Wooden floors - experiences

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gd2000

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Hey all,

I'm currenlty thinking about putting wooden floors into my living room - dining room and was hoping for any useful experiences people may have to share.

Some friends have advised using laminates as they are very resiliant - but I'm worried that they may look too plastic.

Mulveys in Ranelagh suggested an oiled semi-solid (which seem relatively expensive compared to solids). They look very nice, but I'm unsure how much they'd stand up to day to day use.

No kids in the house - mostly just myself and my gf, so hopefully we'll be responsible enough!!!

Thanks for any opinions you can offer...
 
depends on your budget really and how long you plan to live at your house

I would suggest getting solid wood as it will always look better
 
We have recently fitted solid oak downstairs and semi-solid upstairs (all bought from Brooks - reasonable deal). I have to say the solid looks better and feels nicer underfoot. But don't wear sharp heels (your gf or you !) as they tend to mark them.
 
solid walnut in our living room, looks great, but you have to be careful of it..
 
mossym said:
solid walnut in our living room, looks great, but you have to be careful of it..
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indeed....Walnut is the second softest wood amongst the hardwood used for flooring , "common" cherry being the softest and brazilian cherry being the hardest.
 
There's no doubt that solid looks better but laminate needn't look bad if you are careful about what you choose.

We went for laminate in a few rooms (house already had solid in some rooms) and the laminate looks absolutely fine. It's easy to lay, easy to clean, doesn't mark as easily and obviously a lot cheaper.

Over the last 6 months by the way, our solid flooring has received some scrapes and marks which we cannot hide or repair - can't even work out how they arose. The laminate areas get much more use and have had plenty of opportunity for damage but so far, spotless.

If you are still considering laminate I would suggest something light with not too prominent a grain as darker grainy laminate can look more 'fake'
 
Cheers guys - seems like solid is the way to go... Guess there's no more high heels then!!

So far I've only been to Des Kelly and Mulveys - I'll drop into Brooks this weekend. Any other suggestions for good places are welcome!

Quite fond of the oiled floors at the mo - they seem to be easier to maintain...
 
I have semi solid light oak in my hall and living room...the dreaded high heel marks aren't too bad after 4 years, but are noticeable. But I prefer it to the line my friend takes who requests all visitors to remove shoes. Meant that the ladies were a little shorter than normal at a recent formal do at his house. Parents have laminate in hall and definitely easier to clean though. Another friend has bamboo which is gorgeous
 
tosullivan said:
I would suggest getting solid wood as it will always look better
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This is not true. I have seen laminate floors that cannot be distinguished from solid floors. Good laminate wood floors tend to be much more stable then solid floors, with a more resilient finish. We have solid floors throughout, mix of ash and cherry, all of which look great, however I was surprised by the amount of movement over time, particularly of the ash. In addition to this we had a radiator leak on one area and it took almost 6 months for the floor to properly dry out and return to its correct level.

I would definitely consider laminates next time. However I suppose good solid floors are much better than poor laminates and vice versa, so choose carefully.

J2K
 
We were going to put in solid wood floors, but in the end we put laminate down in our living/dining-room & hallway. We went for a good quality laminate in a mid-oak colour & most visitors think its a wood floor when they walk in. Definitely the best choice for us & we don't have to worry about furniture or high-heels marking it!
 
How do you know what a 'high quality' laminate is? Laminates in general seem to be relatively cheap, so what would be an average price for good quality laminates?

I'm still leaning towards solids/semi-solids though, 'cos the floors shouldn't get too much wear! I'm barely in the house!
 
I was told during a bit of Sales gumph that laminate manufactured by 'Tarkett' is good stuff and priced around 25 euro a sq Yd - semi-solid can be got for the same price though.
 
There are literally scores of manufacturers with probably not that much to separate them. I'd just see if you like the look of some and if you've indentified 1 or 2 - and they aren't the absolute cheapest you should be ok.

Also check the thickness of each brand as sometimes this can vary by 1mm.
 
I agree with Caveat, check the thickness of the board & the weight. The laminate we got felt as heavy as a semi solid & is quite thick. The top of it is also lightly textured so that it appears more 'wood' like - this sounds so odd, but hopefully you can get the idea!

I can't remember the brand name but its along the lines of Quick-Step's UniClic.
 
Hi
I have specified maybe 100 + timber floors in my working life. In my opinion solid or semi-solid is far superior to laminate. (I am not trying to knock other peoples choices here) semi-solid can be more expensive as obviously there is more work in making the boards more stable.
Just be careful with an oiled floor - they look beautiful, but they have to be treated with great respect - forget the heels - you may have to wear wooly socks!
 
@eroe

Advice is much appreciated. WRT oiled floors - how much respect do they actually need? I don't mind being careful (within reason), but I wouldn't be too keen about not being able to wear day-to-day shoes though...
 
Cinders,
May I ask, where did you purchase the laminate? We're hoping to get a really good quality laminate in a mid oak colour too and I'm lost as to where to begin looking for it, there's so much choice out there!
Thank,
Eviecarwash.
 
Hi Gd2000 - clean shoes (so put matwell at front door); Spills need to be cleaned up stat; I would not use around working kitchen area. But all that said if it was myself and one other I would certainly consider using it, as the finish is very refined.
 
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