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When it comes to choosing the perfect floor for your home, it’s safe to say that you might find the variety of options out there a little overwhelming. From LVT and carpet to modern engineered wood floors, there are plenty of brilliant flooring materials available for you to browse.
However, if you have your sights set on a realistic wooden floor, but you’re not sure whether your budget can accommodate actual hardwood planks, then an engineered wood floor might be the perfect alternative for what you have in mind.
Proving to be increasingly popular for both its aesthetic appeal and its natural durability, when it comes to wooden floors, engineered wood can in many ways offer the best of both worlds – combining the natural beauty of hardwood with the enhanced structural stability of modern engineered materials.
But what is engineered wood flooring, and how does engineered wood compare to traditional wood flooring? Check out our guide on the different engineered wood types and finishes below to learn everything you need to know about this flooring material!
In this guide:
- What is engineered wood?
- What makes engineered wood flooring different from solid wood?
- Benefits of engineered wood floors
- Potential drawbacks of engineered wood floors
- What are the different engineered wood types?
- What engineered wood finishes are available?
- How to maintain engineered wood flooring
What is engineered wood?
Styled to give the appearance and feel of solid wood, engineered wood flooring is a lower-cost alternative to solid wood flooring. Incorporating a real wood layer in tandem with a supportive base and surface layers, it allows homeowners to get the true visual aesthetic of real wood instead of the photographic replacement provided by laminate and vinyl.
As a result, engineered wood planks are much easier to install and much lower maintenance overall, being water and scratch-resistant as well as highly durable to bring you a sturdy floor that will last you for years to come.
What makes engineered wood flooring different from solid wood?
Engineered wood flooring is distinct from solid wood flooring in several fundamental ways but the primary difference lies in its construction.
As we just mentioned, the core of any engineered wood floor is a solid layer of real hardwood placed just below the tile’s surface. This provides engineered wood with its authentic look and feel but still allows manufacturers to take advantage of modern construction methods to increase its longevity.
To meet these criteria, all engineered wood types are backed by several sheets of plywood or HDF (high-density fibre) boards, which provide engineered planks with enhanced structural integrity and additional resistance against moisture and temperature fluctuations.
These layers are typically arranged in a crisscross pattern, enhancing the flooring’s stability and having the added advantage of minimising any potential warping that may occur over the floor’s lifespan.Finally, such planks are then coated in what’s known as a wear layer. This is a thin protective layer that covers the top of the real wood surface to prevent scratching, staining, and water absorption, again acting as a means to improve the durability of this flooring material.
What are the benefits of engineered wood floors?
Thanks to its hardwood-core construction, engineered wood comes with many useful advantages that elevate it above other flooring materials, the most prominent of which include:
Improved stability
Thanks to the crisscrossing nature of the HDF used to back engineered wood, this sort of flooring has much better stability underfoot than other materials, including real wood.
Warp resistant
As a byproduct of having a sealed wear layer, engineered wood is more resistant to temperature and moisture changes in the air compared to traditional hardwoods, minimising the potential of warping and twisting due to higher temperatures and moisture content.
Water resistant
On top of these environmental resistances, the wear layer of engineered wood also makes it water resistant, typically for a minimum of 48 hours.
Scratch resistant
Naturally, the final benefit of this wear layer is an improved degree of scratch resistance in the event that furniture catches on your floor, or you accidentally drop something.
Easy installation
Like LVT and other modern flooring products, engineered wood can be installed in a variety of ways, with the most common being click-lock boards, making it a DIY-friendly option for those who want to install their new floor themselves.
Eco-friendly construction
Last, but not least, even though engineered woods have a more complex manufacturing process, they’re one of the most eco-friendly flooring options available thanks to their majority wood construction.
Potential drawbacks of engineered wood floors
However, despite all these excellent benefits, engineered wood does come with a few downsides, including the following:
It’s not waterproof
Although engineered wood is water resistant, this does not equate to it being waterproof. As a result, engineered woods are not ideal for wet spaces, like bathrooms.
It’s not immune to dents
Despite its scratch-resistant qualities, engineered wood is still susceptible to denting if heavy items are dropped on it.
Limited lifespan
While certainly long-lasting compared to other flooring options, engineered wood tends to have a lifespan of only 15 years before needing to be replaced. Natural wood floors, on the other hand, can last for decades if well cared for.
Limited refinishing
Similarly to its limited lifespan, the vast majority of engineered woods cannot be refinished more than once or twice if they’re scratched or damaged, which is not a problem for normal hardwood. Eventually, a damaged tile will need to be entirely replaced, which could prove difficult if you glued your engineered wood floor down.
