Solid Hardwood Floors VS Engineered Hardwood Flooring

What You Need To Know

When choosing a timber floor, people think about the color, type of wood, price, width, and length. But many overlook one important factor – should they invest in solid hardwood floors or engineered hardwood flooring?

Your choice of flooring will ultimately determine your floors’ lifespan, as well as the durability, install time, maintenance, and style. 

So which flooring should you choose? What’s the difference, anyway? We’ve put together the facts about solid hardwood floors VS engineered hardwood flooring – what you need to know.

What are solid hardwood floors?

Solid hardwood floors are solid timber planks that are milled and dressed to create flat, durable floorboards. They’re generally made from Spotted Gum, Blackbutt, or Ironbark

This flooring is the real deal. Unlike other engineered floorings, there’s nothing fake or human-made about hardwood floors. 

What is engineered hardwood flooring?

Engineered hardwood flooring is made from multi-layered planks. The top layer is usually a thin layer of hardwood glued on top of cost-effective plywood. This plywood is normally made from ply, pine, or rubber wood.

Engineered hardwood flooring has the same luxurious look as solid hardwood floors but without the expense.

Read: What is luxury vinyl plank flooring?

Advantages 

Solid hardwood floors

Is there anything better than the real thing? Solid hardwood floors are sturdy, long-lasting, and look amazing. And just like a comfy leather couch, it only looks more charming and unique over time.

As solid hardwood floors are made from natural timber, they can be resanded and repolished to give them new life. Your hardwood floors can be sanded up to 10 times, depending on what condition the floor is in and how skilled the person sanding them are.  

And thanks to their hard, flat surfaces, solid hardwood floors are a breeze to clean. Just grab a broom or damp mop, and you’ll have sparkling floors in no time!

Engineered hardwood flooring

Engineered hardwood flooring is more cost-effective than solid hardwood floors because it doesn’t use as much natural timber. But they still have the same rich look – so it’s a win-win!

It’s also much easier to install than other types of flooring. Why? Because engineered hardwood flooring is pre-finished and can be floated above your existing floor. This makes them a great option for apartments and units – that extra layer of flooring makes for an excellent noise insulator!

Due to their strong, protective coatings, engineered hardwood flooring is considered more ‘stable’ than solid hardwood. This means that they are more water-resistant and won’t swell and warp if spills aren’t cleaned up quickly. 

                     

Installation

Solid hardwood floors

Being a natural material, hardwood flooring is often more time-consuming and intricate to install. 

Installers use a ‘tongue and groove’ system to install solid hardwood floors. This is when each board is blind-nailed to the subfloor down through ‘tongues’ around each plank. 

Engineered hardwood flooring

Some engineered flooring is also installed using the same method as hardwood floors. But most have ‘click-lock’ edges that can be installed over the existing floor, creating a ‘floating floor’. This makes it easier for home DIYers to install the floors themselves.

Other engineered hardwood floorings can simply be glued down to a concrete subfloor – making installation even easier!

Flooring Specialist is a full-service professional flooring company and retail store that provides the highest quality carpet, hardwood, wood laminate, tile, and vinyl throughout Middle GA. Contact us here for a quote today.