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Professional advice can make all the difference

If you’ve decided that 2012 will be the year that you follow in the footsteps of many other homeowners by replacing your carpets with wooden flooring, it’s certainly set to be a good year.

However, if you’re a novice as far as wooden flooring is concerned, you can be forgiven for feeling a little overwhelmed, as the wooden flooring options are extensive nowadays.

As wooden flooring is such a important investment though, rushing into a decision or making an uninformed decision should be avoided at all costs, and this is why those who are investing in wooden flooring for the first time should seek professional advice before parting with those precious pounds.

Getting advice from a wooden flooring professional genuinely could make all the difference between making a suitable or unsuitable wooden flooring investment, and a professional will be more than happy to help you to make a final decision or simply provide you with some pointers.

A professional can discuss important factors such as the amount of foot traffic and the overall look that you wish to achieve with you, and you will be able to feel confident that you’ve made the right flooring decision.

Ensuring that your hardwood flooring serves you well

Hardwood flooring has increasingly become the first choice flooring for many homeowners, and once they’ve replaced carpets with hardwood flooring, it’s fair to say that the vast majority just don’t look back.

Hardwood flooring has proved itself to be a very cost-efficient investment for modern homeowners, with many having enjoyed the hardwood flooring in their home for as long as they care to remember now.

However, if you’re looking to join the ranks of homeowners who have experienced the longevity, style and convenience of hardwood flooring, there are a few things which you need to bear in mind and a few steps which you will need to follow in order to ensure that hardwood flooring serves you well.

Although hardwood flooring is renowned for being relatively easy to look after, looking after it does mean ensuring that it’s swept, cleaned and up kept with the right products and on a regular basis- it can’t just be forgotten about.

Spills are a part of life in many homes, and provided any spills are cleaned up quickly and appropriately, they shouldn’t stain.

When the time comes, it’s also important to call in a professional to take care of any repairs or renovation to hardwood flooring- this will help to increase the looks and lifespan of flooring no end.

Transform your home in one simple step

If your home has looked the same for as far back as you care to remember now, it’s understandable if you’re desperate to make a change. In today’s tough economic times though, many homeowners feel slightly reluctant when it comes to making changes- especially overly expensive ones.

If you want to completely transform the look of your home in one simple yet cost-effective step, hardwood flooring is the answer.

It’s quite surprising just how many homeowners dismiss the impact which flooring can have on the overall look of the home, as the impact can actually be huge.

Therefore, if your floors have looked the same for years, investing in new hardwood flooring could be all it takes for you to feel completely satisfied again.

When it comes to transforming your home in one simple step with hardwood flooring, one thing which will quickly become apparent is that you have plenty of choice.

Hardwood flooring constructed from many different types of woods is available to invest in very cost-efficiently nowadays, and there are plenty of woods to meet different needs and different interior style tastes.

Transform your home for the better and in one simple step with hardwood flooring.

Good reasons why to turn to the wood flooring professionals (Part 2)

In the last article we explained how hardwood flooring manufacturers prefer to work with experts in the trade to ensure their products are being used as they were designed and to be installed with the utmost of care and attention to detail.

There are other reasons why it is always advisable to go to an experienced company in the field to supply your wooden flooring in Surrey, Sussex or Hampshire, so we will consider a few of these now.

If you are investing in such a beautiful wooden floor, it gives you peace of mind to know that you have purchased it from approved industry professionals that can offer help and guidance on anything to do with the floor.

As well as providing you with the floor itself, assisting you in the choice of what would be the best solution for your home, they can also recommend certain products to help with the upkeep and maintenance of the floor. And should you require restoration of the floor in the future, they can ensure it is kept looking in peak condition for many years to come.

Hardwood flooring specialists actually care about the products they sell and so uphold traditional values in terms of offering a high quality service and providing access to the best flooring solutions on the market.

Good reasons why to turn to the wood flooring professionals (Part 1)

Quality wood flooring manufacturers will usually only sell their products to specialists in the trade because they want their craftsmanship to be respected and so well-known brands like Woodpecker, V4, Havwoods, Junkers and Kahrs insist on keeping to high standards in terms of fitting these floors.

If you are in the market for a new floor yourself, you should only consider going to those with the know-how and experience of supplying and installing hardwood flooring for a wide range of applications.

