3 Things You Need To Know Before Buying Hardwood Flooring
Hardwood flooring is one of those luxurious items that easily turn a house into a home with warm or light hues that range from moonlight gray to chocolate brown. However, not all hardwood floors suit every lifestyle and family type. Here are three things you need to know before you splurge on those beautiful hardwood floors.
- Prepare for Scratches
This is not meant to deter you from buying hardwood floors, but hopefully, it gives you a realistic idea of their performance. Virtually all hardwood floors scratch at some point. That said, there are ways to protect the floors. Put protectors on furniture and consider rolling out the rug in more areas of the home house. Proper cleaning and polishing are also important.
- Reconsider Special and Limited Edition
When something is rare and beautiful, it makes it all the more desirable. Try not to fall into this trap for hardwood floors. One day you may need to replace one or two broken planks in a certain area of the house and if the ones you bought were a special edition, you may run into trouble finding a similar color and grain that blends seamlessly in with the rest of the wood.
- Pick Form Over Function
If you have a specific aesthetic in mind for your home, this can feel like a difficult sacrifice to make. However, if you have an active family, move furniture around a lot or own a cat or a large dog, you need to choose sturdier hardwood materials. This may limit your options a little, but you will be grateful for this decision the first time the movers accidentally drop the couch on the floor too hard or a teenager rolls through the living room on a skateboard.
This only scratches the surface of all the things you need to keep in mind before purchasing hardwood flooring. Be sure to chat with your general contractor as well as experienced sales reps who can match you to the best available options in their inventory that suit your needs.