Frequently Asked Questions
Wherever you are in the floor buying or owning process, we know you have questions and that’s good, because we have answers.
We have pulled together some of the most frequently asked questions about each aspect of flooring to give you the information you’ve been looking for.
Where to Install Wood Flooring
We do not recommend laying wood flooring down directly over tile. Instead, remove the tile first and lay the wood flooring directly on the subfloor.
Good news – engineered wood flooring may be laid over concrete. We do not recommend placing solid wood flooring on concrete.
If you are changing from carpet to wood flooring, you will first need to pull up the carpet. You may then lay the wood flooring onto the subfloor.
Solid wood flooring should not be used in areas prone to moisture and standing water (like a bathroom). If you have your heart set on a wood floored bathroom, talk to us about whether our engineered flooring may be a fit for you. Engineered flooring has a greater resiliency to moisture than solid flooring.
Daily life in our kitchens includes incidents like food spills, dropped knives, and water splashes. Wood flooring can certainly be a part of your kitchen as long as you are strategic about your choices.
If you are concerned about water spills and excess humidity, we suggest engineered flooring rather than solid.
When selecting a species of wood, a harder wood with a higher Janka scale rating will dent less easily. Species such as oak and ash are excellent choices for their hardness as well as their patterns which help to visually disguise any dings from dropped pots and pans.
Finally, rather than a polished finish, you may wish to go with something a little more textured so that any surface damage which does occur simply blends in and adds to the character of the flooring.
Engineered Wood Floors / Solid Wood Floors / Laminates
Laminate is not considered “real” wood.
Laminate floors are made using planks comprised of multi-layer synthetic materials. They are designed to emulate the appearance of real wood. This is accomplished by means of a printed texture panel adhered to the top of inner fiber board and melamine resin layers.
An engineered plank is real wood throughout: a solid hardwood wear layer bonded to a stable plywood core. Ours have a sawn hardwood wear layer of about 5.2 mm, milled in our Brattleboro, Vermont shop, on a 15 mm, 11-ply birch plywood core (Eastern White Pine uses a 12 mm, 9-ply core). Engineered planks come up to 12 inches wide.
Laminate flooring is made of artificial materials pieced together to resemble actual wood.
Engineered wood flooring is comprised of layers of real wood designed to achieve better dynamic stability and versatility while still giving you a real wood floor.
Construction: A solid plank is a single piece of wood. Our engineered planks have a sawn hardwood wear layer of about 5.2 mm on a birch plywood core.
Where they can go: Both solid and engineered are rated for radiant heat. Engineered can also be glued directly to concrete, installed below grade, and handles rooms with less stable humidity better.
Width: Solid comes in our widest widths, up to 19 inches depending on species. Engineered goes up to 12 inches.
Refinishing: Both our solid and engineered floors can be sanded and refinished if ever needed.
The wear layer is the top layer of the plank, the part you walk on. It is the part that can be sanded and refinished when you want to revitalize the floor or change its look, so the thicker it is, the more times the floor can be refinished. Ours is a sawn wear layer of about 5.2 mm, thick enough to be refinished multiple times. Many engineered floors use a thin sliced or peeled veneer instead.
Yes. Our engineered flooring is independently certified low-emitting to California’s CDPH v1.2 standard, the strictest indoor-air standard in the country, which covers formaldehyde along with dozens of other compounds. The wear layer is bonded to the core with a formaldehyde-free adhesive, and every finish we use is formaldehyde-free.
Plank Width
Random width planks are an excellent way to create the optical illusion of a more spacious room. The variations in width cause our eyes to move from plank to plank and voila – a small room appears larger.
Lighter colors will also give a more open, airy appearance than darker colors.
Plank width is primary a personal aesthetic choice. Uniform width planks tend to be the most popular options. They create a very spacious, polished feel. For a cozier, rustic look with casual flair try going with random width planks.
Wood Species
Definitions
The terms “softwood” and “hardwood” can be a bit confusing, especially since a softwood is not necessarily “softer” or less dense than a hardwood (although this is generally the case).
The technical difference is that trees classified as hardwoods produce seeds with coverings and softwood trees produce seeds without coverings.
Hardwoods also lose their leaves during the winter while softwoods don’t, so the easiest way to remember a hardwood vs a softwood is to think of softwoods as evergreens and hardwoods as deciduous trees.
Softwood characteristics
- Tends to be less expensive than hardwood
- Trees have a faster rate of growth
- Tends to be less dense/hard than hardwood
- Less fire resistant
Hardwood characteristics
- Tends to be more expensive than softwood
- Trees have a slower rate of growth
- Tends to be more dense/hard than softwood
- More fire resistant
Dogs and wood flooring can co-exist as long as careful consideration is given to the species and finish of the wood.
Our dogs’ claws can dent softer woods, so we recommend choosing one of the hardest woods (as indicated by a high Janka scale rating). Hickory and maple are two excellent options.
Claws can also scratch a smooth finish, but they will blend in and even add to the look of a more casual, distressed style.
Durability comes down to the species, the finish, and care. Harder, denser species such as hickory, maple and oak resist dents best, and a low-sheen or textured finish hides everyday wear. For a wide plank floor, keeping indoor humidity steady between 35% and 55% matters most of all.
A popular approach is contrast rather than matching. With darker cabinets, choose a lighter floor; lighter cabinets can complement a darker floor. Painted cabinets are another option and add a nice mix of colors and textures. If you’d rather keep wood cabinets, contrast the finishes on the cabinets and floor instead of trying to match the wood.