Limited use with underfloor heating
While engineered wood can be used with underfloor heating, this is only possible if the engineered wood in question is rated for use with increased heat levels and underfloor heating systems.
A higher price point
Finally, while the cost of engineered wood is typically cheaper than standard hardwood floors, it’s still more expensive than many other flooring options.
Natural Engineered Wood Floor
A small collection of beautiful natural wood floors
What are the different engineered wood types?
When it comes to the different variations of engineered wood available to buy, most engineered wood planks are defined by three key areas; the style of wood planks, their installation method, and their thickness.
For example, here at Flooring King, our engineered wood products are available in standard plank layouts, chevron designs, or even a herringbone pattern for those interested in a more distinctive layout without the effort required to install traditional herringbone.
As for installation, the vast majority of engineered wood comes in two forms; click-lock planks and tongue and groove sets, which are used by professional and novice installers alike for their easy-installation nature. However, if you want to ensure your engineered wood floor is as sturdy as possible, then you can opt for glue-down planks instead.
Finally, in terms of thickness, typical engineered wood planks tend to have a set depth of 12mm, 14mm, and 20mm, with thicker planks providing a more durable, sturdy, and realistic finish compared to thinner options thanks to their increased stiffness and denser wear layer.
What engineered wood finishes are available?
In the same way that there are many types of engineered woods available, engineered wood planks can also be installed in several finishes. These finishes are there to provide both protection for your new wood tiles and to enhance certain aspects of the hardwood interior in order to match your desired aesthetic.
These are the three main types of engineered wood finishes you can find:
Lacquered finish
The most durable and common of engineered wood finishes, a lacquered finish creates an additional protective layer on top of the initial wear layer to improve the natural water and scratch-resistant properties present in engineered wood.
Not only that, but a lacquered finish also provides your planks with enhanced UV protection to reduce the impact of fading. Add to this the option for a satin or matt finish, and the ability for several rounds of refinishing and you’re left with a flexible flooring option that can be installed in contemporary and traditional homes alike.
Oiled finish
While not providing the same degree of added durability and refinishing as a lacquered finish, for those seeking the most realistic wood effect possible, then an oiled finish on your planks is an absolute must.
An oiled finish is all about improving the feel and appearance of your wood’s natural grain, enhancing its natural tones and warming effects to really bring out its natural colours. Better yet, oiling like this helps to increase the breathability of your wood, which can help further reduce the impact of high-humidity environments.
Brushed finish
Finally, a brushed finish takes the idea behind an oiled finish and combines it with a brushing style that enhances the textured finish of your wood. It does this by removing the lighter grains and highlighting the patterns of the planks so that they stand out to a greater degree.
Much like an oiled finish, this does not necessarily increase the longevity of your wood planks, and it does limit how often it can be refinished, but the enhanced visual textures can help to hide scratches and other damage that your tiles might pick up over time.
How to maintain engineered wood flooring
Even though engineered wood flooring won’t last as long as a standard hardwood floor, when properly cared for, it can last well past its suggested lifespan. But besides regular and careful cleaning, the real key to increasing the longevity of engineered wood planks lies in choosing the right top layer and finish.
As we’ve already mentioned, the thickness of the hardwood top layer is crucial, and floors with a top layer of at least have the potential to last a lifetime in most domestic settings, as thicker engineered wood can be refinished multiple times, unlike thinner boards.
And as we noted above, the finish of your engineered wood floor affects its maintenance needs and durability as well, with lacquered finishes, applied in multiple layers, forming a much thicker barrier than oiled or brushed finishes.
Where can I use engineered wood flooring?
Given its durable nature, hard-wearing engineered wood flooring is suitable for most areas of the home, including dining and living rooms, hallways, kitchens, and bedrooms. However, because it’s a natural product and not fully waterproof, we do not recommend using engineered wood flooring in bathrooms or other high-moisture spaces.
Browse our engineered wood range today
And there you have it; you should hopefully now have a much better idea of exactly what engineered wood is, and whether or not it’s suitable for use in your home. And if you’re ready to start laying your new floor in the coming weeks, then you can start browsing the Flooring King range today!
Whether you want a specific finish like our herringbone wood flooring or you’re just looking for the best engineered wood flooring for a kitchen, we’ve got plenty of DIY-friendly flooring options for you to choose from. Get in touch with our team today to find out more – and don’t forget to visit our flooring blog for more articles like this one!
