Just like anything else in today's times, if you can't find it on the internet, then it can't be had. That being said, if you have spent the money to buy a good hardwood floor, then you are going to want to learn good hardwood floor care to protect your investment, and it is an investment since it can bring the resale value up on your house by at least 10% if not more. Hardwood floors are beautiful and depending on what type of hardwood used, how much of an up keep and maintenance on your hardwood floors. Here are some general tips on hardwood floor care.

Solid hardwood flooring, like all solid wood, is a natural insulator. The cleaners used in your hardwood floor care will also help keep the natural insulation in the wood. It's made of microscopic hollow cells and these air spaces produce high insulating values. It would take 15 inches of concrete to equal the insulating qualities of just one inch of wood. Appearance alone can often determine the grade of each hardwood flooring piece. All grades are equally strong and serviceable in any application. Flooring generally free of eye catching blemishes is known as "Clear", though it still may contain burls, streaks and pinworm holes. "Select" is almost clear, but this grade contains more of the natural color variations and characteristics such as knots and other marks.

The "Common" grades, No. 1 and No. 2, have more markings than either of the other two grades and are often specified because of these widely varied natural features and the "strong" character they bring to floors. Grades are sometimes combined (i.e., "Select & Better"). Product combinations, such as short pieces or specific grain direction, Quartered and/or Rift, may also be separated by the manufacturer. When you purchase your hardwood floor, be sure to ask them about this specific hardwood floor care, for the type of floor you are getting.

It's the surface finishes that are very popular since they protect hardwood floors, their durable, water-resistant and require minimum maintenance, a good finish will determine how tough or easy your hardwood floor care will be. Most are made of synthetic resins and are often referred to as urethanes or polyurethanes and give hardwood surfaces a protective coating. These resins come in high-gloss, semi-gloss, and satin finishes. In order to keep your hardwood floors looking beautiful for years, your floor needs to be dust mopped, swept, or vacuumed regularly. Only use a manufacturer's recommended cleaner and sand, buff, and recoat your floor when the surface no longer shines after cleaning. Depending on the amount of traffic your floor gets will decide how often it will need to be refinished. As long as you use good hardwood floor care techniques your hardwood floors should last a few good years before you need to refinish.

By: LeeAnna

Hardwood Flooring Basics to Beautify Your Home, Hardwood can beautify a home like almost nothing else. By following a few simple rules you can install and maintain hardwood flooring that will look magnificent for decades to come.

With all of the many different types, styles and colors of flooring available today it can be a monumental task in choosing the right flooring for your home. Hardwood floors, laminate, vinyl, linoleum, bamboo, antique, prefinished, which one is right for you? Oak, maple, cherry and birch are popular types of hardwood flooring, but there are many others.

Cheap flooring or the wrong style or design of hard wood floor can clash with other home interior design features. But a well-chosen hardwood floor can accentuate and beautify almost any style or design of a home.

Carpeting has a few advantages over wood floors, the main one being softness when walked upon. But hardwood flooring can be accented with durable and beautiful rugs that have that same cushy feeling. So if it's a soft comfy feel you're after don't think that hardwood flooring is not an option. It's possible to combine the functionality of a carpet with the beauty, durability and shine of a hardwood floor.

Hard wood floors come in all different sizes and colors. And there are also many different types of wood grains that you have available to you. When deciding on the type of hardwood floor to install in your home you must first choose the color and type of wood. This is usually the most important consideration.

The color must be complimentary to the furniture, wall hangings, plants and other items that you intend to furnish your home with. But choosing a color of wood is not necessarily a straight forward and easy task. Different types of wood stain differently. Some wood flooring will stain darker than others, some lighter than others. So when choosing color you must consider the stain in combination with the type of wood floor you want. Do your homework and you will lessen the chance of installing a floor that has a different color and look than you expected.

