains only doubly diluted lead. But frankly, with the asbestos cut back adhesive, you should call in a local expert to confirm that this is a safe method. The stripper itself at least is only mildly toxic (Citristrip).
But even if the lead content in the finish is low or non existent there are several things you can do to minimize your exposure to wood dust. Wood dust itself is a suspected carcinogen. The large drum sander is not so prone to creating dust. It has efficient and powerful vacuum, and as long as you don’t have a hole in the dust bag, the dust is minimal. The real culprit is the little edger. It simply spews dust, due to its rapid removal of floor material. Pro Sand ® floor machines (www.bonakemi.com) have come up with an elegant and simple method of eliminating this dust. This may even allow of the safe sanding of leaded paint and varnished floors. It consists of a industrial vacuum attached to the edger, with a power cord and switch, all integrated. I’ve managed to imitate this system myself, until I can afford to buy a Pro Sand ®. Simply hook up your edger to the hose of a really big industrial vacuum, turn it on, and enjoy dust free edging.
As side benefit, you are able to see the perimeter of the floor much better as you go. The light on the edger finally will show you your fine edger marks, so you can keep them to a minimum. I hope to see this system in the more enlightened rental stores. You can also get a floor buffer that attaches to the vacuum in the same way from Pro Sand ®. This will allow the floor mechanic to be truly dust less in the final sanding or screening between coats. With the Pro Sand buffer you can screen and re-coat old finishes, and assure yourself and your client a really dust free job. This will avoid having to use all those mildly toxic and expensive liquids that supposedly chemically etch the floor in preparation for re-coating.
One more thing about sanding dust before I move on. I’m a little alarmed to see most prefinished wood floor makers using aluminum oxide as an additive in the factory applied conversion finish. This will not be toxic in the manufacturing process, or in daily use of your floor. But think for a second, what happens when these floors are sanded some time in the future. Aluminum oxide is a lung irritant and a possible carcinogen. Oh, you may think I’m never going to have to sand a floor with a 25-year warranty on it. The next article I’ll write is all about the reality and fantasy of these warranties. Suffice it to say here, that depending on how you treat the floor, all those little dents and gouges will only go away with a resanding. How soon you will need to resand a floor depends on how you care for it. Please read my floor maintenance article in the Floored News, so that you can put off this sanding almost indefinitely.
But when you have to sand, at least wear good dust masks. I rarely find decent ones at my local hardware store or big box store, they are just trying to sell you the cheapest model. Go to www.leevalley.com and search their site for chemical and dust masks. You might find yourself spending as much as 2-3 dollars a day to save your lungs when floor sanding. If you find this too pricey, try buying a set of lightly used lungs when yours are worn out.
It’s quite a nuisance to wear but use a activated charcoal mask when applying any floor finish. Be sure to bring a kerchief with you so that the condensation that inevitably leaks from the mask doesn’t drip into the finish.
Or better yet get one of those fan driven face masks, that blow the filtered air over your face covered in a Plexiglas mask. This you should use for the most toxic moisture cured urethanes and Swedish finishes. You may find your vision too restricted by this sort of mask in every day use with water based or oil based finishes. So a normal respirator will do with these coatings. And yes, you even should use masks when applying water based finishes, these contain toxic solvents too. Be sure to read the Dura Seal Article in this site if you doubt this.
I’ll end this article at the top of your head, where your ears and eyes are. I only hope you are still listening. I suffered hearing loss early in my career when it was considered not manly to wear earphones. But it didn’t take me too long to get over that. All the machines including those industrial vacuums have ear-damaging decibels coming from them. Once you’ve lost your hearing you will never get it back. What’s that you say? YOU NEVER GET IT BACK, I SAID !!!!!!
Why don’t you try one of the new types of ear protectors. You can enjoy your favorite tunes, with the more expensive models that have FM stereo radios (available at www.leevalley.com). With it’s built in loud sound protected microphone you can hear normal conversations easily when the loud noises cease.
Your eyes need to be protected while hammering nails. All it takes is a sliver of metal to impair your vision for life. And the silicone carbide sanding particles coming off the edger will harmlessly bounce off your safety glasses, IF YOU REMEMBERED TO WEAR THEM.
Oh, and let me go back to your knees once again. It has been discovered by knee surgeons that too much walking on hard surfaces causes damage to knee joints. Genetically speaking, we are more suited to the grassy savanna, and need some cushioning for our feet. And guess what floor surface promotes this knee damage, yes, our beloved hardwood floors. I see too many houses these days with acres of hardwood, and not a soft area carpet in sight. My knees just ache at the sight. Add area carpets generously, and wear cushioned indoor shoes. Apparently Burkenstock or Mephisto sandals are just the thing.
All in all, I believe that you will enjoy your work more by feeling more comfortable and protected. You will be able to take your time and do the job well the first time. The real expensive job is the one that needs to be done over and over because the tradesmen rushes through the essential steps. Rushing because of knee problems, back aches, or trying to finish before the toxic fumes overwhelm them. If trades people refuse to protect themselves, how will they treat you and your floor? As far as I know, we are given only one body, and one life, this is not a dress rehearsal. Why not be comfortable in you own skin, and make this journey called LIFE, last as long as possible? Should I Sand Wood Floors Myself or Hire a Pro?
While your gender won’t affect your ability to sand a floor, your lack of training will. You just cannot pick up the floor sanding trade on a weekend. It took me 6 months of full time work, before I was let loose on client’s fine wood floors. Suffice it to say I cannot teach you how to sand a floor by e-mail or in this web site. It is a strictly hands on training. And I doubt that the rental places will give you a course on sanding and finishing your floor. The “toy” floor sanders they rent at all the tool rental shops will not, in any case, do a decent job of sanding your floor.
By “toy” floor sanders, I mean the 110 volt drum sanders, that you will find in most all rental yards. Yes, these plug right into the wall outlet, but lack the weight and power to sand a floor well. The machines we pros use cost up to $10,000 and weigh in at about 250 pounds. They have powerful 3 – 7 HP motors that are designed especially not to stall when encountering a tough floor. The weight and balance of these professional machines keeps them steady as they pass across the floor. With a well-maintained heavy-duty floor machine, and a well seasoned pro at the helm, your floor will be quickly and evenly sanded the first time.
Many old floors cannot handle any mistakes made by amateur floor sanders. The floor may become too thin when sanded badly, and you may find you have permanently ruined an expensive hardwood floor. I pity the home owner who does this, as I think they are being duped by the tool rental trade. If you are a tenant of an apartment unit, you may find yourself on the wrong end of a lawsuit, when you permanently ruin the landlord’s nice wood floor.
I strongly advise you hire out the sanding part of the job. NOBODY I know that has sanded their own floors will EVER do it again. In most cases they have used far too much rental time and sandpaper. And in the end the results were from barely passable in low light, to downright butt ugly floors. It has lowered the value of the property in some cases. Potential new buyers may realize that the badly sanded hardwood floor now needs replacing, at great expense. Not much money saved here, when they discount the replacement price of the hardwood floors off your asking price for the property.
The rental machines are light duty, and will leave pronounced chatter (machine vibration) marks in your floor. You will not be able to see this until you apply the stain or the finish. The chatter marks show up as stripes or waves going against the grain of the wood, and are really obvious on a stained floor. But by the time you are applying the finish it’s far too late to start over. What an EXTREME disappointment !!
The other problem is the machine operator, who has little or no training to pass this machine smoothly and evenly across the floor. Most of the mistakes are made in the first passes with coarse grit sandpaper, and these cannot be removed with the medium or fine paper. The amateur does not recognize things are going wrong until the finish is applied. You simply cannot put the damaged wood back.
So instead here’s what I suggest. Hire a well known professional in your area to sand the floor ONLY. You shouldn’t have to pay much more than a buck per square foot for about 300 square feet or more. And the contractor will be happy because all his work is done in a day, and he will have no call backs for finish defects.
But by all means do the finishing of the floor yourself, this is where some floor contractors come a bit short. They often won’t apply enough floor finish, or will use cheaper fast dry lacquer sealers. Read my article on Lacquer Finish Floor Fires in the Floored News section, and you will see why it’s best to avoid having some cheap flooring contractors apply this finish to your floor. And please be sure to read my Hiring Contractors article in the Hardwood Authority section.
