Two Qualities of the Best Engineered Hardwood Flooring

If you aren't familiar with engineered hardwood flooring, walking into a Baton Rouge flooring store to pick some out for your home, can be a bit confusing. You will inevitably be hit with lists of hardwood species, types of finish, wear layer specifications, and a whole boatload of other unfamiliar terms and concepts, that will make your head spin. It doesn't have to be that difficult!

Really, the main things you have to think about, aside from aesthetic considerations, are pretty easy to spot. Basically it all comes down to the thickness of your wear layer, and the quality of the core. If you're looking for the best engineered hardwood flooring, here's what keep an eye out for:

Wear Layer

The wear layer is the top layer of wood that rests upon the core. The thickness of this layer is an important indicator of the quality of the flooring in question. As a general rule of thumb, the thicker the wear layer is, the better the flooring is.A thick wear layer means more than increased durability. One of the major benefits of engineered hardwood, is the fact that it can be sanded and refinished a number of times over its service life. You basically have a like-new floor after sanding and refinishing. The more times you can sand and refinish, the less you will spend replacing your floors over time. The number of times this process can be undertaken is dependent upon the thickness of the wear layer.

Core Quality

The core of your flooring is important, because it is the foundation upon which it rests. A stable core means a stable floor. A Stable floor means a longer service life and increased comfort and safety.

Basically the rule of thumb is the same for cores at it is for wear layers; the thicker the better. Obviously, the quality of the plywood used to make those layers is important to consider too, but for the sake of narrowing things down at the beginning, go thick if you want to get the best.

Want to Learn More?

Now that you know the basics, why not come see all of the styles and models of engineered hardwood flooring we have on display at our Wholesale Flooring & Granite showroom in Baton Rouge, LA. We'd love to guide you through every step of the process, and help you buy the perfect flooring for your home and budget. Contact us today for your free consultation and estimate to get started!