SAN FRANCISCO — A common question asked at flooring showrooms is whether it’s better to install a solid hardwood floor or an engineered hardwood floor. In answering this question, it’s helpful to examine the pros and cons of both options.
Due to the moist, coastal climate of the Bay Area (particularly in San Francisco), an engineered wood floor is always a smart choice, as it’s much more stable than solid hardwood in terms of moisture resistance. Additionally, it offers many more options when it comes to both installation and aesthetics. On the installation side, an engineered wood floor can be floated, nailed, glued, stapled or installed over an acoustical pad. In terms of aesthetics, there’s a wide array of colors and textures available, so you can choose a product that best matches your home environment.
When it comes to solid hardwood, one of the main advantages is its thicker wear surface, which allows it to be refinished multiple times and increases its longevity. However, the viability of a natural hardwood floor depends on what lies beneath. A wood subfloor provides a suitable foundation, but a concrete subfloor will invariably cause natural hardwood to warp over time. All in all, since it’s the more expensive and high-maintenance of the two options, solid hardwood flooring is more of a luxury item that should be reserved for homeowners who insist on having a natural product.

Differentiating Wood Flooring Products

Learn how to distinguish between different wood flooring products and make informed decisions for your home with this expert advice.

Differentiating Wood Flooring Products by Kevin McCaffrey

by Kevin McCaffrey, a Diamond Certified Expert Contributor

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Video: Differentiating Wood Floor Products

If you're planning to install a new wood floor, it's crucial to understand the differences between natural and engineered products. Today we're in San Francisco with diamond certified expert contributor Kevin MacCaffrey of Armstrong Carpet and Linoleum to learn more.

One of the main questions I'm asked is, should I install a solid hardwood floor or an engineered hardwood floor? Engineered is always the way to go, especially in our environment here in the Bay Area, especially on the coast here in San Francisco. It's more stable when it comes to the moisture in the air. It also gives you a lot more options when it comes to installation. You can float it, nail it, glue it, staple it. You can put it over an acoustical pad. Lots more options when it comes to an engineered hardwood floor.

There are times when a hardwood floor is great, as long as you're above grade where you're on a concrete floor that you can glue it down. You have no neighbors underneath because it's quite noisy or in your own home where you can staple it down to a wood subfloor. One advantage that solid hardwood floor does give you is, it's got a thicker wear surface. That's the only real advantage, but the advantage there comes with it gives you one more option or more times that you can refinish the floor - two times.

To learn more from local top-rated companies, visit our Diamond certified expert reports at experts.diamondcertified.org.