You may have a softwood (like pine or fir) floor. These woods are very soft and they will easily gouge. An experienced pro will know how to sand this much smoother than you ever could. But you can take the time to finish this wood better than he would when you apply 4 coats of oil modified polyurethane. You may find hiring the pro for the sanding is only just a little beyond the cost of the rental route. This would undoubtedly be the case if this old floor has been heavily painted. We all carry 16 grit sandpaper in our tool boxes to quickly and easily remove this tough floor paint. But only the rare machine rental place would have such coarse sandpaper. So instead you will find yourself spending a fortune on less effective sandpaper that clogs continually on these light machines. Much to the glee of the rental company, as you return for more rental time and more expensive sandpaper. Just what is you own time and labor worth anyway ?
Be sure to read the Wood Floor Maintenance article and the Chemical Stripping article, both free in the Floored News section of this web site. You may not have to sand the floor after all. And the Orbital Floor Sander article is another route to go. There are many alternatives to sanding a floor.
If you take the time to buy, read and understand the details in my “Applying Polyurethane without the Bubbles” article, the finish on your wood floor will be as good, if not better than most professionals. You could also buy and read my floor sanding articles, if only how to judge a good floor sanding method. This will be cheap insurance when hiring a guy to sand but not finish your wood floor. With this article you will know just how floors are best sanded, not the sloppy and fast way some contractors go about this vital task. Even when hiring a pro to sand only, get references, and a written quotation.
I hope I have talked you out of sanding your own floor. I hope this doesn’t make me an enemy of the rental yards, but I have seen far too many butchered wood floor surfaces in my 24 years. But if you are going to have the floor sanded only there will some tools that would be worthwhile renting. You will need an industrial vacuum, a floor buffer (for “screening” the finish between coats) and hand held vibrator sander (for smoothing the edges, if your flooring contractor will not do this step). The rental yards may also sell finishes meant for floor use, and this may be a good place to buy them at a good price.
Oh, and for a limited application, the rental yards have the Orbital Floor Sander, that any amateur can operate well and safely. Just be sure you read my article about this machine in the Product Review section of this site. This machine cannot be used to sand new floors, or remove all the finish from old floor, without really messing up the wood. But read the free article and you will see what I mean.
Good luck and I hope you make the right choice, for the sake of your floor.
Many old floors cannot handle any mistakes made by amateur floor sanders. The floor may become too thin when sanded badly, and you may find you have permanently ruined an expensive hardwood floor. I pity the home owner who does this, as I think they are being duped by the tool rental trade. If you are a tenant of an apartment unit, you may find yourself on the wrong end of a lawsuit, when you permanently ruin the landlord’s nice wood floor.
I strongly advise you hire out the sanding part of the job. NOBODY I know that has sanded their own floors will EVER do it again. In most cases they have used far too much rental time and sandpaper. And in the end the results were from barely passable in low light, to downright butt ugly floors. It has lowered the value of the property in some cases. Potential new buyers may realize that the badly sanded hardwood floor now needs replacing, at great expense. Not much money saved here, when they discount the replacement price of the hardwood floors off your asking price for the property.
The rental machines are light duty, and will leave pronounced chatter (machine vibration) marks in your floor. You will not be able to see this until you apply the stain or the finish. The chatter marks show up as stripes or waves going against the grain of the wood, and are really obvious on a stained floor. But by the time you are applying the finish it’s far too late to start over. What an EXTREME disappointment !!
The other problem is the machine operator, who has little or no training to pass this machine smoothly and evenly across the floor. Most of the mistakes are made in the first passes with coarse grit sandpaper, and these cannot be removed with the medium or fine paper. The amateur does not recognize things are going wrong until the finish is applied. You simply cannot put the damaged wood back.
So instead here’s what I suggest. Hire a well known professional in your area to sand the floor ONLY. You shouldn’t have to pay much more than a buck per square foot for about 300 square feet or more. And the contractor will be happy because all his work is done in a day, and he will have no call backs for finish defects.
But by all means do the finishing of the floor yourself, this is where some floor contractors come a bit short. They often won’t apply enough floor finish, or will use cheaper fast dry lacquer sealers. Read my article on Lacquer Finish Floor Fires in the Floored News section, and you will see why it’s best to avoid having some cheap flooring contractors apply this finish to your floor. And please be sure to read my Hiring Contractors article in the Hardwood Authority section.
You may have a softwood (like pine or fir) floor. These woods are very soft and they will easily gouge. An experienced pro will know how to sand this much smoother than you ever could. But you can take the time to finish this wood better than he would when you apply 4 coats of oil modified polyurethane. You may find hiring the pro for the sanding is only just a little beyond the cost of the rental route. This would undoubtedly be the case if this old floor has been heavily painted. We all carry 16 grit sandpaper in our tool boxes to quickly and easily remove this tough floor paint. But only the rare machine rental place would have such coarse sandpaper. So instead you will find yourself spending a fortune on less effective sandpaper that clogs continually on these light machines. Much to the glee of the rental company, as you return for more rental time and more expensive sandpaper. Just what is you own time and labor worth anyway ?
Be sure to read the Wood Floor Maintenance article and the Chemical Stripping article, both free in the Floored News section of this web site. You may not have to sand the floor after all. And the Orbital Floor Sander article is another route to go. There are many alternatives to sanding a floor.
If you take the time to buy, read and understand the details in my “Applying Polyurethane without the Bubbles” article, the finish on your wood floor will be as good, if not better than most professionals. You could also buy and read my floor sanding articles, if only how to judge a good floor sanding method. This will be cheap insurance when hiring a guy to sand but not finish your wood floor. With this article you will know just how floors are best sanded, not the sloppy and fast way some contractors go about this vital task. Even when hiring a pro to sand only, get references, and a written quotation.
I hope I have talked you out of sanding your own floor. I hope this doesn’t make me an enemy of the rental yards, but I have seen far too many butchered wood floor surfaces in my 24 years. But if you are going to have the floor sanded only there will some tools that would be worthwhile renting. You will need an industrial vacuum, a floor buffer (for “screening” the finish between coats) and hand held vibrator sander (for smoothing the edges, if your flooring contractor will not do this step). The rental yards may also sell finishes meant for floor use, and this may be a good place to buy them at a good price.
Oh, and for a limited application, the rental yards have the Orbital Floor Sander, that any amateur can operate well and safely. Just be sure you read my article about this machine in the Product Review section of this site. This machine cannot be used to sand new floors, or remove all the finish from old floor, without really messing up the wood. But read the free article and you will see what I mean.
Good luck and I hope you make the right choice, for the sake of your floor. The Bellawood, Bruce and Anderson Pacific Warranty Guide
When selecting a wood floor brand, it is important to read the warranty carefully. The warranty will clearly state what is and is not acceptable with regard to your hardwood floor. It will explain how and when you are protected should something go wrong. Some people will choose a wood floor based on the warranty. This is not recommended. In contrast, other people will purchase a wood floor and not even glance at the warranty. This is also not recommended. It is important to read your warranty for sure so you know how to make a claim if you need to. If you want to be in the know and prevent an emergency, read over this article and the manufacturer’s warranty before installing your floor!
It is hard to select a wood floor brand when there are so many on the market, but the quality, price, style, and so forth should be the determining criteria for your floor. The warranty should never ever be a deciding factor for purchasing your floor. In fact, as we look at some of these warranties closely, we will begin to understand how convoluted they are and how many loopholes they actually have. Even though some of these warranties may look appealing on the onset, the closer we look at them, the more we will see that they really do not protect the purchaser all that much.
Most floor warranties will be coupled with a floor maintenance or floor care kit guide. The reason for this being that it shows the homeowner what to do when a problem occurs. Most floor warranties protect the purchaser very little. The floor maintenance kit is available to you so that you can fix your floor by yourself. The manufacturer typically wants to avoid phone calls from people who have purchased their floors. The manufacturer knows that a phone call usually means a floor problem.
