Wide Plank Flooring
If you are about to have wood flooring installed in your home, you may want to take a look at wide plank flooring instead of the mainstream retail products available at your home supply center. Solid wood floors today are usually made up of very narrow one and half inch width pieces that are also very short in length. This type of wood flooring separates you from the common cookie cutter type floors and gives off an air of elegance and distinction. Most people do not even know that this flooring is even available today.
The common size for wide planks is a minimum of three inches and can be as wide as twelve inches. Manufactures that produce these floors usually bundle three varying widths in each package delivered. However, you can special order the planks to be a uniform width, but at a much higher cost. Flooring is cut from the log for the longest piece possible, and the width of the tree will determine width of the plank. So trying to cover a two thousand square foot house with the exact same width will take more time and sorting by the manufacturer.
There are several makers of wide plank floors, and most will give you several options when making your purchase. You may choose to go the total do it yourself route and order the planks unfinished. This will entail not only installing the flooring, but also sanding, staining, and applying the clear coat finish. This can add several days to your installation and if you have small children and pets roaming the house, it could be a messy proposition at best. Most makers and sellers of wide planks offer pre-finished products that will cut days of work off your install schedule. Another plus to having them do this part of the process is that they are experienced in this area and you can be assured of a quality job and probably have a more scratch resistant floor system.
Installing the flooring is in some ways easier than conventional wood flooring since each piece is wider and longer. You can order planks up to eight-teen feet in length for hallways and other large rooms in your home. Some makers of wide plank flooring also offer accessories like staircase trim for the steps, and banisters to help blend in with your new floor. Floor and ceiling moldings can also be ordered to match your flooring too.
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