Different Kinds of Hardwood Flooring Board
How To Select Scraped Hardwood Flooring and Distressed Hardwood Flooring
By Doug
Hand-scraped and Distressed hardwood floors are becoming a popular choice
of hardwood flooring board in today's upscale homes and commercial buildings.
These floors are a newer trend but are rooted in history. Before today's modern
sanding methods, hardwood flooring board were hand scraped on site
to make the floors flat. Today's hand scraping is done to add texture, richness
and uniqueness.
Distressed hardwood flooring is done by machine or by hand. In an effort to
reduce high labor costs, manufacturers have created machine-made distressed/scraped
looking hardwood flooring board. These are cheaper imitations of the real thing.
The problem with machine distressing is repetition of the pattern. As you look
across the floor you see the same pattern repeating across the floor. This lacks
a natural feel to the floor.
True hand scraped is exactly that – done by hand. When properly done this
method creates a truly unique floor. These floors differ greatly in
the amount of the texture added to the floor and the skill of the person scraping
the hardwood flooring board.
Some manufacturers are just denting, scooping, or roughing the floor. Others
are sanding the floor unevenly to create a worn look. Still others are scraping
the entire surface of the flooring creating the most unique hand made look.
Some product lines allow the customer to choose between heavy, medium and light
scraping. True artisans can create a reclaimed look complete with wormholes,
splits and other naturally occurring character markings.
The labor used in hand scraping varies greatly. Some floor installers
simply have their crew scrape the floor after it is installed in the home. Results
vary widely based on the skill of the person or persons doing the scraping.
Lack of control and expertise can lead to disastrous results. Scraping is a
plant environment is also varied. Some are using illegal immigrants for the
scraping labor; one company uses the federal prison system, smartly not advertised
as such. Yet another uses Pennsylvania Amish craftsman to create their Amish
Hand-Scraped collection.
Hardwood Flooring Board
Some homeowners are buying scraped floors unfinished and applying
the finish on site, but most are choosing prefinished. These floors require
special methods to prepare the floor for finishing. Regular on site sanding
can destroy the texture of the hardwood flooring board that the customer is
paying for. The most expensive lines are being finished by hand sometimes referred
to as "hand rubbed". Most of the prefinished floors are excellent and create
convenience and speed of installation for the contractor and homeowner alike.
One of the great benefits of a prefinished floor is the ability of
each plank to move independently with the changes of humidity in the home. On
site finishing bonds the finish between planks requiring the finish to split
as the floor contracts at dry humidity levels. These cracks rarely create a
problem and are natural in hardwood floors, they are less noticeable in prefinished
microbevelled floors.
Scraped floors that have darker finished tend to show the scraping more than
natural finished floors. This is due to the finish pooling in the scrapes
causing shadows drawing your attention to the character in the hardwood flooring
board. Most hardwood flooring manufacturers have web sites showing the consumer
what the floors look like. Many have displays at dealers near your home so you
can actually see and touch what you are buying.
Hand scraped floors are not cheap. They are for those looking for a truly
unique look. The cheaper machine made dist
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