So what does your warranty actually cover? This article will have an in-depth look at three different companies, namely; Bellawood Prefinished Hardwood Flooring, Bruce Flooring and Anderson Pacific Floors. As we examine these warranties and translate them into laymen’s English, you will notice that most of these warranties are actually quite similar to each other with regard to what they will cover.
Bellawood Prefinished Hardwood Flooring
Their Warranty: Bellawood 50 Year Residential, 5 Year Commercial Warranty
The Bellawood warranty only covers floorboards that have not yet been installed. Once the floorboards have been installed, Bellawood sees the homeowner as approving of the floor the way it is. Stated differently, if the floor has already been laid, the purchaser has seen no defects in the wood and consequently, will not be covered if he notices something after the floor has been installed. The idea is that if the homeowner has chosen to lay the floor, the floor should be perfect and flawless. Lumber Liquidators, the reseller of Bellawood, has written up the warranty in conjunction with the manufacturer.
Most people are going to encounter problems with their floors after they have been installed. When the floorboards arrive, usually there are not that many problems yet.
Bellawood states that 5% of the total square footage in domestic species and 10% of the total square footage in exotic species may have some milling, grading and finish defects. The consumer is to allow for this when purchasing a floor. This is referred to in the industry as “waste factor”, and it will not be covered in the warranty.
It reads, “Installed product is considered accepted by the purchaser/installer and, as such, is not covered under the warranty…” If there are floorboards that do not meet the purchaser’s standards, when it is less than 5%, the manufacturer will never cover this. It is up to the homeowner to hide the flawed floorboards in a closet or trim off the areas and not use them at all.
Like the majority of warranties, the Bellawood one is not transferable. It is only granted to the original purchaser. If the homeowner decides to sell the house, the warranty becomes void. Most people do not live in a house for 50 years nowadays. A 50-year warranty may sound very appealing, but it actually does not really mean anything. Also, the warranty only grants store credit. No monetary consolation is ever given. Perhaps you may get a new floor if you are lucky but you will have to pay for the removal of the old floor and the installation of the new floor.
If there are any problems because of how the floor was installed, the sub-surface, the subflooring material, or onsite environmental deficiencies are not covered under the Bellawood warranty. Anything that is not the direct result of the Bellawood floor itself is considered unrelated and consequentially not covered in the warranty.
Bellawood has a very specific list of criteria that the purchaser/installer has to meet or exceed in order to fall under the warranty. Details such as temperature, moisture, how the subfloor is laid, and so forth are necessary to follow if the warranty is to be usable. Some floor contractors will not even look at the warranty. This means that they will not lay the floor according to the manufacturer’s specifications. It is obviously important to find a floor contractor who will take into consideration the warranty specifications especially if it expressly states how to install a floor. This way, you will have your floor warranty to back you up if the need arises.
Because hardwood floors are naturally derived, color, tone and grain variations are not covered under the Bellawood warranty. This is pretty standard in floor warranties. Similarly, when a floor expands and contracts, it is considered an environmental occurrence that may create gaps between floorboards. Because this is an act of nature (also called and act of God), Bellawood is not liable for repairing or replacing these floors. Moisture problems that create warping and cupping are not covered because it could be environmental, caused by an unapproved cleaning product or the result of a leaky pipe.
The compensation will never exceed the cost of the floor that was purchased. This is the Bellawood floor warranty in a nutshell.
Bruce
Similar to Bellawood, the Bruce warranty is not transferable. In fact, you actually have to present the sales slip when you want to use the Bruce warranty.
Bellawood Prefinished Hardwood Flooring
Their Warranty: Bellawood 50 Year Residential, 5 Year Commercial Warranty
The Bellawood warranty only covers floorboards that have not yet been installed. Once the floorboards have been installed, Bellawood sees the homeowner as approving of the floor the way it is. Stated differently, if the floor has already been laid, the purchaser has seen no defects in the wood and consequently, will not be covered if he notices something after the floor has been installed. The idea is that if the homeowner has chosen to lay the floor, the floor should be perfect and flawless. Lumber Liquidators, the reseller of Bellawood, has written up the warranty in conjunction with the manufacturer.
Most people are going to encounter problems with their floors after they have been installed. When the floorboards arrive, usually there are not that many problems yet.
Bellawood states that 5% of the total square footage in domestic species and 10% of the total square footage in exotic species may have some milling, grading and finish defects. The consumer is to allow for this when purchasing a floor. This is referred to in the industry as “waste factor”, and it will not be covered in the warranty.
It reads, “Installed product is considered accepted by the purchaser/installer and, as such, is not covered under the warranty…” If there are floorboards that do not meet the purchaser’s standards, when it is less than 5%, the manufacturer will never cover this. It is up to the homeowner to hide the flawed floorboards in a closet or trim off the areas and not use them at all.
Like the majority of warranties, the Bellawood one is not transferable. It is only granted to the original purchaser. If the homeowner decides to sell the house, the warranty becomes void. Most people do not live in a house for 50 years nowadays. A 50-year warranty may sound very appealing, but it actually does not really mean anything. Also, the warranty only grants store credit. No monetary consolation is ever given. Perhaps you may get a new floor if you are lucky but you will have to pay for the removal of the old floor and the installation of the new floor.
If there are any problems because of how the floor was installed, the sub-surface, the subflooring material, or onsite environmental deficiencies are not covered under the Bellawood warranty. Anything that is not the direct result of the Bellawood floor itself is considered unrelated and consequentially not covered in the warranty.
Bellawood has a very specific list of criteria that the purchaser/installer has to meet or exceed in order to fall under the warranty. Details such as temperature, moisture, how the subfloor is laid, and so forth are necessary to follow if the warranty is to be usable. Some floor contractors will not even look at the warranty. This means that they will not lay the floor according to the manufacturer’s specifications. It is obviously important to find a floor contractor who will take into consideration the warranty specifications especially if it expressly states how to install a floor. This way, you will have your floor warranty to back you up if the need arises.
Because hardwood floors are naturally derived, color, tone and grain variations are not covered under the Bellawood warranty. This is pretty standard in floor warranties. Similarly, when a floor expands and contracts, it is considered an environmental occurrence that may create gaps between floorboards. Because this is an act of nature (also called and act of God), Bellawood is not liable for repairing or replacing these floors. Moisture problems that create warping and cupping are not covered because it could be environmental, caused by an unapproved cleaning product or the result of a leaky pipe.
The compensation will never exceed the cost of the floor that was purchased. This is the Bellawood floor warranty in a nutshell.
Bruce
Similar to Bellawood, the Bruce warranty is not transferable. In fact, you actually have to present the sales slip when you want to use the Bruce warranty.
The Bruce warranty is only good for 25 years.