Another major factor concerns functionality. A pine floor may look great, but pine is a soft wood that will dent very easily. This would certainly be a poor choice in a high-traffic area. When considering woods for flooring you want to install a floor that is long-lasting. Your flooring should last a lifetime and that means choosing a floor that will be durable, easy to keep clean and will continue to look new without a lot of labor on your part. If you are uncertain go with flooring that will be harder than you think is necessary. Hardness rankings according to the Janka scale can help you decide on which type of wood you need for the amount of traffic you expect to have.

The most popular styles of hardwood flooring are parquet, strip and plank. Parquet flooring is a series of wood flooring pieces that create a geometric design. Strip flooring is linear and is usually between 1' inches to 3' inches in width. Strip flooring often gives the room the appearance of being larger than it actually is. Plank hardwood flooring is usually wider and is typically 3 to 6 inches in width. Wider planks may be used, but often have issues with moisture.

You must choose the style and size that you think looks most attractive. Take your time and view all styles, designs, sizes and colors of wood floors before making your selection. Once it's installed it is not a cheap job to tear out and replace. It's also a good idea to get different samples and lay them out in your home. Without actually seeing the floor next to your own furnishings and wall colors it's near impossible to make a smart choice.

If you are interested in installing your own hardwood floor be sure you have enough knowledge and experience before attempting to do so. You must know what type of subflooring to install, whether it's wood or concrete. You should learn about humidity and temperature and what affect they have on floors. To prevent warping it is important to keep your floors well-ventilated with regulated temperatures throughout the year. When the weather gets too cold it can cause the floor boards to separate. Before installing it yourself talk to some professionals in your area and find out what precautions you need to take that will help ensure a lifetime of satisfaction with your new wood flooring.

By: Larry A. Johnson

Changing the old carpet with new flooring by yourself sometimes can be difficult, well not with laminate flooring – Laminate flooring maybe the only floor you don’t need to spend so much money on contractors and Home improvement companies.

As a matter of fact if you are a little bit handy person you can do it, it doesn’t matter if you are a man or a women.

There are a few steps you need to do and take care before you install your new Laminate flooring.

The Tools you will need for the installation are:

A rubber mallet, laminate flooring pull bar, tape measure, coping saw, utility knife, hammer, nails, laminate flooring, and underlayment.

In order to do it right when the material arrives read all the instruction on the box and remove the plastic wrapping from the boxes and let them flat on the floor so they can acclimate for at least 48 Hr.

After that check what type of subfloor you have, there are only two options:

1.       Concrete

2.       Plywood

Installation of Laminate flooring over a concrete takes a few steps:

First you will need to lay down a vapor barrier to keep your moisture factor to a minimum and you should join all the edges together with a moisture resistant tape.

Before you install any laminate on concrete do a concrete test:

The moisture resistant tape should be 2’ x 2’pieces of 6 mil or similar poly film to the slab in several areas of the layout. Make sure all the edges together and sealed and leave it for 24-48 Hr.

If the color change you have a moisture problem and you will need to take care of it before installing the Laminate flooring.

Moisture problem can evolve into health and safety issues caused by mold, mildew and floors lifting.

Consider surface-applied vapor retarders to block moisture emission from the concrete.

After you put a sealer on the slab and you let it dry well you are ready to install your laminate floors.

Since this is a floating floor it is better to use spacers around the room for an expansion gap  so your flooring will be able to expand and contract when humidity changes.

There are a few different underlayments’ you can use:

1.       Blue /green regular foam with moisture barrier protector – cost around $0.15 per sq/ft.

2.       Quiet Step, Non-woven, padded felt underlayment with moisture beerier – cost around $0.35 sq/ft.

3.     Green Foam, silent green underlayment 3 mm, High density, thick green foam with moisture barrier – cost around $0.39 per sq/ft.

4.       High density blue foam with aluminum, backing of 3 mm for moisture barrier – cost around $0.39 per sq/ft.

5.     Black EVA Foam Underlayment with aluminum back 2mm ,High density black EVA Foam with aluminum backing for moisture barrier – cost around $0.39 per sq/ft.

6.       Flat rubber underlayment with aluminum backing of 2mm for moisture barrier – cost around $0.55 per sq/ft.

The underlayment’s usually covers 100-200 sq/ft per roll.

First floor will be either concrete or plywood as far as second floor in most of the cases it will be plywood.

In a plywood case you will need only underlayment and the flooring, there will be no need of any moisture tests or sealer to apply on the plywood.

As far as the second story if you have high traffic area in order to have better sound control you can have cork instead of the underlayment.

Cork are available in two thickness options ¼” and ½”.

Now that you are ready to install after you lay down the underlayment/cork ,you will hold each board for  about 45 degree angle and because it is a floating floor and has a click system all you need to do is just attach one board to the previews one and press stand on it just snapped and place.

While you installing to prevent gaps just attach one piece of wood to the other side and with a hammer just tap on it until the gap is closed.

After you finish lying down the planks you are ready to take of the spacers and install any trims or moldings you have chosen.

You can choose either quarter round or baseboard to put against the wall.

The last part is to put the transitions each one in his place.

There are 3 transitions:

End mold – known also as threshold use for sliding doors and entrance doors.

Reducer –use if you have different heights between the old floor and the new floor.  

T-mold – use if both of the flooring is the same heights.

That’s it for now I hope this will be helpful and you will not be afraid of a D-I-Y projects.

Changing your flooring at home used to be very frustrating and expensive, well not any more.

Laminate flooring is the perfect solution for changing your old flooring without spending so much money.

People are more aware today to a lot of diseases that caused by carpets, it could be from allergies and up to even worst an asthma. 

Nowadays with the look of laminate flooring wood look alike you can have your flooring done with a minimum cost and time.

With the comfortable click system of any laminate flooring, you can save a lot of money on installation and do it by yourself, it is so simple that even if you are not a handy person with a simple of few steps you can have your flooring done.

If you decided to go with a contractor to install your laminate flooring you will see the saving compare to wood flooring.

Installation for laminate flooring can start on a price of $3.00 per Sq/Ft not like wood flooring that the prices running from $5.00 and up per Sq /Ft.

Laminate flooring which also known as floating floor because of the option of glue less installation become more and more popular in each and every house and apartment.

You don’t need to glue-down, staple down, or nail-down laminate flooring.

Instead of buying a few buckets of glue you can have a padding solution in a minimum cost of $0.14 cent per sq/ft and save even more.

With the beautiful selection of colors and wood look alike options laminate flooring today rated on the same level as hardwood flooring.

When you have come to select laminate flooring you need to consider the AC rate, which AC-1 is the lowest rate for laminate flooring and it is used for low traffic areas, AC-5 is usually for a high traffic areas and commercial needs, and the most popular and common among the people is the AC-3 rate which good for residential solution with a heavy traffic areas.

Just like hardwood flooring you can install laminate flooring almost in any part of the house, but just make sure that areas like kitchen and bathroom should be with more care and will be used with waterproof glue.

Molding and trims for laminate flooring are cheaper then molding for hardwood flooring and instead of paying an average cost of $49 for wood flooring quarter round piece, you can have quarter round for laminate for as low as $19.99.

Laminate flooring cost can start as low as $0.39 cent per sq/ft and you might want to check if it is odd lots or discontinued product that will be very difficult for you if you will need to continue the same project at the same area in the future, not all the click systems are the same, and you can find yourself stacking with two different colors and two different click systems.

Laminate flooring thickness usually start at 6mm and go up to 12mm,which most common is 8mm and 12mm for an average house or apartment.

The cost for 8mm could start at $0.99 cent and can go up to $3.00 depends on the surface type and the brand.

If you want your flooring to look classy you might want to consider the piano finish which is the high glossy type of laminate flooring and will makes your house looks very modern.

If you decided to go with the vintage look and put a distressed or a hand scraped look your house will looks more contemporary style.

Laminate floors are extremely impact, scratch, sunlight fade and stain resistant.

Any laminate flooring surface type will be with a minimum of maintenance care, you don’t need any wax or polish to keep your laminate looks fresh and new.

You can use a brushless vacuum and a very lightly wet cloth and your laminate floors will looks great.

