A floating floor will be basically a hardwood floor that is installed by gluing the floor planks together as an alternative to gluing or stapling them to the floor itself. Since a floating floor doesn’t need a unique kind of subfloor to install to, it frees you up to install wood flooring in areas where they previously weren’t a possibility. You are able to install them over vinyl or ceramic flooring, or in areas of high humidity where traditional hardwood floors have a tendency to warp and crack. If you’re looking for the great look of hardwood floors without the installation challenges and limitations, then a floating hardwood floor will be everything that you’ve been searching for.
Another advantage of a floating wood floor is usually that, given that they are glued together as an alternative to the subfloor, they usually are placed in a bevy of areas where traditional hardwood floors weren’t a solution. First off, they are often installed over the top of other flooring choices (everything with the exception of carpet), saving you time and trouble of tearing out your original flooring before installing your floating wood floor. And because they’re glued or clicked together, instead of fastened to your floor itself, the entire floor expands united rather than as individual planks. This simply means they may be installed in areas of high humidity (i.e. basements) where hardwood flooring previously wasn’t allowed.
Why Use Floating Wood Flooring
A floating wood floor will be placed in an almost identical way as a laminate or engineered wood floor. Made out of a core layer of plywood or hardwood, with layers of hardwood veneer as the “wear and tear” (or top) layer, these planks are designed in tongue and groove style and are usually glued together as you put them to use over the layer of foam padding. If that sounds too challenging to suit your needs, new kinds of floating wood floor are actually being manufactured that happen to be glueless, which enable it to be clicked together upon installation. To make a long story short, a floating hardwood floor combines the simple installation of laminate flooring using the classic looks of hardwood flooring. That’s a combination that’s tough to beat.
Floating Wood Floors May Very Well Be Refinished
Finally, among the many big advantages of choosing a floating wood floor versus laminate is certainly that they can be refinished more than once, just like a traditional hardwood floor. Consequently a floating wood floor isn’t a quick term flooring option. If installed correctly and taken care of properly, a floating hardwood floor can last 40 to eighty years, depending on the thickness with the wear layer of hardwood veneer!
A Few Items to consider When Inserting a Floating Wood Floor
While these floors possess tremendous upside, here are a few things to be aware of to ensure that your new floor won’t disappoint you during the years to come. First, fight the temptation going cheap and don’t purchase cut-rate flooring. The cheaper the flooring the cheaper the wear layer, and the cheaper the wear layer, the shorter your new floor’s lifespan is going to be. Spending a little bit more for the thicker wear layer will be worth every penny if you’re considering increasing the lifespan of your new floating hardwood floor. Also, understand that one of many main important things about these floors can be their downfall. Be sure to leave room for expansion after you install your flooring. Any time you cut your new floor to fit, the complete surface will be almost certain to buckle and heave soon enough. By leaving a tiny space between your flooring as well as walls, thereafter covering that space with baseboard or other trim, you can rest easy knowing your floating floor can last you for a long time.
Take a look at some engineered floating floors today for your next project.