Bruce has many warranty clauses that protect the consumer with regard to very specific details. However, there are limitations to how their warranty works. For example, the Lifetime Subfloor Moisture Protection Warranty only protects you if you keep your proof of pre-installation moisture test results and sales slip confirming your use of Bruce’s recommended adhesives. Not everybody remembers to moisture test before laying floors. The Radiant-heated Subfloor Warranty requires the homeowner to keep the flooring surface at or below 85oF (29oC) and the relative humidity between 35% and 55%. It is up to the homeowner and the installer to inspect the flooring before it is installed. Bruce will not accept claims on wood floors including labor costs where there have been problems with the wood. This clause is exactly like the Bellawood statement in their warranty. Always examine your floorboards carefully before they are installed. Bruce goes through all the details of what the company will do if the homeowner needs to use the warranty. It is detailed and pretty fair. In order to use the Bruce warranty, you need to present your sales slip, make sure that none of the warranty conditions were broken, and that your claim is in the appropriate timeframe. The Bruce warranty will cover the following: recoating, refinishing, filling or furnishing comparable flooring (of their brand) for the repair of a defective area or the replacement of the entire floor. It is not up to the homeowner to determine if the floor is to be repaired or replaced. Rather, it is up to Bruce to decide what the necessary action will be. If Bruce has tried to repair the floor and has been unsuccessful after several attempts, the company will refund the consumer for the portion of the floor that is faulty. Further, if the floor was professionally installed, Bruce will pay a reasonable amount to compensate for the labor costs. This probably means that you may get quite a bit less than what you actually paid, but nevertheless you will get some money. (Considering that we just examined the Bellawood warranty, Bruce is clearly better for its warranty not to say that you should ever judge a floor by its warranty.) Bruce will also pay for the cost of direct repairs or replacement. The repairs or replacement would only be covered to a maximum of five years of the warranty. The Lifetime Subfloor Moisture Protection Warranty only permits that the floor will be replaced or repaired once. If for whatever reason, there are still problems, Bruce states that its flooring products are not recommended for the site conditions and is therefore not liable. The homeowner must only use what Bruce recommends with regard to floor care in order to keep the warranty valid. This is the case for the majority of flooring manufacturers. Many people who get hardwood floors use whatever cleaning product is trendy or is recommended to them at their local hardware store. This is a very fast and easy way to void your warranty. It is very important to always use what the manufacturer recommends. That said the list of what Bruce does not cover is quite long. Any act of nature, flooding and water damage, humidity problems that cause the planks to separate, fires, color variations and changes, instillation defects, and so forth are not covered. Commonly, in most floor warranties including Bruce’s, you will see that scratches or indentations and the reduction in the gloss finish are not covered. In the warranty, Bruce explains how to take care of your wood floor with regard to specific spills like candle wax, chewing gum, ink, grease, etc. It also goes over all of the products to use for your floor and when they are necessary. The Bruce warranty equips its consumer with the knowledge he needs to protect and care for his floor. What does Bruce actually protect? If you examine the warranty very closely, you will notice that they actually protect you very little. In fact, their list of what they do not protect against is quite long. If the problem is very clearly a defect in the wood floor planks and it has nothing to do with how the floor was treated, not the result of a faulty subfloor and not related to an act of God, then there is a good chance that Bruce will protect you. Every situation is different and it is obviously hard to assess a floor without seeing it. If there is a chance that the problem looks like it was the fault of the homeowner, it seems that Bruce will definitely notice that and not compensate.
Anderson Pacific Floors (these are engineered hardwood floors)
Unlike Bruce and Bellawood, the Anderson Pacific warranty begins with the floor maintenance section. It states that their recommended cleaning routine must be employed regularly to ensure the longevity of their floors. Because an engineered floor is built differently than an unfinished hardwood floor, the warranty specifications are significantly different then the Bellawood and Bruce warranties. A primary concern with engineered hardwood floors is that the plies should separate. If this occurs because of glue bond failure, Anderson will compensate the homeowner. However, this compensation is only good for three of their collections; the Homestead Collection, the Maritime Collection and the Kingsbay Collection. Anderson feels that their finish should not wear or peel off if the floor is treated properly. They give a fifteen year warranty on the floor finish for the above three collections as well as the Cumberland Collection. Anderson will replace the necessary floorboards, recoat the area or refund the cost of the affected planks. However, the problem sections have to meet or exceed 10% of the entire surface area of the floor to be considered. Surface wear is not covered in this warranty. It includes scratches in the finish and gloss reduction. The Adhesive Bond Warranty is good for just one use and only pertains to the Homestead Collection, the Maritime Collection and the Kingsbay Collection. It can only be used if the adhesive bond failure is the result of moisture migration from beneath the subfloor. It is very specific. If this is not the reason the adhesive is faulty, this warranty will not work. If it happens a second time, Anderson says it is because the wrong adhesive was used or it was specific to the site conditions. After it is used once, this warranty will never be able to be called upon again. Any squeaking, crackling or popping of the Anderson floors is not covered in the warranty. The Anderson warranty is limited to the original consumer purchaser. The consumer has had to pay for the floor in full. The floor has to have been purchased for the consumer’s personal residence and not for resale. If it is a rental property, nonresidential or commercial purchase, it does not fall under the Anderson warranty. The limited warranty that Anderson provides is only subject to those who register their floor within sixty days of purchase. It is necessary to have a receipt of the limited warranty registration information in order to get coverage. Proof of purchase, the purchase date, identity of the person who purchased the floor, and the installation location are all to be presented when getting compensation from the manufacturer. Without meeting all of these criteria, the purchaser will not be covered. It is important to note that many people will forget to register their floor within sixty days. It seems that Anderson is banking on those people who forget to register. It is a very easy thing to miss. If forgotten, there will never be any compensation granted for any problem that may occur. Also, Anderson has the right to inspect the floor. If the homeowner refuses this inspection, the warranty is voided immediately. Like other companies, Anderson is not liable if there are small knots, mineral streaks, grain variations, etc. on the floor. Once the floor is installed, if the purchaser notices defective planks, it is no longer up to Anderson. This clause follows the majority of warranties as we have already examined this in the Bellawood and Bruce warranties. Like most other floor companies, if the purchaser uses unapproved products by another manufacturer, the warranty will become void immediately. Further, similar to other manufacturers, Andeson will not cover dents, scratches or dulling of the finish.
So how does my floor warranty protect me?
If you have installed your floor according to the manufacturer’s instructions, have never used any unapproved cleaning products, never had anyone wear high heal shoes, had animals, HAD CHILDREN, environmental changes, etc., then you are more than likely protected. Noisy floors, gaps, and so forth, are some of the common problems that consumers face with regard to their hardwood floors. No manufacturer is going to hold themselves liable for these potential problems. In general, it seems like the manufacturer will give the consumer a fairly hard time before they repair the floor. Because almost every possible flooring problem does not fall under the warranty, it seems that the manufacturer is protected more than the consumer. On the onset, most warranties seem to cover everything with titles like “Lifetime Structural Warranty”. However, the more you examine your floor warranty, the more you will realize how little you are actually covered. If the floor is defective and has obvious manufacturing flaws, then there is a good chance that you will be protected – that is to say if you have not yet installed it! Once it is installed, good luck getting the manufacturer to recognize that it is a flaw on their end! It is hard to assess a warranty situation without seeing the floor in real life. If the consumer will not allow the manufacturer to see their faulty floor, the warranty will not be usable. The manufacturer has the right to see the floor. It is important to always read your floor warranty carefully. Please don’t do anything that will void your warranty. Once it has been voided, the manufacturer will not even consider looking at your floor. Also, even if your warranty does not say that you need your sales slip, it is always good to keep it. It will show the manufacturer proof of purchase, date of purchase and the name of the purchaser. You should always do a moisture test before laying your floor. These pre-installation test results should also be kept if something is to go wrong that is moisture related, if your warranty has a Subfloor Moisture Protection Warranty. Always read all the fine print. Don’t buy your floor on the Internet or in “as is” condition if you ever want to claim a warranty. Anything that ever looks questionable could possibly render your warranty useless. Be smart and go through everything so you know how and when you are protected. When thinking about buying a floor, make sure that you are going to get one that you will enjoy. Don’t pick a floor that you will never get anything from. Calling upon your warranty will mean headaches. Getting a claim from one of these manufacturers is like winning the lottery jackpot. And how often does that happen?!Why Choose Parquet Flooring and How to Install it:
A parquet floor literally means a patterned floor. Parquet flooring is a mosaic of wood used to decorate a room, commonly using geometric designs. There are two types of parquet floors: there is solid parquet and parquet panels. Solid parquet is made up of wood blocks that are glued down in geometric patters like the herringbone pattern one of my personal favorites. In contrast, parquet panels are veneers of hardwood (similar to prefinished flooring), glued in geometric patterns to a base of cheaper wood or plywood. Parquet panels typically lock together using tongue and groove joints.
Parquet is also available in the engineered flooring variety. An engineered parquet floor simulates a solid wood parquet floor. This type of flooring uses face veneers made from various different species of wood. These face veneers are laminated to supporting plies.
There are numerous ways that you can install a parquet floor. Parquet flooring can be laid to suit a particular lifestyle or surroundings. With numerous styles and materials, if you decide to go with a parquet floor, there is a lot to choose from. One of the key benefits to parquet flooring is that it is easy to maintain.
If maintained properly, it is a very durable, long-lasting floor. This is why parquet is a very common choice in apartment buildings and in ballrooms, not because it is cheap per square foot. I’ve installed lots of these floors in co-ops across Toronto over the past 30 years and I’m sure if you could see these floors today you’d be surprised at their longevity. But it is this connection that makes people think these floors are low quality, most people’s first apartments had parquet floor when they were a student or just moving out of their parents’ houses. If you are considering a hardwood floor, I think you should really think about parquet. Besides, it is arguably a more attractive floor style.
