There is no other kind of flooring that can match the elegance, charm and natural beauty of wood flooring. Say that you have plans of buying hardwood floors for your house, then it will be vital to learn about the different kinds, options as well as finishes available for it. You have to ask yourself questions like should you buy engineered or solid wood floors, what does handscraped means, can hardwood flooring be installed over concrete slab, how you could keep your floors in tip-top shape for the following years and so forth.

There are lots of choices that you could have with regards to wood and Pittsburgh laminate flooring whether you believe it or not. Their differences lie in way that every piece is made, harvesting methods and the finishing processes which made some kinds of wood a more appropriate choice for certain installations than others.

Following are the different kinds used when buying Pittsburgh hardwood flooring.

Number 1. Solid - this is around 3/4 inches thick and these types of floors normally come from single piece of hardwood cut into planks. Solid wood planks are installed above grade and never over a concrete slab or in a basement.

Number 2. Engineered - the engineered wood flooring comes in different levels of thickness which range generally from 1/2 to 1/4 inches. In regards to its construction, it is involving gluing and laminating various wood plies in an effort to form a single plank. Engineered planks on the other hand could be installed over dry concrete slab.

Number 3. Longstrip - actually, this is a variation of engineered stone that creates a longer and wider plank.

Number 4. Exotic - it is the kind of term used for hardwood floors that come from different parts of the globe which include Australia, Germany, Africa, Asia, Russia and South America.

Number 5. Handscraped - whether you believe it or not, this is a very popular hardwood floor option. Handscraped floors are basically wood planks that have been manually scraped, hence its name to be able to give an ancient and worn look at every piece. You may purchase them in solid as well as engineered construction.

Number 6. Distressed - much like hand-scraped woods, the distressed hardwood is scraped by a machine to be able to give it with a unique texture and look.

Number 7. Unfinished and prefinished - in the event that it's prefinished, then the wood was already finished at the factory before the purchase and installation while unfinished floors should be finished right after the installation. Prefinished hardwood floors are offering wider varieties of options with few clean up after the installation while unfinished hardwood floors are perfect for those who want a more personalized finish.