Are you looking for ways to improve the look and the value of your home?

Hardwood floors have been considered the most popular home floors for many years.
Whether you are looking to resale your home or to just make your home a nicer place to live, wood flooring can help.
One of the ways to add value to your home without paying increased property taxes are:Hardwood floors.

With updated technology, installing a hardwood floor is no longer about thin strips of wood and lots of glue.  Putting in a new hardwood floor will increase the value of your home and make it a more attractive property for potential buyers.

Ask yourself, what's the first thing you notice when walking into any home?
Don't you look down rather than up as you enter the home? We all want to watch that first step! Potential buyers see floor coverings before kitchen cabinets, interior walls, or the pool in the back. Carpeting does not impress potential buyers.
An upgrade from carpet to wood floors is a definite plus.
Hardwood flooring is a perfect choice for adding value to your home because it's durable and traditional.

Hardwood flooring is the one of the most popular design elements in residential design projects. The new styles and materials available offer homeowners the ability to completely redefine a room with just one element.
Home decorators and designers will be the first to tell you that hardwood flooring offers ageless elegance and style to any living area.
Wood floors make a house look newer and more expensively decorated. Wood floors add both quality and character to a home, making it feel luxurious and comfortable at the same time.

There are many outlets and online stores that provide wood flooring at discounted prices, so be sure to shop around for the best deal before you buy your flooring.

By: Floor Variety Dot Com Inc.

Hardwood Floors - Hot Tips To Save You Money

There are many types of hardwood floorings available in the marketplace today. So how do you know which kind of floor will be the right one for you? And hardwood floors offer an incredible array of aesthetic options, too.

Although plush carpeting is an easy alternative to floor decorations, many home decorators are now setting a new trend with beautiful hardwood flooring. There are many reasons to go with hardwood, such as the permanent value they add to your home, the easy care and easy cleaning, great style and durability and they're natural and safe for the environment too.

The cost can vary depending on whether or not you can find discounts or can buy it wholesale. If you know a building contractor or hardwood floor contractor, they may be able to help you get a nice discount where they buy their materials even if you do it yourself. Installing wood flooring in your home should be considered a long-term investment that will hold its value, or even increase the resale value of your home, well surpassing the installation cost of the hardwood floors.

After all wood is wood, and what can be more ecologically clean than natural wood planks after very little chemical processing? For the healthy minded, there are much lower levels of chemical emissions from natural wood products. The cost of hardwood flooring depends on what type you choose.

Many retailers and manufacturers offer good discounts if you have a lot of square footage. If you're thinking about a do-it-yourself project and you're handy with tools, you can learn how to install hardwood flooring with a few of the proper tools like sanders, nailers, or nail guns, etc. which you can easily rent or borrow. Some of the most popular hardwood floor manufacturers include D & M Flooring, Reward Hardwood Flooring, Kahrs Floors and Ark floors.

When shopping for new wood flooring you want to check for special discounts or coupons from the many retailers and manufacturers both online and offline. Many people are now installing hardwood floors in their kitchen too and they can also be installed over concrete. Your new flooring may need a few refinishing, sanding and finish coats over the years. When you consider that carpets and vinyl floors will need to be replaced at least three or four times in that same time period, the long run costs of hardwood flooring seem very economical.

Besides the floor coverings that have been traditionally used in the past, there are now many new styles and materials of flooring to choose from that can definitely add to the style of any room. Hardwoods can give a room an expensive and high quality finish that's usually only connected to higher-end apartments and designer homes. But first of all you need to find a reputable hardwood floor company to help design and create the type of flooring that you want, unless you're experienced enough to forge ahead..

Most hardwood floors almost never need replacement and can add thousands of dollars to the value of any home. And hardwood flooring is the healthiest choice for interior living, especially if you have children in the home.

And with today's advanced wood flooring stains and finishes, cleaning your wood floors has never been easier. If you're looking for a great way to improve the look, the durability and the value of your home, hardwood floors are definitely the way to go. And wood is a wonderful natural resource that is both renewable and recyclable.

Author: Helen Hecker