Wood You Know? A BuyerÂ’s Guide to Wood Flooring
IFLOOR. com has taken upon itself the formidable task of arming consumers with a wealth of information to help them decide which flooring fits best.
(PRWEB) September 20, 2005
Selecting the perfect floor covering is not always an easy task. With literally thousands upon thousands of flooring products to choose from, it is quite easy to fall into a pit of frustration and confusion.
IFLOOR. com, the largest internet-based flooring store, understands how consumers feel. The company has taken upon itself the formidable task of arming consumers with a wealth of information to help them decide which flooring fits best. The websiteÂ’s informative original articles cover nearly every flooring product available in the market. Plus, it offers an extensive database of Frequently Asked Questions and exclusive installation videos designed to answer all flooring questions imaginable.
On wood floors
Wood floors are among iFLOOR. comÂ’s fastest selling products taking up 29 percent of the companyÂ’s sales. This category alone can be broken down into three sub-categories:
Solid hardwood floor, typically available in ¾-inch thickness, is composed of one material all throughout the piece. For instance, for a solid oak hardwood, what you get is solid oak from top to bottom.
Engineered wood floors, on the other hand, are made up of multiple layers. The first ply is the prime part of the material, a piece of real wood that is the species you are buying like oak or maple. The other layers are made up of different species different from the first layer -- a lot like a plywood floor. The layers are typically constructed with a method called cross-ply lamination to enhance the strength of the floor.
Veneer is a hybrid between a laminate and an engineered floor. Unlike laminate floors, which lack the natural depth found in real hardwood floors, veneer looks like and is actually the real thing. About 1/16 of an inch of hardwood is pressed against an HDF (high-density fiberboard). The downside to this is it cannot be sanded, although installation and maintenance are similar to laminate -- fast and easy. It is also less expensive than both engineered and hardwood floors.
To find out more about wood floors, read the article Wood vs. Wood: Solid Hardwood and Engineered Wood Floors Face-off (http://www. ifloor. com/articles/wood/woodvswood. html (http://www. ifloor. com/articles/wood/woodvswood. html)).
About iFLOOR. com
Since 1999, iFLOOR. com has been the world's largest online flooring retailer, offering over 60,000 flooring products in the following categories: hardwood floors, laminate flooring, bamboo flooring, cork flooring, and area rugs. Exclusive educational articles and installation videos are also available on the website.
IFLOOR. com is the 115th largest internet retailer according to Internet Retailer Magazine, and is the 135th fastest growing private company in the United States, according to Inc. Magazine.
More information can be accessed at http://www. ifloor. com (http://www. ifloor. com).
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