Oak, maple, ash, beech and the other hardwoods that fall mid-range on the Janka Scale, which rates the relative hardness of the wood, are extremely popular choices. That they are not so soft that they won’t stand up to wear and tear nor so hard that the beauty of the grain is lost, make these ideal for both home and office. Appearance and durability have always topped the list of prime motivators when it comes to flooring. Nevertheless, there is another reason for installing wood floors that may well be the most important of all.

It is estimated that almost 20 million people in the United States, alone, suffer from asthma. Environmental pollutants and seasonal factors have long been credited as being triggers for the attacks that are symptomatic of this chronic lung disease. More recently, it has been determined that allergens found in the home can be just as guilty. Commonly included on the list are dust mites, mold, pet dander, pollen and insect droppings. Hard as it may be to accept, most, if not all of these are found in virtually every home.

The key to controlling asthma attacks is to remove the irritants. However, that is next to impossible  when carpeting is present. Many homeowners have come to the realization that their best recourse is to remove the carpets and replace with a surface that can be thoroughly cleaned, such as wood or tile. Studies have documented the difference it makes for those with any sort of breathing issue once carpeting has been replaced with hard surface flooring.

Is there anything more frightening than the feeling of not being able to breathe? A sudden asthma attack, brought on by seemingly harmless and practically invisible particles, can be more than scary. Untreated, it can be fatal.

Fortunately, the good news is that ripping out that carpeting and replacing with oak or one of the other varieties of hardwood flooring will go a long way in reducing the frequency of reactions. This is true whether you choose to install solid planks, engineered wood flooring or the reclaimed oak that has become so popular.

Realtors will tell you that wood floors are an excellent way to increase the market value of your home. Now you can be confident that they are also an investment in the health and well being of your family.

So often it seems that we are forced to choose between beauty and stability, design and function or even pleasure and health. But that is definitely not the case when it comes to flooring. Solid oak flooring is experiencing a surge in popularity due to the fact that it is not only incredibly beautiful but, with just a little care, will last for years and years and is an excellent choice for those suffering with breathing issues.

If you talk to anyone who has recently been involved in buying or selling a home, they will tell you just how significant it is when wood flooring is included in the description on the listing. Real Estate professionals know that a house is sold or rejected within seconds of when the prospective buyer walks in the front door.  The warmth and richness of a well-cared for oak floor quickly translates into thousands of dollars difference in market value.

Durability is key when it comes to something that is required to stand up under the kind of constant use that flooring gets. Many advocate engineered oak flooring  or even oak laminate flooring for heavily trafficked areas but, with the correct finish and proper care, solid oak floors will stand up to just about any situation. For those instances when there is damage or when the floor was not adequately maintained, it is not difficult to refinish or even replace an area to return it to its original state. It is not uncommon to find wood flooring that has been in place for well over a hundred years.

Despite the draw that a hardwood floor has because of its beauty and resilience, perhaps even more compelling is the potential health benefit for people with allergies or breathing problems. Asthma is a chronic lung disease that affects almost 20 million Americans. Documented triggers known to bring on asthma attacks include dust mites, animal dander (dead skin flakes), molds, pollen, and insect droppings. These are found in practically every home but are nearly impossible to remove from those with carpeting.

Whatever the reason for choosing oak flooring or another variety of hardwood, you can do so with confidence. With this decision alone you will have added to the beauty and value of your home and, at the same time, protected the health of your family.

According to Stephen Calloway’s architectural encyclopedia, The Elements of Style, it was not until the early 1600′s that solid wood planks replaced bare ground or straw as flooring in this country. By the mid 1800′s, wood floors were being mass produced, and it wasn’t until right after World War II that cheap housing via the GI Bill led to the carpet boom. Many industrious homeowners over the years have been delighted to discover beautiful old oak floors when they ripped the carpet out of their pre-WWII homes.

Solid wood floors, whether oak, maple or any of a variety of hardwoods, come in a wide range of dimensions and styles. Originally, wood planks were used for structural purposes and were nailed perpendicular to the support beams. Today, however, the visible flooring in homes and commercial buildings is aesthetic rather than part of the support system.

There are advantages and disadvantages to solid wood. Besides the perception value, the pride factor in being able to say that your floors are solid oak or walnut, there is far more opportunity for customization. The choice is entirely yours of combinations of species, stains and finishes, all of which create a finished floor unlike any other. Solid wood is easier to sand and refinish due to its thickness, can be installed with nails and can actually be less expensive than most of the better types of engineered wood.

One of the chief disadvantages of solid wood is it’s susceptibility to changes in temperature and moisture levels. This can cause the planks to shrink or expand, resulting in gaps between boards during colder or dryer seasons or cupping during hot, humid months. Because of this tendency for expansion and contraction, there are usually restrictions placed on the width and thickness of the boards, with 5″ wide and 3/4″ thick typically being the largest that can be cut from solid wood without the structure of the flooring being compromised. In addition, solid wood is not recommended for installation below grade, meaning in basement levels, and should not be placed directly on top of concrete without there being some sort of sub-flooring.

