Whether or not wood flooring changes colour once it has been fitted, depends to a large extent on the atmospheric conditions in the room the wood flooring has been fitted in and the wood flooring itself that you’ve chosen. Wood is a completely natural product and as such changes colour and form depending upon atmospheric conditions. As a result, it is reasonable to expect that solid wood flooring in particular will change colour once fitted.
As a general rule of thumb, most woods change colour in response to ultra violet light. In the same way that skin changes colour as a result of exposure to sunlight, wood also changes colour. Funnily enough however, some woods go darker as a result to exposure to sunlight and others become lighter. Although ultra violet protections are available, they will not protect your wood floor 100% against the effects of sunlight.
Solid wood comes in different grades of wood from prime through to rustic, with prime being deemed to be the highest quality, with the corresponding price tag. Prime grade wood, generally speaking, will change colour less than lower grades of wood, such as rustic grade wood flooring.
When you choose your wood flooring, there will be several things you’ll have in mind. One of course is budget, the others will include such things as whether engineered or solid wood flooring would best suit your project and of course the colour of the wood. Extremely dark (almost black) wood floors have become very popular in recent years and are at risk of changing colour once fitted if not protected from ultra violet light. Unlike some of the lighter species of wood, such as cherry and oak, which have a tendency to darken with sunlight, the darker shades of wood tend to lighten which can be frustrating.
In order to retain the initial colour of your wood floor and to help prevent it from changing colour too dramatically, it is a good idea to apply a finish which includes a sunscreen to block some of the damaging ultra violet rays. Other practical solutions include the closing of blinds or curtains when the sun is particularly strong or by fitting ultra violet sunscreens to your windows. This is an ideal way of protecting all of your furnishings from changing colour as a result of exposure to the effects of the sun, and not only your wood floor.