All parquet flooring, just like all wood flooring, is influenced by the atmospheric climate that it is placed in. It is subject to change if the level of humidity fluctuates. This will cause slight signs of movement in the parquet flooring. This process is known as the “movement of the wood”. Noticeable swelling and shrinking of the parquet flooring will occur if there is a humidity of more than 65% in the summer and below 40% in the winter.
The most common parquet flooring is the style that is laid like wooden tiles in a geometrically uniform way. This is referred to as “block parquet”. Block parquet is a set of uniform blocks of wood that are laid on the floor butt-joint. The thickness of these blocks usually ranges between 15 to 22 millimeters.
Multilayer parquet is a much older technology than the block technique. Intricate combinations of narrow wood strips would be placed in the form of ornaments. These wood strips were usually cut in wood underlayment. Today, they are glued. Two or three layers of wood are laid so that the grain of one layer is directed along the length of the second layer. This solution is much more stable when the humidity fluctuates.
Face wood layer is another kind of parquet made from prime wood. The planks are relatively thin, typically between 3-5 millimeters for their thickness and between 150 -200 millimeters in length. The lower layer is comprised of thick blocks that can sometimes be made from wood waste as long as it is all comprised of the same wood species. These floorboards require a strong varnish. Ideally, you want to have five coats of varnish because the face layer is fairly thin.
Panel parquet uses a very similar technology to the parquet board but it characteristically has a square shape. The most common dimensions of panel parquet are 400×400, 480×480, 520×520, 600×600, 650×650 millimeters, but there can also be other sizes. Panel parquet is significantly cheaper than block parquet.
Glued-laminated parquet is a multilayered style. The upper layer is glued down to the multilayer underlayment. This is done on site when the floor is being laid. There are no joints between the large wood panels. This is the most inexpensive variety of parquet.
Artistic parquet is usually the same as the glued-laminated variety. However, artistic parquet is sometimes made using parquet panel technology. This type of parquet typically has a complicated shape to it. Artistic parquet is comprised of various wood species that have different colors. There are numerous ways to lay artistic parquet. The floorboards can even be positioned to create a picture.
There are many different things you need to know before you decide to install a parquet floor. Please read what I am about to say carefully. It will ensure that you do your floors properly in a way that you will be happy with the results. The climatic conditions and the relative air humidity need serious consideration. When installing parquet flooring, the temperature of the room should range between 18C/64F and 22C/72F. The relative air humidity should range between 45% and 60%. The relative humidity of the subfloor cannot exceed more than 12%. A very common mistake with parquet is choosing a subfloor that is thinner than the parquet itself. The subfloor should always be as thick or thicker than the parquet. I like to use 3/4 inch plywood, this thickness will ensure a solid floor. Do not use chip board or particle board or OSB, yes it’s cheaper, but you get what you pay for.
If you are installing parquet flooring directly onto concrete slab, the concrete foundation needs to have a relative humidity of no more than 3%. If you are doing this, make sure that the concrete is solid and perfectly flat. There are glues available that contain very little water that are designed for parquet floors on concrete slab. To ensure that your concrete is dry, clean the concrete thoroughly and cover it with polythene. Leave it for one or two days. If when you uncover it, the concrete does not look darker, then it is dry.
When you lay your parquet floor, it is important to leave a gap of between 15 to 18 millimeters in width along the entire perimeter of the walls and around any pillars in the room. This gap will compensate for any expansion of floorboards. The small gap should be covered with baseboards. If you don’t leave a gap, you will be very sorry in the future! I highly recommend not skipping this step! I get all kinds of questions from homeowners that have floors that are buckling. Many floor contractors want to get the job done quickly and may forget important steps like this one!
Like all hardwood floors, parquet needs to acclimatize before it is installed. It should sit in its packaging for 2-3 days. This will allow the floorboards to reach the temperature in the room. When the parquet is unpacked, it should be done in the order that it will be laid. Within a 24 to 72 hour period, the parquet will be affixed and will resist tensions and strain. The polishing and varnishing stage of the parquet floor should be done after 4 to 10 days. This timeframe obviously depends on the parquet type and the environmental conditions of the room.
When it comes to parquet, you want the floor to look as even as possible. That said laying parquet flooring so that you get a perfect surface is basically impossible. It requires complicated work. However, the key to a beautiful parquet floor is a perfectly prepared foundation.
A long time ago, people would do what is known as “parquet scraping”. This is actually an obsolete method of evening the surface of your floor using a cutting tool. These cutting tools included a hand scraper or a grinding machine with knife drums. Today, the most superior technique of evening your floor’s surface is by polishing your parquet with abrasives. Often, belt sanders and flat polishers are used to polish parquet.
Sometimes, technological operations can be performed. For example, you can remove old lacquer and minor scratches using a belt sander to do the preparatory polishing or scraping.
Polishing a parquet floor requires several steps where you use grinding equipment with dust collectors. Typically, after you have scraped your parquet floor, spackling or filling cracks between parquet blocks is done with special pastes. Prime coating is the stage where you are preparing the parquet surface for the lacquering stage. Lacquering follows and its purpose is for the surface of the floor to get certain esthetic qualities and also to add to the wear-resisting properties of the parquet floor.
Polishing the floor should occur in three stages: the first stage is referred to as “rough” polishing. The rough polishing is done with a belt sander and abrasive sandpaper. This rough grinding will even out the floor. The second sanding stage is the transitional polishing stage. The final sanding stage is the clean polishing stage. When you perform the last polishing stage, you are doing the final evening ad smoothing of the floor surface. Please read our article called “HOW TO SAND WOOD FLOORS WITHOUT LEAVING MACHINE MARKS ” to get the full scoop on sanding. All the information in this article applies to parquet floor as well as strip floor.
Next is the varnishing stage. To get the full scoop on finishing a floor, please read our article, “CUSTOM STAINING WOOD FLOORS WITHOUT THE BLOTCHY EFFECT “. Any dust that remains from the sanding must be vacuumed up perfectly. Then it must be covered with an undercoating. When you prime coat or apply an undercoating to the polished parquet, the undercoating is getting deeply soaked into the wood. This means that you are reducing the amount of varnish that will get absorbed. Make sure that the undercoating and the varnish work together with regard to their chemical composition. It will also preserve the natural wood color as much as possible. Usually just one coat is enough of the prime coating. Typically, one liter will do an area of 8 to 10 square meters.
When the undercoating has dried – about 10-12 hours after, the floor must be polished again because the surface will be rough. Again, you will need to do a very thorough vacuuming. It is recommended to do a smooth polishing yet again after you have applied your undercoating and finished the second polishing. This can only be done when the floor has completely dried out. This will ensure that you attain a very high quality looking surface. You want your varnish to look as good as possible. You need to clean again and do a second coating of varnish.
If you are going to spend the money and time on a beautiful parquet floor, I think it is imperative that you go with a high quality varnish. The varnish will highlight everything in the wood – the beauty as well as the flaws and imperfections. If you go with a low quality varnish, no matter how nice your parquet floor is, it is almost guaranteed that you will be disappointed with the final results! I always recommend polyurethane.
If you decide to go with a tinted varnish, you can also get the same results. It is necessary to do multiple varnish coatings in order to protect the surface of the floor from moisture. Typically, three coats will give you a good finish. Some manufacture recommend up to seven coats of varnish are applied with intermediate interlayer polishing. All manufacturers are different when it comes to the drying time in between coats. It is important to follow the manufacturer’s recommendations for best results. You need a dust-free room or else the quality of the varnish application will be compromised. It is best to frequently vacuum. At some job sites, it is best to separate the surface of walls and ceiling with polyethylene film. Any airflow or draughts can also cause problems when you are varnishing.
The three types of varnishes available are gloss, semimatt and matt. Varnishes can be either clear or tinted. For parquet flooring, varnishes can be comprised of polyurethane, acrylic and water-based.