Wood Floor Grades and Cuts
The best grade is the one that fits the style of your room. Grades vary by species:
Select: A cleaner, more uniform look with minimal knots and color variation.
Character: Knots, mineral streaks and natural color variation for a more rustic feel.
Our pine species also come in Premium grade. Each species page lists the grades available.
End-matched flooring refers to the practice of cutting a tongue/groove on the end of each plank. This allows the planks to fit snuggly together when they are installed. End-matching speeds up the installation process and reduces labor costs by eliminating the need for on-site trimming and fitting.
Our planks up to 12 inches wide are end-matched; wider planks are not.
These terms describe how a log is cut into flooring planks. Each cut creates a different grain pattern.
Plain sawn: The most common cut, recognized by its cathedral arch grain. The log is cut parallel to the growth rings.
Quarter sawn: The log is cut perpendicular to the growth rings, producing straight grain with medullary ray flecking.
Rift sawn: Cut from the same quartered log, but only the outer third shows rift traits: a very straight, uniform grain with little or no flecking. This makes rift sawn the rarest and most difficult cut to produce.
We offer plain sawn, rift sawn, and rift & quarter sawn, a mix of the two. See Rift & Quarter Sawn White Oak.
Wood Floor Finish
Wood species and cuts with regular density accept stain more evenly than those like maple with irregular density. While an irregular absorption of stain can look charmingly rustic on certain species like hickory, it tends to not be as visually appealing on a very light wood like maple.
The most popular finishing options for maple are tung oil (our Killington Peak finish) and a clear water-based finish which allows the natural maple color to shine through.
Paint masks the inherent beauty of wood flooring. A painted wood floor hides the color and much of the grain of the wood. We do not recommend covering up quality hardwood flooring with paint.
That said, if you do wish to paint your wood floors, look for high quality paints specifically designed for floors. The most common sheen choices for painted floors are satin and semi-gloss.
Wood floors are able to be re-stained in a different color than the original. This is accomplished by sanding down the floor and applying the new stain.
A prefinished floor arrives with its finish fully applied and cured in our Brattleboro, Vermont shop, so it’s ready to live on as soon as it’s installed. Every stain, oil and base coat is applied by hand, followed by a Sherwin-Williams topcoat on our finishing line or, for textured surfaces, LOBA 2K Duo applied by hand. We ask you to approve a signed finish sample before we finish your order.
Pricing and Ordering
A cutting allowance is an additional amount of flooring which we recommend you purchase on top of the exact square footage calculations you have made for your room. The allowance is needed because during the installation, planks will have to be cut to fit and this can result in some short lengths which are non-usable. In general, we recommend adding a 10% cutting allowance to your order.
Calculate the square footage of your room by multiplying the length x the width. Add an additional 10% cutting allowance, and this is how much flooring you should need.
Costs depend on species, grade, width and finish. Our solid floors range from about $10 to $32 per square foot unfinished, and engineered starts at $12. Each species page lists its price range, and we’re happy to prepare a personalized quote.
You can buy wood flooring from big box stores, distributors, or directly from a manufacturer. Big box stores carry a limited range of species, widths and finishes, and their wide planks typically top out around 6 to 7 inches.
Vermont Plank Flooring is the manufacturer: we mill every floor ourselves in Brattleboro, Vermont, from lumber we select, in solid widths up to 19 inches (depending on species) and engineered widths up to 12 inches. Buying direct gives you more choice of species, grade, width and finish, and you work with the people who make your floor.
Price depends mostly on species, grade and width rather than on solid versus engineered. Our solid floors start at $10 per square foot unfinished, and engineered starts at $12 per square foot. Wider planks and cleaner grades cost more.
We accept electronic bank transfers (our preferred method), all major credit cards, cash and checks. Orders begin with a 50% deposit, with the balance due before shipping.
All flooring ships F.O.B. by common carrier from our mill in Brattleboro, Vermont. Lead times vary with our production schedule, and prefinished orders take longer than unfinished. We keep current lead times posted on our sample request page.
Cleaning and Maintenance
It depends on how much wear the floor sees. Higher-traffic areas need attention sooner. Many floors never need a full sanding: a professional screen and recoat every several years refreshes the finish before wear reaches bare wood. If a floor ever does need it, both our solid and engineered floors can be sanded and refinished.
Light scuffs in the topcoat often buff out with a microfiber cloth and hardwood floor cleaner. For scratches through to the color, the right touch-up depends on your finish: for prefinished floors, call us and we’ll recommend products matched to your floor; for site-finished floors, ask your finisher. Deep gouges are best handled by replacing the board. See our Care & Maintenance Guide.
Re-finishing is done by sanding the floor to remove the existing finish, removing all the residual dust, and then applying new finish to the bare wood.
Standing water and big swings in humidity are a wood floor’s biggest risks. Keep indoor relative humidity steady between 35% and 55% year-round (it’s also required by our warranty), and wipe up spills right away.
Sweep or dust mop every day or two. For deeper cleaning, lightly mist a microfiber mop with a pH-neutral hardwood floor cleaner, such as Bona Hardwood Floor Cleaner. Never wet-mop or steam-mop, and avoid vinegar, ammonia, bleach and oil soaps, which can dull or damage the finish. Our one-page Care & Maintenance Guide covers it all.
Warranty
Yes. Every floor comes with a lifetime structural warranty for the original purchaser, covering milling, dimension, assembly and grade, plus delamination on engineered floors.
Every prefinished order starts with a finish sample that you approve and sign, and we inspect your flooring before it ships. Our warranty covers the finish against defects before installation; installing the floor counts as acceptance of the finish.
