Prefinished Hardwood Flooring
What Is Prefinished Hardwood?
Unlike unfinished hardwood that is sanded, stained and finish coated on site in your home, Prefinished hardwood has been sanded and finish coated at the factory. Although the urethane factory finishes are very durable, prefinished floors still dent and scratch like other types of hardwood floors. Prefinished hardwood can usually be refinished unless the wear layer (the top layer of hardwood) is a 1/16th of an inch or less.
Prefinished hardwood ranges in size, typically 2 to 4 inches in width and anywhere from 1 to 6 ft in length with a 1/16th-1/4 of an inch wear layer. It comes available in almost any local or exotic wood species. Prefinished hardwood also comes in two varieties, solid hardwood and engineered. Engineered hardwood differs from solid hardwood in that its core is made from layers of wood glued together to form a single board. A thin layer of hardwood is then added to the top of the board.
Slight Grooves Between Each Plank
When considering the style of prefinished hardwood there is one thing to keep in mind. Typical prefinished hardwood has small beveled edges on each side. The result is slight grooves between each plank. Depending on their depth, in a high traffic environment such as the entrance to your home these bevels can become dirt traps that may be difficult to keep clean. If this is a concern for you then we suggest you go with either an unfinished floor that is site sanded flat with no visible bevels, or a square edge click together floor that has no noticeable bevel.
One definite advantage of choosing prefinished hardwood over unfinished hardwood is the time it takes to install. Unfinished wood floors need to be sanded, stained, finished and then require additional time to dry before you can walk on them, this is a lengthy process that can take up to a week to complete depending on the square footage of your floors. On the other hand Pre-finished hardwood is easier and faster to install and can be walked on immediately after installation.