It is important to mention that not all parquet types are suitable for a hydronic heating system. If you want to have a hydronic heating system, the wood species that are not recommended for parquet flooring are beech, mountain maple and Canadian maple. It is much better to use a wood species that performs well with swelling and shrinking like oak. The ideal temperature in the room for your parquet floor is approximately 20C/69F.
Herringbone patterned floors may be finished with two alternating stains to make the lines stand out or it may be left simple. Sometimes, you will see a prefinished herringbone floor. In this case, the stain of the wood is a factory finish and the homeowner will not be able to alter it.
Herringbone floors are generally glued to a wood or concrete subfloor. Considering the length of time they require to be installed, herringbone floors typically take between three and four times longer than your standard 2 1/4″ strip floors. The reason why these floors take so long to lay is because they require the installer to insure proper and constant alignment at all times.
Another style of herringbone floor is typically done with smaller designs and patterns with narrower finger jointing. This is paper faced or cotton-mesh backing herringbone patterns. This type of floor comes in sheets or blocks. These are factory assembled and they are adhered to a paper facing or cotton mesh-backing. Paper faced herringbone blocks can be glued directly to subfloors. These are unfinished blocks of wood. These blocks are not necessarily square or rectangular. This flooring will get sanded and finished on site after the adhesive cures.
Laying a herringbone is quite tricky, especially if the room is not perfectly perpendicular. The smallest mistake will be rather glaring because of the way the pattern lines up.
In the end, like all hardwood floors, parquet floors should be vacuumed regularly to remove dirt. If you are going to use area rugs, it is good to rotate them every so often so that the color stays even. Otherwise over time, the parquet floor outside the carpet will fade and you’ll have carpet marks forever! It is important to use felt protectors under legs of tables and chairs so that you don’t have to worry about scratching your surfaces. If you aren’t sure what to go with, be it a strip floor or a parquet floor, the parquet is known for its durability and beauty. Not enough homeowners consider parquet. It is really worth considering parquet!
As a side note, there are multiple ways to spell ‘parquet flooring’. You may use or see parquet flooring, parquet flooring, parqet flooring, parkett flooring, parket flooring, parque flooring and parqu flooring. This article will only use the most common spelling: ‘parquet flooring’.
Parquet Styles
The most common parquet flooring is the style that is laid like wooden tiles in a geometrically uniform way. This is referred to as “block parquet”. Block parquet is a set of uniform blocks of wood that are laid on the floor butt-joint. The thickness of these blocks usually ranges between 15 to 22 millimeters.
Multilayer parquet is a much older technology than the block technique. Intricate combinations of narrow wood strips would be placed in the form of ornaments. These wood strips were usually cut in wood underlayment. Today, they are glued. Two or three layers of wood are laid so that the grain of one layer is directed along the length of the second layer. This solution is much more stable when the humidity fluctuates.
Face wood layer is another kind of parquet made from prime wood. The planks are relatively thin, typically between 3-5 millimeters for their thickness and between 150 -200 millimeters in length. The lower layer is comprised of thick blocks that can sometimes be made from wood waste as long as it is all comprised of the same wood species. These floorboards require a strong varnish. Ideally, you want to have five coats of varnish because the face layer is fairly thin.
Panel parquet uses a very similar technology to the parquet board but it characteristically has a square shape. The most common dimensions of panel parquet are 400×400, 480×480, 520×520, 600×600, 650×650 millimeters, but there can also be other sizes. Panel parquet is significantly cheaper than block parquet.
Glued-laminated parquet is a multilayered style. The upper layer is glued down to the multilayer underlayment. This is done on site when the floor is being laid. There are no joints between the large wood panels. This is the most inexpensive variety of parquet.
Artistic parquet is usually the same as the glued-laminated variety. However, artistic parquet is sometimes made using parquet panel technology. This type of parquet typically has a complicated shape to it. Artistic parquet is comprised of various wood species that have different colors. There are numerous ways to lay artistic parquet. The floorboards can even be positioned to create a picture.
Installing Parquet Flooring
There are many different things you need to know before you decide to install a parquet floor. Please read what I am about to say carefully. It will ensure that you do your floors properly in a way that you will be happy with the results. The climatic conditions and the relative air humidity need serious consideration. When installing parquet flooring, the temperature of the room should range between 18C/64F and 22C/72F. The relative air humidity should range between 45% and 60%. The relative humidity of the subfloor cannot exceed more than 12%. A very common mistake with parquet is choosing a subfloor that is thinner than the parquet itself. The subfloor should always be as thick or thicker than the parquet. I like to use 3/4 inch plywood, this thickness will ensure a solid floor. Do not use chip board or particle board or OSB, yes it’s cheaper, but you get what you pay for.
If you are installing parquet flooring directly onto concrete slab, the concrete foundation needs to have a relative humidity of no more than 3%. If you are doing this, make sure that the concrete is solid and perfectly flat. There are glues available that contain very little water that are designed for parquet floors on concrete slab. To ensure that your concrete is dry, clean the concrete thoroughly and cover it with polythene. Leave it for one or two days. If when you uncover it, the concrete does not look darker, then it is dry.
When you lay your parquet floor, it is important to leave a gap of between 15 to 18 millimeters in width along the entire perimeter of the walls and around any pillars in the room. This gap will compensate for any expansion of floorboards. The small gap should be covered with baseboards. If you don’t leave a gap, you will be very sorry in the future! I highly recommend not skipping this step! I get all kinds of questions from homeowners that have floors that are buckling. Many floor contractors want to get the job done quickly and may forget important steps like this one!
Like all hardwood floors, parquet needs to acclimatize before it is installed. It should sit in its packaging for 2-3 days. This will allow the floorboards to reach the temperature in the room. When the parquet is unpacked, it should be done in the order that it will be laid. Within a 24 to 72 hour period, the parquet will be affixed and will resist tensions and strain. The polishing and varnishing stage of the parquet floor should be done after 4 to 10 days. This timeframe obviously depends on the parquet type and the environmental conditions of the room.
When it comes to parquet, you want the floor to look as even as possible. That said laying parquet flooring so that you get a perfect surface is basically impossible. It requires complicated work. However, the key to a beautiful parquet floor is a perfectly prepared foundation.
A long time ago, people would do what is known as “parquet scraping”. This is actually an obsolete method of evening the surface of your floor using a cutting tool. These cutting tools included a hand scraper or a grinding machine with knife drums. Today, the most superior technique of evening your floor’s surface is by polishing your parquet with abrasives. Often, belt sanders and flat polishers are used to polish parquet.
Sometimes, technological operations can be performed. For example, you can remove old lacquer and minor scratches using a belt sander to do the preparatory polishing or scraping.
Polishing a parquet floor requires several steps where you use grinding equipment with dust collectors. Typically, after you have scraped your parquet floor, spackling or filling cracks between parquet blocks is done with special pastes. Prime coating is the stage where you are preparing the parquet surface for the lacquering stage. Lacquering follows and its purpose is for the surface of the floor to get certain esthetic qualities and also to add to the wear-resisting properties of the parquet floor.
Polishing the floor should occur in three stages: the first stage is referred to as “rough” polishing. The rough polishing is done with a belt sander and abrasive sandpaper. This rough grinding will even out the floor. The second sanding stage is the transitional polishing stage. The final sanding stage is the clean polishing stage. When you perform the last polishing stage, you are doing the final evening ad smoothing of the floor surface. Please read our article called “HOW TO SAND WOOD FLOORS WITHOUT LEAVING MACHINE MARKS ” to get the full scoop on sanding. All the information in this article applies to parquet floor as well as strip floor.
Finishing Parquet Flooring
Next is the varnishing stage. To get the full scoop on finishing a floor, please read our article, “CUSTOM STAINING WOOD FLOORS WITHOUT THE BLOTCHY EFFECT “. Any dust that remains from the sanding must be vacuumed up perfectly. Then it must be covered with an undercoating. When you prime coat or apply an undercoating to the polished parquet, the undercoating is getting deeply soaked into the wood. This means that you are reducing the amount of varnish that will get absorbed. Make sure that the undercoating and the varnish work together with regard to their chemical composition. It will also preserve the natural wood color as much as possible. Usually just one coat is enough of the prime coating. Typically, one liter will do an area of 8 to 10 square meters.
