subject: How To Choose Between Solid & Engineered Oak Flooring [print this page] The increasing popularity of real oak flooring comes as no surprise.
Homeowners are realising that the cheap laminate flooring solution they thought would bring cleanliness and beauty to their homes was precisely that - cheap!
There is simply no comparison in both look and feel between a actual oak floor and a laminate copy.
However, there is now a choice to be made between solid oak flooring and engineered oak flooring and this article looks to provide the pros and cons for each.
Solid Oak Flooring
Solid oak flooring boards are cut and machined in one piece from an oak trunk or butt.
Depending on where they are sourced, the boards may be machined to produce a tongue and groove to aid fitting, might be grain end matched and might have stress grooves cut into the underside to limit warping.
Solid oak flooring is always supplied unfinished so that the homeowner can apply any stains or dyes before sealing, however, some commercial brands stain and pre-seal their oak using polyurethane and then sell these boards as part of a colour range.
Pros
- When you are trying to match existing oak boards in a period property, there is no substitute for an unfinished strong oak board - you can age the board, colour match it and machine it to exact specifications.
- Solid oak boards do not really contain any glues and are 100% natural
- Solid oak flooring will shrink and warp over the decades and become much more mellow in colour with age - a true legacy for the future
- Solid oak flooring can be sanded as many times as necessary to refresh the surface
Cons
- Solid oak flooring is susceptible to changes in atmospheric moisture and humidity - it will shrink when dried out and swell when wet.
- Only narrower solid oak boards, up to ~120mm wide, can be securely glued to concrete sub-floors - wider boards have a tendency to bow and lift away from the sub-floor.
- Very broad boards over 200mm should be screwed and plugged as nicely as secret nailed through the tongues.
Engineered Oak Flooring
Engineered oak flooring is a composite comprising boards with actual oak veneer, bonded to a ply backing board - the oak veneer is always a minimum of 6mm thick, allowing the floor to be sanded a number of times to refresh the surface.
Engineered floor boards are supplied in various forms with the more expensive boards made up of a single plank veneer and cheaper versions made up of oak strips.
Machined to produce either tongue and groove or click together boards, famously laid, engineered oak flooring is virtually indistinguishable from strong oak.
Pros
- Engineered oak boards are extremely stable and can be laid over underfloor heating or in spaces where moisture levels vary, such as kitchens and bathrooms.
- Looks identical to solid oak flooring when laid
- Can be glued in any width
Cons
- Less environmentally helpful as boards are manufactured using glues
- Less authentic - sometimes it is fine to know that you are replacing like with like
You Decide
In summary, the key decision when choosing between engineered and solid oak flooring is where the floor will be fitted and more specifically, what the humidity levels of the room will be.
If there is any chance that the floor will be subjected either to water splash or excessive drying as with underfloor heating, then engineered oak flooring is the best solution.
