Assessing The Real Types Of Wood Flooring
Besides the infamous wood called "oak", there are four other types of real wood that are also used for flooring in the UK. These four types are ash, pine, maple, and bamboo. Ash is the most similar to oak, but is tougher and usually used for tools that use a heavy hand (such as gardening). The grain is not as apparent as oak, and the color ranges from light to dark.
The shallowest part of the tree where sap is collected (the sapwood) is where the wood is almost as fair as the sap itself. The darkest color of ash is found in the deepest part of the log of the tree (the heartwood). Pine is one of the lightest woods in weight and has the most personality due to the natural bumps and curves it collects over time.
Eastern pine is white wood, and antique pine comes from the center of the pine tree (the hardest and darkest part like ash). Maple is known for its light colors and hard surface. It is almost as hard as oak, but not quite as thick or resistant. Bamboo’s popularity has grown in flooring only within the last two decades. There is a whole process of making the fibrous plant into floorboards. Real wood flooring wood flooring for kitchens comes in all shapes, colors, textures, and sizes, suitable for any home in the UK. Check other options at IndigoFloors.
Ash means "barbed at the tip", which visually represents the leaves on the trees. The plant is formally known as fraxinus, cousin to the olive tree and the woodland flower plant, the lilac. Although ash is comparable to oak in strength and durability, the natural tone of the wood may be a bit too light for some people. However, ash absorbs color stains very well, and still looks very natural with lighter stains. The cost of ash is also more expensive than oak.
Since pine is a soft wood, installing boards from the deeper, darker parts of the tree is highly suggested to prevent scratches and dents in the floor. Like ash, pine also originates from the northern half of the Earth’s hemisphere. Antique pine comes from the heart of the tree and has a beautiful auburn glow to the wood. Since staining is unnecessary, most residents opt to finish their floorboards with just a clear satin coat.
Heat and moisture does not affect pine the way oak and ash are affected, so they last a long time regardless of what part of the home the boards are installed. Eastern white pine along with other types of pine absorb stains very well and cost much less than antique pine. Old barns and factories used pine as their support structures, but dented easily in parts due to metals and clunky machinery.
Maple is naturally light and does not absorb liquids easily, which makes it hard to stain in darker shades. Over time, this type of real wood top layer flooring tints yellow like paper. The less marks in the wood, the more expensive maple gets. Maple is also known as acer, meaning “sharp” or “pointed” with regards to its leaves, similar to ash. This wood is very hard and is used for billiards cue sticks, bowling pins and lanes, and blocks used to slice bread or cut meat.
Bamboo is an unusual choice for wood. These types of floorboards are created by collecting bamboo strands together and pressing them into plank forms. The process is similar to making paper from pulp, but the results show the same strength as oak wood. Bamboo can actually be stained with lighter shades or coats that absorb into the fibers of the wood to reveal more of the fibers that act and appear as grains. Since bamboo is naturally a type of wood, it can last as long as any other traditional wooden floor. It also has a contemporary feel to its look, even if the floor design is standard and simple.
