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From colour to quality standards, here are four key things to consider when buying hardwood.
It’s stylish, it’s solid, and it’s so easy to cleanour love of hardwood is here to stay. Alberta Hardwood Flooring shared some insider knowledge about what’s in right now and how it benefits homeowners.
Director of Sales, Paul Rivington, explains that people are moving away from traditional 2-3 wide planks, in favour of 5-7 or even 12 wide hardwood planks. It’s a European influence on style, he says. That old industrial look seen in factories is really coming back.
Rivington is glad to leave the dark hardwood ages behind. Dark stained floors don’t accommodated most people’s lifestyles, he explains. They reveal every scratch, stain and speck of dirt so easily. He calls lighter, even natural oaks and maples a responsible choice for homeowners. They also pair easier with other decor, he adds. It’s better from both a practicality and style standpoint.
The acceptance of engineered hardwood has grown in the last five years, says Rivington. The more resistant product (4mm of oak, maple or hickory on top of a plywood core) doesn’t gap from humidity changes, adding stability to those stylish wide planks. Our manufacturers only use the highest quality woods in the construction of their engineered cores, he says. And good quality engineered products can be refinished multiple times.
Rivington has noticed a huge shift in consumers awareness and expectations of quality. Recent media coverage has revealed that many overseas manufacturers don’t meet North American quality standards, he explains. Most customers want Canadian products, or very high quality European productswhich is exactly what we carry. Alberta Hardwood Flooring’s entire selection adheres to all Carb and VOC standards.
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