Suggestions for engineered hardwood

kleclerc · 03-13-2007, 12:32 AM

Hi. My wife & I want to install maple engineered hw flooring in our dining & living rooms. Cost is a major factor and we are trying to decide what the best trade-offs are, in terms of cost vs. quality.

A couple of options I've found are:
1) 5/8" 3-ply w/25-yr finish warranty (by davinci) @ $2.99sf
2) 5/16" 7-ply w/14-yr finish warranty (by br111) @ $3.32sf

We only plan on staying in this house for a few years, and I'm wondering if I should be more concerned with thinness of the 2nd option or the ply of the 1st? Should I be worried about wear on a 5/16" floor over a few years of medium traffic?

Any suggestions are greatly appreciated!

elementx440 · 03-13-2007, 12:59 AM

I'm sort of in the same boat, My knowledge of hardwood floors extends all the way back to about Saturday when I started researching myself.

You're looking at thickness of the wood, but I suppose this would have nothing to do with durability because you don't wear on the wood, you wear on the urethane coating. The thicker wood just allows you to refinish it once or twice in the future (which isn't a concern for you since you're moving soon).

The multiply has each ply at at 90-degrees to eachother, that way when the moisture of the wood changes the wood is sort of restricted in its expansion, unlike a solid wood floor which expands in one direction and makes unsightly gaps in between boards. I suppose more ply would resist the most expansion.

kleclerc · 03-13-2007, 08:17 PM

Thanks for the reply & information.

So maybe I should be paying more attention to the type of coating as well... I think most of the engineered hw floors we've been interested in so far have an aluminum oxide coating. I'll have to study up on the different options.

troubleseeker · 03-13-2007, 10:26 PM

Just a comment from a very bad and still ongoing problem with br111 brand flooring. The owner of an ongoing remodel contracted flooring themelves( some kind of relative in the business). They installed this brand in a brazillian cherry. When I went back to the job after the installation, there was the most horrible color mismatches that I have ever seen in a floor of any kind. I actually looked through the trash pile for the boxes, because I was convinced that there had to be boxes of the wrong flooring mixed in. Owner was not happy upon seeing this; floor contractor sent someone to cut out the boards (15 to 20 in each of 3 rooms). The new boards were just as mismatched as the original, just a different color than the original mismatch. Problem is still ongoing. This is my first experience with this brand, but it does not seem to be a very good quality product IMO.

jamesdart · 03-15-2007, 05:38 PM

i hate the idea of doing things with the idea that you will not be there in in so many years. what if something changes and you stay? i try to do every project, built to last. for a preengineered floor, i would strongly recomend harris tarkett. i had a maple floor from them, it was just awsome, and it was thick enough ot refinish. if you go with the 5/16" it might need some help in 5 years. will that help you at the time of sale? would you want o put a nother floor in just so the new owners could enjoy it?

elementx440 · 03-15-2007, 06:44 PM

true, you gotta consider resale value. If it looks like crap in 5 years you'll be replacing anyhow to get anyone to bid on the house...

I can't seem to get anyone to really say they're happy with hard wood, sadly I'm starting to think it's carpet wall to wall for me....

Does the engineered flooring's finish hold up any better than a solid wood's finish? Or are they probably identical chemicals/process?

KUIPORNG · 03-16-2007, 11:31 AM

I used to own a condo which is changed with engineer hard wood.. the condo sold in a few days because of the flooring... my experience with engineer hard wood is they looks very nice much better than laminate... the disadvantage of it against real hard wood is the hardiness, they are subject to dent easier than hard wood... so if you can get same price with hard wood, I would choose hardwood because often hardwood is cheaper in HD, don't know why... engineer hard wood on the other hand, never on sale...