Hardwood floors can last a lifetime, but the glossy sheen of the original hardwood floors will fade over their lifespan. After about 25 years, you'll notice that it has faded. However, thanks to today's improved wood manufacturing methods and simplified installation systems, your new hardwood floor should last a lifetime. Engineered wood floors look very similar on the surface, but are made of a relatively thin layer of hardwood adhered to a high-quality plywood substrate.
They are somewhat less expensive than solid wood, but most types can only be sanded and repainted once or twice, as the hardwood layer on the surface is relatively thin. When it comes to deciding which type of flooring is better, there is no clear advantage over the other. Your choice depends on how much you value each other's relative merits. Engineered wood floors have a relatively thin layer of hardwood bonded over a layer of premium plywood that gives the floor excellent stability.
The best-designed hardwood floors will have good flexibility and a durable plywood core with three to nine layers. You can count on a good-quality engineered wood floor that normally lasts 25 to 30 years. It's less expensive than solid wood and more manageable to install for DIYers. Solid wood floorboards tend to be narrower than engineered wood floors.
They have very tight joints between the boards, and there are a greater variety of colors and species than those found in engineered wood floors. Solid wood is available in prefinished and unfinished boards. On the other hand, engineered wood floors have wider boards and some prefinished engineered wood floors have slightly chamfered edges, creating small grooves between the boards. Engineered wood floors are almost always sold pre-finished, and there's a more limited range of colors and species available than solid wood. Solid hardwood usually lasts at least 30 years and up to 100 years, as it can be sanded and repainted several times.
Engineered wood floors generally last 20 to 30 years because their solid wood construction allows them to be sanded and repainted several times. If you base your decision solely on lifespan, longevity is one of the drawbacks of engineered wood. However, 30 years is still a decent period of time. Solid wood has better acoustic properties than engineered hardwood. Its density absorbs reverberation, while its hardness distributes sound evenly throughout the room.
Hardwood floors are often glued or nailed together, keeping them stable. When first installed, hardwood floors will creak and creak as the boards settle. If you keep hearing creaks after a few months, you may have an uneven subfloor or a poor installation problem. As the name suggests, solid wood is hard underfoot. It's softer than other surfaces, such as tile or concrete, but compared to an engineered wood floating floor, a floating engineered wood floor is softer.
It depends on what's most important to you: noise control or softness underfoot. In general, solid wood floors aren't as noisy as engineered hardwood floors; however, engineered hardwood floorboards have a softer feel with a bit of bounce. Installing solid wood against concrete slabs is not recommended, as moisture that migrates through concrete can cause solid wood to swell and deform. Engineered hardwood can only be repainted once or twice before the hardwood layer on the surface is used up. A hardwood board may be solid, but engineered hardwood can sometimes be stronger than a solid wood you might be considering. Engineered hardwood is made of several perpendicular layers that firmly hold the wood together. The pre-finished forms of both floors are the most durable, as they have a hard factory-applied finish that holds up very well.
All wooden floors can benefit from a renewal of the surface varnish layer every few years. Solid wood floors are installed with a tab and groove system, in which each board is blindly nailed to the subfloor through tabs at the edges of the boards. There's no particular winner here, unless you have a particular preference for narrower boards (in which case you'll prefer solid wood) or wider boards (in which case engineered wood floors will be a better choice). In appearance, solid wood is not noticeably different from engineered hardwood. Real estate professionals and potential homebuyers can give priority to a solid wood floor for its greater longevity. Both solid wood and engineered hardwood are premium flooring materials that add good real estate value to your home. Solid wood can have the advantage in this regard, as it lasts longer than engineering wood and can be repaved longer so there is no need to replace it as often.
Solid wood can be recovered and reused or recycled to make engineered hardwood. In addition, when it must be discarded at the end of its useful life, it is 100% biodegradable. Engineered wood uses less tree per board than solid hardwoods. It uses the remains of other woodmaking processes to make its boards. Engineered wood has only a thin layer of traditional wood on top of its plywood or fiberboard core.
In addition, the sheet metal is also recyclable. Engineered hardwood is environmentally friendly and sustainable compared to most other types of flooring. In conclusion, when it comes to wooden flooring lifespan depends on many factors such as type of flooring (solid or engineered), quality of installation and maintenance routine followed by homeowners over time.