Unless your situation calls specifically for one or the other, in the end, it comes down to a matter of choice. The good news is that, in all likelihood, you will be pleased whether you end up with solid oak flooring or it’s engineered cousin.

Solid oak flooring planks are milled from a single length of timber and are one piece of wood, top to bottom. However, wooden flooring can also be constructed by pressing together two or more thin strips of wood. From this process we get engineered wood.

Worldwide, engineered wood surpassed solid planks as the most common type of wood flooring and though that is not yet the case here in the United States it is simply a matter of time. If one can move past the aura surrounding the concept of solid wood as opposed to something man-made, engineered wood has some distinct advantages.

The first thing to note is that engineered oak flooring is not laminate, vinyl or veneer. It is composed of layers of real wood pressed together with the grains running in different directions, which creates a more stable foundation than solid wood flooring. The top layer of oak, or whatever species being used, is referred to as the lamella and is the part that is visible.

Engineered wood, due to the layering of strips with the grains running in different directions, is not susceptible to the changes in temperature or humidity like solid planks are. This means that there are no restrictions as to where it can be installed, including sub-grade, basement levels as long as there is no risk of flooding. In addition, there are not the limitations on plank width that is found with solid hardwood flooring.

Solid wood planks must be nailed to a sub-floor but, depending upon the thickness of the material used, there are other options available for the installation of engineered wood flooring. One of the more popular methods is the floating floor which does not require nails or glues and can be purchased from many retailers in what is basically a kit for do-it-yourself installation.

Sellers of engineered wood products will continue to sing the praises and extol the advantages of what they claim is a superior flooring choice. Purists who believe that you can not improve on Mother Nature will point out that engineered wood floors do not have a lot of history that can be used to judge their true durability and lasting power. Definitely there are no 100 to 200 year old examples of engineered wood to compare to the many beautiful solid oak floors of that age found all over the world. In the end, as in most things, it comes down to your personal choice.

Reclaimed or recycled oak may be the perfect solution. More and more people are concerned about the environmental effects that have resulted from the loss of so much of our forests. This has led to increased interest, not only here in the United States but all over the world, in finding old lumber and reusing it. Much of this wood comes from old barns, log cabins and houses that were built around the turn of the century. Some has been reclaimed from old ships and even from under water at abandoned logging sites when freshly cut logs were lost as they were being loaded.

Environmental consciousness is not the only reason that recycled wood is gaining such opularity. Most of this wood came from old growth forests and it is often harder and denser than new growth wood. This means that it is less susceptible to the effects of moisture and temperature changes. The real reason, however, that so many are seeking out recycled wood is that it just cannot be matched in beauty and character.

Finding and taking apart old buildings is labor intensive and just the beginning in the long process that prepares this antique wood for a new life. Every piece must be thoroughly inspected for damage or rot and these pieces must be cut out. All nails and hardware have to be carefully removed without further damaging the wood.  If necessary, the lumber is then kiln-dried to remove any residual moisture. This is also the only effective way to kill any dormant insects that love to hide in old wood. Despite all of these steps that are necessary to bring this product to market, recycling wood is still more resource efficient than procuring and milling fresh lumber.

All hardwood floors add warmth and beauty wherever they are installed. Recycled flooring does that and more. Every plank has a history. What a shame they can’t tell their stories! But we can imagine what they might be and we can know that we have become a part of a tale that not only began long ago but reaches into the future.

How lumber is cut into boards makes a big difference in how it will look installed in your home. Wood grain is comprised of a series of concentric rings beginning in the center of each log and moving outward. The angle at which the cuts are made will determine how these rings will be displayed in the finished product.

The three basic cuts for lumber intended for flooring are rift-sawn, plain-sawn and quarter-sawn. Each has its pros and cons.

Rift-sawn planks are cut from the center of each log. As the length of timber is turned for each successive cut, a straight grain appearance results on the face of each board which creates a nice uniformity and very pleasing pattern.  This technique results in arguably the most stable planks of all the cuts resulting in a product that stands up well to temperature and humidity changes. Rift-sawn, as you can see from the illustration, does have the disadvantage of generating far more waste than plain-sawn.

Plain-sawn is by far the most common of the cuts. Sometimes referred to as flat-sawn, this cut positions the tree’s growth rings parallel to the face of the board. This results in highlighting the character and swirls of the grain. There is less waste in plain-sawn lumber which not only makes it the most environmentally friendly method but also lowers the cost. The main disadvantage to plain-sawn is that it is less structurally sound than the other two types of cut and plain-sawn boards can have a tendency to cup or warp.

Quarter-sawn, while not as efficient a cut as plain-sawn, is very popular because it insures that each plank includes the rays of the tree as they extend outward from the center through the rings. This pattern can only be seen in a few of the center boards when the plain-sawn technique is used. Especially with quarter-sawn oak, each plank displays that special flecking and sheen that is so highly desirable for flooring.