Tips for Choosing The Perfect Hardwood Floors For Dogs

You love the look of hardwood floors, but you’ve a dog. Hardwood flooring is out of the question, right? fortunately, that is not the case. Your pet can live in harmony together with your hardwood floors. You simply need to be sure to select the right characteristics to ensure the best and perfect hardwood floors for dogs. Here are the tips for choosing the Perfect hardwood floors if you have a dog –

1) Go with hardwood, not softwood.

Stay away from soft woods like American walnut, pine or birch. Instead, opt for hard species. Ash, oak or Brazilian Cherry are among the robust and hard wood species that don’t dent simply and have wonderful shock absorbency properties, which is able to help minimize dents and scratches from dog nails.

2) Choose wood species with pronounced grain texture.

White oak and ash, for instance, have naturally rich grain texture that disguises scratches and minor dents. Marks left by cat and dog nails will blend in with the floor surface, appearing as part of a natural wood texture.

3) Select wire brushed or scraped flooring, otherwise a textured surface.

When the wood is brushed, soft portion of the wood is scraped away so as to highlight deep grain texture and its natural richness. The result is an awfully natural-looking and forgiving floor surface that’s complemented by wood knots and dramatic character marks of wood. Scratches and tiny dents left by dog nails, moreover the other signs of wear and tear will merely add to the dramatic impact achieved by wire brushing the floor surface.

4) Pick natural colors.

Stains in natural colors that vary from beige to dark brown are the best alternative for homes with dogs and other large pets. In periods of shedding, fur is going to be barely noticeable on the floor surface.

5) Opt for low gloss, matte surface finishes.

Oil and wax-based matte surface finishes are perfect for households with dogs, not only because they conceal dust, dirt and small scratches, but also because oil penetrates into the wood while not forming a thick surface film. Visually, this results in stunning open grains. Practically, this means that floors are protected from the effects of moisture from the inside (especially, if the finish is a water-repellent oil or wax). Additionally, oiled floors have a natural and warm feel and are plenty less slippery than the traditional lacquer floors.

Oiled floors have another benefit over lacquered: they permit for “spot repairs”. Whereas, with traditional polyurethane lacquer floors, fixing severe local damage will generally entail removal and replacement of ruined planks. With oiled flooring, the repair procedure is a simple do-it-yourself job that solely needs a piece of sanding paper, some stain, oil and a sponge. Whereas, oiled and brushed floors will need to be re-oiled, on an average, every couple of years, it’s an easy one-man job that can be executed in a single afternoon.

Hardwood Flooring Phoenix

Hardwood Flooring – Five Things to Know

Whether you are building a brand new house or remodeling the previous one, it is hard to say no to hardwood floors. Hardwood flooring in Phoenix is known for its natural beauty, warm colors and ability to complement any kind of design style.

So let’s delve into hardwood floors and look at five things you should recognize.

1. There are two sorts of hardwood floors.
Solid wood and Engineered wood. Solid wood flooring is specifically like they sound. Each plank is 100% solid wood made of a single piece of timber. Although solid wood is gorgeous, it is additionally a natural material. Natural materials can shrink or expand if there are changes in moisture or temperature. For this reason, solid hardwood floors are not suggested for bathrooms or underground spaces. Engineered hardwood, on the other hand, is formed from three to ten layers – additionally known as plies – of wood that have been glued along. Because it has multiple plies, engineered wood is stronger than solid wood and greatly reduces the possibility of shrinking, expanding, or warping. Due to this, engineered wood is often used underground in finished basements.

2. Hardwood comes in a variety of wood species.
Determining the kind of wood for your floors can return all the way down to your personal preference and what’s within your budget. Wood comes in multiple colors and every species has its own distinctive details to contemplate, like grain, swirls, and knots. Red oak is one amongst the foremost popular hardwood flooring choices in America due to its sturdiness and made red color. Oak could be a chromatic grey color and even stronger than oak. Pine is understood for its heat yellow tones and its ability to repel insects. There is additionally maple, birch, walnut, ash and more exotic woods like tigerwood, Brazilian cherry or lapacho.

3. Hardwood floors are simple to clean and maintain.
One of the best reasons to put in hardwood floors is the easy cleanup and maintenance. Carpet has to be vacuumed frequently and then deep cleaned every few years if you wish to keep it looking nice. Hardwood floors solely want some dusting with a microfiber cloth or sweeping with a soft-bristled broom for normal cleaning. When you wish to mop, use a hardwood floor cleaner rather than water because water will react with the wood. You may also need to polish and buff your floors every few months.

4. You may need to refinish your hardwood floors.
Because of traffic and natural use, hardwood floors tend to develop some wear and tear over time. That doesn’t mean your floor is ruined. It simply means it might be time to possess your floors refinished. Refinishing also can be used to improve or modify the overall look of your home. If you opt to refinish your hardwood floors, you can prefer a special stain color to switch things up.

5. Hardwood floors don’t have to be expensive.
Since wood is natural, it would be a bit more expensive than a non-natural material. And there are undoubtedly more expensive choices, but you can additionally find hardwood at lower cost points. Less costly wood might have more knots, imperfections, color variations and fewer layers of engineered wood. But, it is still hardwood – simply at a better worth.

Whether or not to install hardwood floors in your house is a giant call. Hopefully, this information helps to provide you an inspiration of what’s out there and what you can expect.