This can help to ensure your satisfaction with the finished result as it is only natural that you would want your newly laid wooden floor to appear like it did when you chose it from the catalogue. That certainly might not be the case if you go ahead and do it on the cheap yourself.

In order to achieve the ultimate look, it is important to have it professionally installed. This is because care and attention has to be given to the work and so the planning stage is crucial. There is no margin for error or room for guesswork when having wood flooring fitted, especially where under-floor heating is involved. The correct fixing methods need to be used or you could end up with damp in the sub-floors affecting the wood flooring.

How to eliminate squeaking floorboards

When you purchase hardwood flooring from a reputable specialist, you will be warned about what to expect from the floor as it acclimatises to its new environment. While these professionals will always ensure that a floor is fitted to exceptionally high standards, seasonal changes can sometimes affect the floorboards.

The expansion and contraction of the core can happen because of varying humidity levels and this sometimes results in a squeaking sound. However, it may be that the sub-floor is not perfectly flat and so you might need to perform some basic maintenance on the floor to stop this from happening. By waxing the joints between the timber boards, you can ensure that the squeaking noise is reduced or even eliminated.

Wood flooring should always be fitted by an experienced floor layer as they will assess the place where the floor is to be installed and make sure that the sub-floor is perfectly positioned in the first place. They will also recommend ways to maintain the hardwood floor and keep it looking at its best throughout the year, despite fluctuations in temperature and humidity.

If you happen to have an under-floor heating system, this can affect things further and so it is all about managing the environment and keeping the temperature in the room as constant as possible.

Choosing the right solid wood floor for your room (Part 2)

We have recently been trying to guide you in what to take into account when selecting the best floor for your application. As well as the practicalities of fitting hardwood flooring in your home, there are other things to consider in terms of the aesthetics.

In addition to the functionality of the floor, ideally you would be looking for something well-suited to your tastes and a product that is able to create a special atmosphere within your property.

Getting that unique look while providing a certain feel is all about the colour, style, grading and surface finish of the floor. You need to ensure the right balance between these things to be able to enjoy the perfect floor for your home.

When it comes to colour, you will soon see that each species of timber offers its own benefits. As for grading, the type you opt for will have particular characteristics in terms of colour variations and knots.

Style is going to be another influencing factor as you need to think about whether long wide boards are appropriate to make a room seem bigger, or if you want to create more of a busier feel to the room go for a narrower board.

Finally, we have the surface finish. With this you need to determine whether you prefer a subtle, low sheen or a hard, shiny surface instead. You can also choose between a smooth or grainy feel to the wood flooring as well.

Choosing the right solid wood floor for your room (Part 1)

When it comes to selecting the most suitable floor type for a particular place within your home there are a number of things you need to bear in mind. The style and colour of the hardwood floor is obviously going to be a major consideration, but there are other factors that might influence your choice.

These articles will be looking at all the different things that may affect the decision that you make.

For a start it is worth remembering that hardwood flooring is a natural product and needs to be treated in a certain way. This is why it is always advisable to have it fitted by a professional floor layer. Once installed the boards are susceptible to movements because of the humidity and moisture within the environment.

Therefore, whatever flooring you finally opt for, you will have to think about the place where it is to be fitted and whether it is likely that the floor will be able to acclimatise quickly. This will be assessed by the professionals at the outset. You also need to take note that during different seasons it can result in dimensional changes to the floorboards.

Depending on your planned usage of the floor, you can choose between timbers with differing levels of hardness. This is just one decision you’ll have to make.
 

What is involved with sanding your wooden floor

When your old wood floor is in need of renovation and a refinish, going to a hardwood flooring specialist is highly recommended. This is because they have many years of experience in returning your well-used floor to its former glory.

One of the services they offer to customers with hardwood parquet or natural pine floorboards is sanding. This is one of the best choices you could make for your classic wood floor.

With a bit of time and effort put into this process, you will really notice the difference. In practice, this means that the professionals will remove the top surfaces using specialist abrasive materials.

The three stages normally involved with sanding include the preparation work, the sanding itself and the application of a protective sealant (hardwax oil or lacquer) to the surface of the floor.

Sanding is a task that should only really be carried out by those trained in the discipline as hardwood floors need to be cared for by those that understand what is needed.

For those living on the south coast of England, there are specialists you can go to for this sanding work to be carried out on your floor. In fact, for anything to do with hardwood flooring in Hampshire, hardwood flooring in West Sussex or hardwood flooring in Surrey just call the experts.