One of the greatest things about wood flooring is its texture. Irrespective of whether you choose solid or engineered wood flooring, the wood that you see is real wood – a natural and highly interesting material. There are any number of reasons for choosing wood flooring, but one of the most common is the interesting texture it brings to a room. In fact, even smooth wood flooring has interest that can keep you looking at it for hours.
When wood is lumbered in the forest it is graded into one of four different grades. They range from prime grade, through select to natural and rustic. The thing about the difference between the grades of wood as you go from top to bottom of the list is that the texture changes dramatically. The main features, for example of prime wood flooring is that the grain and colour are highly regular and there is very little sap. What this means is the surface and overall look is one of real smoothness. A great example would be the likes of this prime engineered American walnut click flooring, which is exceptionally smooth and regular. This rustic, engineered oak vintage canal grande flooring on the other hand is highly varied with an interesting contrast from board to board.
Reclaimed wood flooring is either wood flooring that has been recovered from an old building before it is to be demolished or renovated or wood flooring that has been made to look old. The texture of this sort of flooring is normally highly irregular with chips and dents together with scratches and scuffs to make the surface of even a new floor look old and interesting. A great example is this natural engineered oak reclaim brown brushed floor, which as you can see is full of interest and charm that has a real aged look to it.
Like reclaimed wood flooring, hand scraped and distressed wood flooring has been made to look as if it has endured a long and hard life under foot. A really convincing hand scraped or distressed wood floor will have even the closest sceptics fooled. With modern day distressing methods including tumbling wooden boards in giant machines together with sharp objects to cause random damage, to hand damaging, it is no surprise that these floors look genuinely old. Add to that the brushing and oiling finish that they often undergo and you see why this sort of floor is so popular with anyone seeking a genuinely old-looking wood floor.
Brushing wood flooring opens up the grain and gives a regular, yet highly interesting texture. Commonly combined with oiling, the end result is a floor that looks almost untreated and is full of interest. Another option is brushed and UV oiled, which is great if your room is regularly exposed to significant sunlight. The UV filter in the oil protects the wood, which means that you won’t need to worry about fading. You can also get brushed and UV lacquered flooring which is ideal if you want or need a really tough, slightly shiny surface to your floor.
Suffice to say, when it comes to textured wood flooring, you really will be spoilt for choice. And if you’d like any help at all from the team at Wood and Beyond, all you need to do is ask.
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