A guide to choosing the best types of wooden flooring

Once you have decided to install wooden floors in your home, it is time to think about what type of surface you should opt for. You may be surprised to find out how many types of wooden floors are available, so read this guide if you want help in narrowing down your choices.

Opt for engineered wood

The first thing you need to think about is whether you opt for engineered or real wood. Engineered wood flooring is a number of layers of wood glued together to create smooth planks. They have a real wood veneer and can look just as stylish as real wood options, while being cheaper.

You can also be confident that this type of flooring will last a long time. Should the boards become scuffed or damaged - as, inevitably, all floors will - you can still sand them down, and the middle layers will look as good as new once you've treated them.

Choose real wood

Of course, you might have your heart set on real wood, in which case you may be prepared to pay a slightly higher price for these. Individual planks of wood make up this type of flooring, which add a natural and authentic look to your home. If you have an older property, such as a Victorian or Georgian house, that already has wooden features - or perhaps even wooden floors in other rooms - you will be easily able to match the surface with existing fixtures when choosing real wood.

When deciding on your wooden flooring, don't forget to ask for the hardness score as well, which will tell you how easily the wood can be damaged by daily wear and tear. This might help you make your decision over which type of wood to get.

Types of real wood

Don't forget that even when you've decided to opt for real wood, you have to decide what type of wood you want. There are many options available, depending on if you want a light or dark floor.

Light oak flooring, for example, works brilliantly in modern buildings, as it complements other wooden features in these properties perfectly, while also looking good against pale and neutral-coloured walls.

For period homes, opt for dark oak, walnut or antique oak floors. These will all blend in really well with the style of the house or flat. You could even try to match the floor with other wooden fixtures, such as an old grandfather clock or fireplace mount.

Locking systems

Small details such as how the boards are fitted together are also things you should think about. There are two main locking systems for wooden floors - the click-lock and tongue and groove.

The former allows planks to fit together only when they click shut. This means that when they do 'lock' they are not at risk of moving. What's more, you can lift one or two pieces of wood up at a time if you need access to the ground beneath, instead of having to lift the entire floor up.

However, the majority of wooden floors have tongue and groove locking systems, with an indentation on one side of the plank, allowing each to slide neatly into the next. These enable the wooden pieces to sit perfectly against one another, although they can be tricky if you need to take up just one floorboard!

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• decorating
,
• wooden floors