When the undercoating has dried – about 10-12 hours after, the floor must be polished again because the surface will be rough. Again, you will need to do a very thorough vacuuming. It is recommended to do a smooth polishing yet again after you have applied your undercoating and finished the second polishing. This can only be done when the floor has completely dried out. This will ensure that you attain a very high quality looking surface. You want your varnish to look as good as possible. You need to clean again and do a second coating of varnish.
If you are going to spend the money and time on a beautiful parquet floor, I think it is imperative that you go with a high quality varnish. The varnish will highlight everything in the wood – the beauty as well as the flaws and imperfections. If you go with a low quality varnish, no matter how nice your parquet floor is, it is almost guaranteed that you will be disappointed with the final results! I always recommend polyurethane.
If you decide to go with a tinted varnish, you can also get the same results. It is necessary to do multiple varnish coatings in order to protect the surface of the floor from moisture. Typically, three coats will give you a good finish. Some manufacture recommend up to seven coats of varnish are applied with intermediate interlayer polishing. All manufacturers are different when it comes to the drying time in between coats. It is important to follow the manufacturer’s recommendations for best results. You need a dust-free room or else the quality of the varnish application will be compromised. It is best to frequently vacuum. At some job sites, it is best to separate the surface of walls and ceiling with polyethylene film. Any airflow or draughts can also cause problems when you are varnishing.
The three types of varnishes available are gloss, semimatt and matt. Varnishes can be either clear or tinted. For parquet flooring, varnishes can be comprised of polyurethane, acrylic and water-based.
It is important to mention that not all parquet types are suitable for a hydronic heating system. If you want to have a hydronic heating system, the wood species that are not recommended for parquet flooring are beech, mountain maple and Canadian maple. It is much better to use a wood species that performs well with swelling and shrinking like oak. The ideal temperature in the room for your parquet floor is approximately 20C/69F.
Herringbone Floors
Now that we have looked at the techniques for installing parquet, lets look at herringbone floors. Herringbone is a classic European parquet style that is now considered to be a very contemporary and elegant look. The herringbone pattern is named after the herring fish. This fish is known for being quite densely bony. This is my favorite style of parquet by far. It is intricate and beautiful. These floors will often have a boarder. Typically, a herringbone floor is a solid, unfinished floor. It is comprised of right angels and it can look like a woven basket. A herringbone floor is made from very short rows of slanted parallel slats of wood. The rows are oriented in opposition to each other. This causes the slanted lines to form a dense pattern of chevrons. Each slant meets up at the end with a slant positioned in the opposite direction.Herringbone patterned floors may be finished with two alternating stains to make the lines stand out or it may be left simple. Sometimes, you will see a prefinished herringbone floor. In this case, the stain of the wood is a factory finish and the homeowner will not be able to alter it.
Herringbone floors are generally glued to a wood or concrete subfloor. Considering the length of time they require to be installed, herringbone floors typically take between three and four times longer than your standard 2 1/4″ strip floors. The reason why these floors take so long to lay is because they require the installer to insure proper and constant alignment at all times.
Another style of herringbone floor is typically done with smaller designs and patterns with narrower finger jointing. This is paper faced or cotton-mesh backing herringbone patterns. This type of floor comes in sheets or blocks. These are factory assembled and they are adhered to a paper facing or cotton mesh-backing. Paper faced herringbone blocks can be glued directly to subfloors. These are unfinished blocks of wood. These blocks are not necessarily square or rectangular. This flooring will get sanded and finished on site after the adhesive cures.
Laying a herringbone is quite tricky, especially if the room is not perfectly perpendicular. The smallest mistake will be rather glaring because of the way the pattern lines up.
In the end, like all hardwood floors, parquet floors should be vacuumed regularly to remove dirt. If you are going to use area rugs, it is good to rotate them every so often so that the color stays even. Otherwise over time, the parquet floor outside the carpet will fade and you’ll have carpet marks forever! It is important to use felt protectors under legs of tables and chairs so that you don’t have to worry about scratching your surfaces. If you aren’t sure what to go with, be it a strip floor or a parquet floor, the parquet is known for its durability and beauty. Not enough homeowners consider parquet. It is really worth considering parquet!
The Truth About Bamboo Flooring
Bamboo Flooring And Its Environmental Impact
Bamboo is a fairly new type of flooring for the American market. Its popularity has grown very fast. Bamboo flooring is commonly sold as a “green” floor product. After all, it is a renewable resource. So what exactly is the ethical problem with bamboo flooring? Well, this topic has become very controversial as consumers are learning more and more about how these floors are actually made. Bamboo has a reputation of being sustainable and elegant. If you have ever been to a high-end spa or a classy office, you may notice that very often these businesses choose bamboo flooring because they depict a stylish image.
The bamboo floor manufacturers sell it as the cost-effective, environmentally-friendly choice. Often people have small budgets for doing their floors and would love to get something relatively cheap and sustainable. The appeal that many consumers have to bamboo floors is quite obvious. Manufacturers have done an incredibly good job convincing the public that if you purchase bamboo flooring, you are making an environmentally responsible choice. There has been a move away from our dependency on hardwoods. People still want the properties of hardwoods and bamboo is sold as this alternative. But is this really the case? How sustainable is bamboo flooring?
Many of the sales pitches will compare traditional bamboo floors to hardwood floors. One of the most common claims about bamboo flooring is that it is actually harder than hardwood floors. Some companies will even show statistics on the hardness of bamboo compared to hardwoods. Some make ridiculous claims like that “bamboo is actually harder than oak”! It obviously is quite softer than oak! Bamboo is not as hard as the floor manufacturers claim. A lot of people look at the Janka Hardness Test as a means to justify and explain the durability of bamboo flooring. If you look at many of the Janka Hardness Test online, you will see that bamboo largely fluctuates. It is actually rated at 1180 p.s.i. However, some tests put bamboo higher up in the Janka Hardness Test, making it appear stronger than it actually is. You should be very weary of these skewed test results, especially when they are coming from manufacturers who our out to sell you bamboo floor coverings. These manufacturers want to make bamboo look as hard as possible. A lot of the skewed results will test the hardest parts of the wood like the joints, edges and knots. (Bamboo doesn’t have any knots but you get my drift.) Many people will bend the rules of the test to make bamboo look strong. They may use the highest quality bamboo even though most of the bamboo available to the public is young and soft.
The reason why bamboo flooring is known for its environmental sustainability is that it is considered a grass and not a tree. This means that it is harvested when it is quite young. The comparison is that it takes an oak tree 60 to 120 years to grow to maturity whereas it takes only about five years for a bamboo plant to mature to the point when it can be harvested. It also self-generates relatively quickly. This means that without planting a new crop of bamboo, it will regenerate on its own. Also, it uses hardly any pesticides and fertilizers. In other words, bamboo is a very easy and fast-growing crop. Another compelling reason for bamboo is that the U.S. Green Building Council’s (USGBC) LEED Rating System recognizes bamboo as a green building material. The USGBC actually grants credits for using bamboo in building construction and this obviously includes bamboo floors. This makes bamboo even more appealing. This sounds great. This credit program supports the manufacturers’ sales tactics. This easy-to-understand sales pitch grabs any consumer who doesn’t do his homework! But, as you become more familiar with bamboo flooring, you will learn that it is sold as a “feel good” product. People think that by choosing a bamboo floor, they are doing an act of green. Besides, brands like “EnviroChoice Bamboo Flooring” and “EcoTimber Flooring” make bamboo flooring sound like a terrific, environmentally-friendly option to the average homeowner looking to do their floors.
Here is the downside: Bamboo primarily comes from China. In China, many mature forests are being clear cut to make way for bamboo plantations because there is such a high demand for bamboo from the American market. These plantations are not being implemented in a sustainable way because bamboo is becoming a monoculture. This means that bamboo is the only crop that is growing in these regions. Any monoculture will have a negative impact on biodiversity. One of the most prominent examples of bamboo’s threat to biodiversity is the giant panda. The panda bear is losing its habitat to bamboo plantations rapidly. Forests are being logged and cleared for bamboo. The panda bear is on the endangered species list because of the growing market for bamboo in North America.
