By far the most popular flooring choice of the moment, engineered wood offers a wooden flooring alternative to solid wood that’s cheaper, yet has the same great texture and feel of real hardwood flooring. It offers warm, indulgent hues for your home, and has a wealth of features and benefits that gives you long-lasting, beautiful floors for your chosen space.
What is Engineered Wood?
Engineered wood flooring like the range at Lifestyle Flooring UK for example, is cleverly crafted from several layers of compressed timber that are combined together or ‘engineered’ to give you the best benefits of real wood flooring without the high cost of the real thing. It’s a specially constructed material that features multiple layers- each one is specifically designed to give a longer-lasting, high-quality product for your home. The bottom layer is usually made from softwood, High Density Fibreboard or plywood- these are all selected because they’re incredibly strong and prevent your flooring from buckling, warping or shrinking over time.
The top layer is finished with a gorgeous solid wood veneer- this is the ‘wear layer’ that you see and is responsible for both the style of your floor AND its durability in your home. The wear layer can be made from several different species of wood; each one has varying textures and colours to suit the individual style of your space.
How do I install Engineered Wood Flooring?
Most engineered planks feature an easy installation tongue-and-groove system or a click-to-fit system which makes it super simple to lay your new flooring, even for DIY newbies. No adhesive or nails are normally needed for the installation of engineered wood flooring.
You can use the ‘floating floor’ method for installing hardwood engineered flooring- it’s an excellent and fairly simple way of laying your brand new flooring. You can read more about installing your engineered wood flooring using the ‘floating floor’ method at Lifestyle Flooring UK.
Where can I put Engineered Wood flooring?
It’s not recommended that you install engineered wood flooring in your bathroom. Whilst it’s a lot more resistant to humidity and moisture than solid wood, it’s not a great idea to lay engineered wood flooring where it’s guaranteed to get very wet. Engineered wood flooring is a fantastic choice for kitchens, conservatories, living rooms, dining rooms, hallways, basements and stairs.
So if you own a commercial property, engineered wood is a great choice for a hard-wearing, durable yet stylish choice for your business. It offers a stylish elegance that’s found with solid wood flooring but at a fraction of the price- it’s an attractive alternative for keeping costs down!
Understanding the different species of engineered wood flooring
The real wood veneer, or wear layer, can be made from different species of wood. Engineered wood floors can be made from several beautiful types of tree including oak, acacia and walnut.
Oak is undoubtedly the most popular species used in engineered flooring. Boasting a traditional, elegant look, it benefits from a beautifully close grain for a unique decorative flair. It’s especially popular in Scandinavian style kitchens, minimalist bedrooms and open-plan living rooms.
Walnut is a soft wood, offering a sleek, rich colour. Our engineered walnut floors provide a beautiful clean and seamless look to the room. They have a more formal design than oak based floors, and they offer a comfortable, stable feel underfoot. The colour looks immense in large dining rooms and creates a sense of grandeur in any space.
Acacia engineered floors come is a variety of contrasting design. Boasting deep, rich textures, these floors are sure to stand out. There are more than 980 different species of Acacia, making these floors one of the most diverse on the market. Parquet flooring in this type of wood creates a show stopper that can’t be missed.
Choosing the right size
You always need to consider the thickness, wear layer and the width of the flooring when deciding which type of engineered flooring to buy for your home. The wear layer and thickness will ultimately decide the floor’s longevity. In practical terms, this means floors with a 6mm wear layer can be sanded and re-finished a maximum of seven times. This is an added bonus for those with pets- no more pesky scratch marks in the wear layer of your floor.
Environmentally friendly and beautiful
Thankfully, engineered wood flooring is considered a sustainable choice. It’s thought to be better for the environment than solid wood flooring- solid wood flooring is made from one giant piece of timber and uses a lot more tree in the plank. Engineered wood only uses a solid wood surface, so generally speaking there’s a lot less waste when choosing this material for your floor. Less trees have to be cut down for the construction of engineered wood; this is obviously a better situation for our environment. Choosing engineered wood for your home can also reduce your carbon footprint and keep your energy bill under control. Engineered wood circulates and conducts heat better than other flooring materials meaning you don’t have to spend as much to keep your home toasty.
Engineered wood flooring is a great choice
A beautiful choice for your home, engineered wood is durable, tough, a much more moisture-resistant choice than solid wood, and is compatible with underfloor heating- a strong contender for home renovators and first time buyers. Wherever you choose to install engineered wood it’s sure to create a wow factor that compliments your interior design. At Lifestyle Flooring UK, we have the largest range of engineered wood flooring online- check out our range here: