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Discussion Forum

Toughest Wood Floors

| Posted in General Discussion on October 28, 2000 12:11pm

*
I’m going to re-floor our kitchen and dining room. I’ve laid ceramic tile and vinyl before, but never wood. My wife is afraid that wood would take too much maintanence and that our dining room chairs with casters would damage the wood. The wood flooring guy said that special casters are available but damage would still occur over time.

What is a good wood species for heavy use floors that would show less damage than others? Is this a real problem?

Thanks
Kevin

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Replies

  1. GACC_DAllas | Sep 22, 2000 06:38pm | #1

    *
    Kevin,

    People have been using oak (white or red) for hundreds of years. My guess would be "oak".

    Ed. Williams

    1. Ken_fisher | Sep 22, 2000 09:13pm | #2

      *Kevin:You're always going to get some wear and damage to any solid 3/4" hardwood floor, but at least you can have them refinished many times over. I know the Brazillian Cherry debate will probably never end here, but it's the hardest of the more popular hardwoods. The harder the material the more resistant it is to denting and scratching. The harder ones will dent and scratch but not to the magnitude of say a southern yellow pine or a Doug Fir floor(very soft). Here's a few others you may want to consider, but the cost goes up. Mesquite and Hickory/Pecan for those concerned with the rain forests. Then for those that want extra insurance you can still find that 33/32" material that has a wear layer that'll last well past your grandkids lifetime.

      1. jim_"crazy_legs"_blodg | Sep 22, 2000 10:00pm | #3

        *I'd like to add that the first thing to go bad on any wood floor is the finish. I think it's best to stay away from polyurethane finishes that form a skin over the wood. They are okay, until you wear through the finish, then you have a problem. I am a recent convert to penetrating oil finishes for flooring. Since the oil wicks down into the wood, there is no surface to wear through, and they look good far longer than urethane protected floors. Just my opinion of course.

        1. Kevin_James | Sep 24, 2000 03:13am | #4

          *Thanks for all the help with the wood floor issue. I've looked at theimported cherry but it seems to be too dark. We've thought about hickory, which I like, but it has lots of grain variations. We will check out oak.I will have to go with a pre-done finish though, because my wifeis allergic to many stains and oils.Thanks againKelvin

          1. Adrian_Wilson | Sep 24, 2000 01:48pm | #5

            *FWIW, here is the listing of domestic hardwoods (from "Wood Handbook: Wood as and Engineerig Material", USDA, by way of The Hardwood Council). Measured in pounds of pressure applied before marring occurs:* hickory, pecan 1820*hard maple 1450*white oak 1360*white ash 1320*beech 1300*red oak 1290*yellow birch 1260*green ash 1200*black walnut 1010*soft maple 950*cherry 950*alder 590then you get into poplar, basswood, aspen, etc, which aren't useful for floors.

          2. Matt_G. | Sep 24, 2000 02:21pm | #6

            *I see 2 places in this thread where "hickory, pecan" are grouped together. Is this saying that these 2 species are related/similar/same/etc.?

          3. Fred_Mitchell | Oct 04, 2000 05:06pm | #7

            *Check out mesquite. On Wilson's hardness chart, above, it came in at 2340. I happened to go by Heritage Mesquite here in Bryan, TX (they have a web site with pictures) and found a one inch thick piece of mesquite in their scrap bin that had the heft of metal. The weight rooms at Texas A & M have mesquite as a floor at each station. Additionally, it's a beautiful reddish color.

          4. Crusty_ | Oct 19, 2000 06:24am | #8

            *Kevin, if you're going with pre-finished and you want full 3/4" T&G, try and locate some made by Century Flooring in Melborne, Arkansas. I think you'll be impressed.

          5. Jim_K_ | Oct 20, 2000 01:30am | #9

            *Just to add something else into the mix:>Bamboo Flooring Hardness:(Janka Ball Test)-PSI>   Cherry/950-PSI>    Bamboo/1130-PSI>    Red Oak/1290-PSI >Bamboo Flooring Relative Stability:>   Red oak/.00369>   Cherry/.00248>   Bamboo/.00175*   >* Bamboo is twice as stable as Red Oak.Got this from a bamboo web site. It's grain is real mild and it's beautiful, hard, and stable. Got a bunch sitting here ready to install, so let's hope reality matches perception.

          6. nate_ | Oct 20, 2000 03:20am | #10

            *get rid of those chairs w/casters

          7. Chris_Robb | Oct 20, 2000 03:28am | #11

            *Interesting numbers that Adrian added to the discussion...I'm curious how Ironwood would stand the pressure test? I tried to cut some one time with a chainsaw (to achieve small enough pieces to load into the truck without breaking my back) and let me tell 'ya, the chain did'nt stand a chance! C-3 carbide or harder only!! I without looking at those tables would have guessed Maple being right at the top of the list. Best of luck to you and your choice, of course theres always....cough,cough..Pergo.

          8. FredB | Oct 20, 2000 06:19pm | #12

            *Jim has a good point. It is just as important to pick a good finish as it is to pick the wood species. When I was a kid first starting oak t&g was the standard. It would last almost forever. But floors looked a lot different depending on how they were finished. In those days most people varnished or oiled. Me, I like oil?

          9. Neal_Mulvenna | Oct 20, 2000 09:25pm | #13

            *We looked at installing bamboo floors, saw some poor examples for holding up in traffic. The key thing with bamboo appears to be the type of urethane finish they use. Some of the small-time manufactureres in China use some pretty soft stuff. So be careful in choosing a brand.

          10. S_Edwards | Oct 26, 2000 05:46pm | #14

            *Are you close to Canada? Yesterday I took the trip north. Prefinished hickory costs $2.45 (U.S. dollars) per square foot. That is less that half the price from my building supplier. Similiar savings were offered on all other species. I also agree about the oil finish on the floor versus the polyurethane. Bamboo is okay but not everyone likes the grain pattern which is mostly straight lines. There are casters out there which utilize soft rubber. Go to the library and ask for the Thomas Registers. These books list sources for everything. If not available at your library try a local architect or college.

          11. Jerry_Serafine | Oct 28, 2000 12:11am | #15

            *Speaking of species for floors, I am considering putting in wide plank pine flooring. Anybody have any opinions on what the best type of pine to use is? Finish?

  2. Kevin_James | Oct 28, 2000 12:11am | #16

    *
    I'm going to re-floor our kitchen and dining room. I've laid ceramic tile and vinyl before, but never wood. My wife is afraid that wood would take too much maintanence and that our dining room chairs with casters would damage the wood. The wood flooring guy said that special casters are available but damage would still occur over time.

    What is a good wood species for heavy use floors that would show less damage than others? Is this a real problem?

    Thanks
    Kevin

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