Do Engineered Wood Floors Expand And Contract?
If you’re in the market for hardwood floors, you’ve probably come across engineered wood floors. Engineered wood flooring is a popular choice because they offer the natural beauty of hardwood floors with added durability. But one question we often get asked about engineered wood floors is whether or not they expand and contract.
So, in this post, we’re going to answer that question once and for all. Keep reading to find out everything you need to know about engineered wood flooring and expansion/contraction.
How Engineered Wood Flooring Is Made
Engineered wood flooring is made by bonding together multiple layers of wood. The top layer is typically a hardwood veneer, while the lower layers are usually made from plywood or hardwood boards. This construction makes engineered wood floors more stable than solid hardwood floors, which means they are less likely to expand and contract. However, that doesn’t mean they don’t expand or contract.
Factors That Affect Expansion And Contraction In Engineered Wood Flooring
There are a few factors that can affect how much your engineered wood flooring will expand and contract. These include:
The type of wood: Some types of wood are more prone to expansion and contraction than others. For example, pine is a softwood that expands and contracts more than hardwoods like oak or maple.
The thickness of the planks: Thicker planks are less likely to expand and contract than thinner ones.
The direction of the boards: Boards installed parallel to the longest wall in a room will expand and contract less than boards installed perpendicular to that wall.
The humidity level: High humidity levels can cause engineered wood floors to expand, while low humidity levels can cause them to contract.
How well the floor is acclimated: Acclimating your flooring means allowing it to adjust to your home's temperature and humidity level before installation. This gives the flooring time to stabilize so that it’s less likely to be affected by changes in temperature and humidity after installation.
The quality of the flooring: Higher-quality engineered wood floors tend to be less affected by expansion and contraction than lower-quality ones.
Conclusion
As you can see, there are a lot of factors that affect how much your engineered wood flooring will expand and contract. That being said, if you take the time to choose the right type of wood, acclimate your flooring properly, and buy high-quality planks, you shouldn’t have any problems with your floors expanding or contracting too much. If you have any questions about choosing the right engineered wood floor for your home, feel free to contact us – we’d be happy to help!
why choose source wood floors?
Source Wood Floors is a leading supplier of solid wood flooring in the UK. We offer a wide selection of colours and styles to choose from, so you're sure to find the perfect match for your décor.
We know how difficult choosing just the right floor can sometimes be, and we want to help you get it right, so we offer a FREE SAMPLE service to all our customers, giving you the opportunity to see what the flooring looks like in your own home, under different lights and against your furnishings.
Contact us today to learn more about our products and services, or browse our website to see our selection of engineered wood floors.