As I said before, bamboo is sold as a fast-growing grass that doesn’t even require any fertilizers. This may be true on a very small scale. But, to keep up with American demand for bamboo products, fertilizers are being used widely to get a larger yield. This claim about not using any fertilizers doesn’t hold any truth. If they didn’t use any fertilizers, they would not be producing bamboo floor coverings as fast as they are! The pesticides and fertilizers have a huge impact on the environment. The Chinese most often don’t even comply with American or European standards when it comes to the production of bamboo. This means that the fertilizers and pesticides that are used in the production of bamboo are not monitored. Here is the proof: The FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) has only certified one bamboo flooring company as of recently. (The only company the FSC has certified is Smith & Fong.) This means that how bamboo is grown and processed is not regulated at all.
Erosion is another environmental concern. Some manufacturers sell bamboo as a green product so much so that they claim that because it has a broad root structure, it helps to stabilize the soil and prevent erosion. In fact, erosion is an intrinsic natural process and is healthy for certain ecosystems. Even if this is the case with more mature plants, this is actually not a good thing! However, this is actually a false claim. Most forest lands are on hilly and mountainous terrains with steep slopes. When they clear cut a forest to plant bamboo, they are actually increasing erosion until the bamboo becomes fairly mature. Even though they may say they are working harmoniously with nature, they are clearly disrupting ecosystems.
Aside from the environmental impact, there are also significant social problems that the bamboo industry causes. The cost of bamboo is slightly cheaper than hardwood but still comparable. Somebody’s getting rich off the high margins on bamboo if it is so incredibly easy to produce and it grows like a weed. It is a very trendy floor covering. Many bamboo floor companies are making false claims about its sustainability to capitalize and make large profits. There is no fair trade certification on bamboo. This means that the working conditions and wages are not regulated. So not only does bamboo create a negative environmental impact, it also creates a negative social impact for its Chinese workers.
Bamboo Floors
Even though bamboo is not a sustainable resource, it is worth looking at how it holds up as a floor covering. If you go with a lower cost bamboo, there is a very good chance that it will discolor and turn yellow relatively quickly. Also, the lower cost bamboo floors are also prone to scratches very easily. Because it lacks grain and typically has a glossy finish, scratches show up extremely clearly. Manufacturers sell bamboo on its supposed hardness. What they are really doing is using aluminum oxide, which is the hardest finish possible. They think that by using the most durable finish, they are making the bamboo itself stronger. This means that manufacturers are selling bamboo claiming that it is a hard, long-lasting product. No matter how hard the finish, if the “wood” is soft, it will not make the slightest difference. Aluminum oxide will never stand up to the softness of the bamboo product. It will not strengthen bamboo, no matter what the manufacturers tell you. Even if they apply seven or ten coats of aluminum oxide, they are just trying to compensate for a lower quality, soft floor product.
The cheaper varieties of bamboo are not always processed the way they are supposed to be. These bamboo plants are also harvested when they are too immature to make good quality floors. The younger the bamboo is, the softer the floor is going to be. The young bamboo retains a lot of water. If the floor product is not dried properly, it will be prone to shrinking and warping. Also, if bamboo is not treated within three days of being cut, it will mold. This also can make for dull flooring. However, far too often, the bamboo is produced quickly and cheaply. As I said before, there is no regulation for how bamboo is produced and processed so you have to be very careful because you probably will not know what you are getting!
Another thing to be weary of with bamboo flooring is the glue. The glue that most of the bamboo flooring manufacturers use is a urea formaldehyde resin. Most bamboo floors will emit gas. This is a known carcinogen and a serious air pollutant. Many people get headaches and sometimes even nosebleeds from the fumes that bamboo floors emit. This is really toxic stuff. Some companies are within the American health standards but many companies are not. Some manufacturers also sell formaldehyde-free bamboo flooring at a higher cost. If you are going to go with this option, please check it out. Make sure that it really is formaldehyde-free. This sector of the flooring industry is not regulated so this means that your health could be compromised if you don’t do all of your research.
Carbonized Bamboo Floors
Carbonized bamboo is a flooring that has a carbonized finish. It has a dark, amber color. It is produced through a process called carbonization. The longer this process takes, the darker and softer the product will turn out. The traditional way to change the color of bamboo is with heat (carbonization). The sugar contents in the fiber cause the bamboo to darken when they are pressure heated. It is really important to note that pressure heating weakens the bamboo significantly. If you want long-lasting floors, carbonized bamboo is definitely not your answer! There are two varieties of carbonized bamboo flooring; vertical carbonized bamboo flooring and horizontal bamboo flooring. The difference in these two varieties is their alignment. It is important to note that carbonized bamboo flooring is not designed for high traffic areas like shopping centers or office buildings. These floors are suited only for residential use. Many people know that carbonized bamboo flooring is not very durable but they still want dark bamboo. A lot of floor manufacturers are coming out with a stained natural bamboo floor variety that is darker. The only reason consumers ever choose carbonized bamboo flooring is for its darker color. The majority of contractors (who are honest!) will advise against carbonized bamboo flooring simply because it is not strong and it will not last very long.Strand Woven Bamboo Floors
If you decide to go with bamboo flooring, there are some varieties that are better. I still will always choose hardwood given the option. However, many people who have strand woven bamboo floors are quite happy with them. Strand woven bamboo flooring complies with European standards of quality because a lot of the equipment comes from Germany. (This doesn’t mean that how and where the bamboo is grown for this type of flooring complies with American and European standards.)
Strand woven bamboo floors are produced by stripping young Moso or Mao bamboo stalks. The reason why this particular part of the process is environmentally friendly is because 100% of the harvested stalk is used and there is zero waste. These stalks are boiled in a water and boric acid solution. This removes sugars from the stalks which is necessary because sugars attract termites. This boiling process also stops the growth of fungus and mold. Any insects in the bamboo will also be removed. Often, copper sulfate is used to kill any micro-organisms. This stuff is incredibly toxic. Then the strips are dried and woven with an extremely low Volatile Organic Compound (VOC) plasticizer or glue. The woven strand is crushed in a 2000-ton heat press and now becomes a strand woven board. This strand woven board is then milled in a laser-guided mill that accurately cuts each board. Every board you receive in your carton should be uniform. After the boards are milled, they are sanded and coated with aluminum oxide finish.
Strand woven bamboo is quite different than other bamboo flooring because it is a one-piece board. A lot of the other stuff is produced by cold-gluing small bamboo strips together. It is tongue and groove. Strand woven bamboo flooring can be installed like any hardwood floor. It is significantly stronger than other bamboo flooring types. This makes strand woven bamboo flooring relatively easy to refinish. Like all bamboo though, it still emits formaldehyde, even if the levels might be slightly lower. Strand bamboo currently uses phenol formaldehyde adhesive and there is no other alternative to date. Another downside to it is that it is known to splinter on the sides of the boards.
Bamboo flooring is really not a viable or a sustainable choice. Manufacturers have capitalized on the trendiness of bamboo. They have really tried hard to convince consumers that it is good for the environment and this is nothing more than a clever sales tactic. Sadly, you cannot trust those bamboo floor manufacturers. After all, they are only out to sell you bamboo floors! There are way more negatives than there are positives that I see. I think one of the biggest negatives is that bamboo flooring is not regulated. But it’s of course your choice and your floor. I am just trying to enlighten you about some of the false claims that you might encounter when you look into bamboo flooring. Just do your research on the manufacturer prior to purchasing your new floor. Always look around. Don’t ever go with the first person ready to sell you anything. See what other companies are offering and how they differ from their competition. If you do decide to go with a bamboo, please make sure that the formaldehyde emitions are low and safe.
Hardwood floors will always outlast bamboo floors if cared for properly. They have been around forever. They don’t require clear-cutting of forests and they don’t destroy habitats as erratically as bamboo. Besides, usually you know what you are getting when you get a hardwood floor! Remember to always consider the environmental and social impact when you do your floors, especially if you are considering bamboo. Also consider the health risk especially if you have kids with the formaldehyde. Hopefully you will stick to good, old hardwood floors!