Types of Hardwood Flooring: Which Hardwood Flooring Style is Right for You?

Many homeowners dream about adding hardwood flooring to accents their home. Hardwood flooring can be customized in a variety of species, colors, and widths, so choosing the right style of hardwood for a home or office can be a difficult task. Presently, there are three styles of hardwood available on the market, including strip flooring, plank flooring, and parquet flooring.

Strip Flooring

Strip flooring, or “traditional” hardwood flooring, is the most common type of hardwood flooring used in homes. It creates a linear effect to make a room look longer and larger. Strip flooring adds character and definition to a room, and it can add sophistication and uniqueness to any area of a home or office. Strip flooring is generally narrow, and each board ranges from 1 1/2 inches to 3 inches wide.

Strip flooring can be customized in an array of looks and finishes, but the most common types of wood used for strip flooring are ash, hickory, maple, and oak. Strip flooring is an excellent addition to any home, as it is known for its long- lasting durability and beautiful appearance.

Plank Flooring

Plank flooring involves larger width floor boards ranging from three inches to seven inches wide, sometimes even wider. Plank flooring is linear with thick widths to create a more casual look in a given space. Often thicker than strip flooring, plank flooring brings depth and interest to a room.

Plank flooring is typically manufactured using the following types of lumber: ash, birch, cherry, hickory, white maple, walnut, brown maple, and oak. Plank flooring is a universally attractive addition, and as such, it is a popular and common type of hardwood flooring.

Parquet Flooring

Parquet flooring is every mathematician’s dream, as it is created with wood tiles forming geometric and non-linear patterns. Designs of Parquet flooring can range simple diamonds to incredibly complex patterns. Parquet flooring can be designed with curves, depth, and geometric shapes, and this type of flooring provides both functionality and decorativeness.

Woodworkers can use creativity to customize and personalize their floors, and Parquet flooring often utilizes different timbers that contrast in color and grain. Typically, the most common types of wood used in Parquet flooring are oak, walnut, cherry, pine, mahogany, and maple. Parquet flooring is a popular choice to add uniqueness and creativity to a home.

Finding Lumber

Hardwood flooring can add beauty and sophistication to any home. Strip flooring, plank flooring, and parquet flooring are all popular styles of hardwood flooring, and each style brings uniqueness to a room or home. Deciding on a style of hardwood flooring or the type of wood to use can be difficult, though. The lumber experts at J. Gibson McIlvain, one of the nation’s best lumber import and wholesale lumber companies, are fully equipped to review the pros and cons of each style of hardwood flooring with you and help you to decide on the best type of wood for your project. For more information, visit their website today.