Hardwood Choices Abound: Unfinished and Prefinished Hardwood Floors

Find Out Whether Unfinished or Prefinished Hardwood Floors Is Right For Your Home
A barrage of flooring options has left quite a number of people undecided about the type of flooring they want. It used to be that you only had to decide between wood or stone, and that's it. Nowadays, the number of choices within these two major options is a cause for anxiety for many homeowners and their builders.

Hardwood has always been a great flooring option for most homes because of its durability and the inherent beauty it imparts to a room. Choosing hardwood is bound to give you a large number of choices to consider even still.

Unfinished and Prefinished Hardwood Flooring
Hardwood flooring is available in unfinished and prefinished forms. Unfinished hardwood simply means that it has not been varnished or stained. The homeowner has the option of choosing what color or stain the unfinished wood will have in the end.

A choice in length for unfinished and prefinished hardwood flooring
It is also available in more widths and wood species, making it a great choice for homeowners who want to truly customize their floors, and those who are renovating and truly want to match the colors of their existing floor. Prefinished hardwood flooring, on the other hand, comes already stained a certain color and in certain measurements and widths.

Prefinished hardwood floors - great for DIYers
Since the finishing and staining have been done in the factory, all that's left to do is to install it, a definite choice for homeowners who want to save time without sacrificing quality. A prefinished hardwood floor is the answer for those who don't want to expose children and pets to dust and fumes that come from sanding and staining an unfinished floor. It is also great for high-traffic areas such as kitchens because the finishing done in the factory imparts a more durable finish, thereby making it able to withstand the stresses of a high-traffic room.

Know Which Is Best For Your Home
With those descriptions, it would seem like choosing between these two options would be a cinch. But we all know that choosing flooring is not that simple. It helps to have a few pointers:

• Older homes in need of refurbishment or remodeling will fare better if unfinished hardwood floors are used. Unfinished hardwood floor boards can be aged and distressed using certain techniques in order for the new floor boards to match the original flooring.

• If installing a floor that needs to match an existing wooden floor exactly, unfinished hardwood floors are, again, your best bet because these can be stained to match your existing floor perfectly.

• Larger flooring projects such as installing hardwood floors all throughout your home will fare better if done using unfinished hardwood flooring. These unfinished boards can be stained and finished on-site by your contractors to ensure a uniform color and appearance all throughout your home.

• Another important consideration is the site of your installation. Below-grade installations (located below the ground level, such as basements) where conditions can be humid, do better with prefinished hardwood flooring. This type of flooring is the only type of hardwood flooring that can be floated (installed over a foam layer that bars moisture) above a concrete surface, which is what most basements have.

Keeping these pointers in mind, you are sure to determine which type of flooring will suit you best.