Hey.

So, a while back I was after tile advice, and got it in spades! Perfect.

http://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/house-tiles-porcelain-vs-real-stone-advice-and-anecdotes-requested

Now it’s the floor and doors question, and it’s kind of the same one – do we go for the more ‘natural’ products (solid oak floors and doors), or do we go for engineered doors and floors?

I like the idea of solid wood, and our architect (who is most eco and natural, to the extent our external wall insulation is sheeps wool based) believes it’s the only way to get the look we want (that being worn in but not worn out, as if the old house had been made well and then well looked after from the start).

That said, I understand that engineered doors and floors don’t twist or move as much, and I kind of struggled to see the difference between the real and engineered samples I saw today…

Any thoughts?

Thanks.

Think of engineered doors as like lego bricks all different sizes and glued together, then a thin veneer glued on top,with 2 strips of facing timber down each edge, problem is water,water based wood stains and paint get under the veneer and lift it,or you can take to much off a side and expose the inner core, and lately had a few with chipboard cores.

Engineered, every time. Solid wood is cripplingly expensive and will warp unless it’s really dry. I can recommend kenton Jones wood floors in welshpool.

Timber merchant near me (Smiths Lowestoft) reckons engineered is better for floors. It warps less with climate changes in the room (or when small people drop juice all over the floor). It used to be more expensive, but they tell me they order the engineered in such bulk it’s working out cheaper than solid wood. I got quoted £26 m2 for oak engineered.

The only time I’ve ever had a problem with wood floor stability was with an engineered one (mdf cored clip together effort). I find the solid timber ones much easier to lay (nailed down with a Portanailer), and I’ve laid a 30 sq/m oak floor costing £28 sq/m with only a 5mm clearance all round (wasn’t going to undercut ornate Mohagony pilasters and skirtings!). The trick is to lay a hardwood floor when it is warm and humid (July in Scotland!); that way the boards can only shrink and not expand!

Solid wood floors can suffer all sorts of problems with movement and warpage unless the timber is decent quality , is properly dried and then acclimatised to your house. They also need fitting properly. This all means a good floor costs an awful lot more than engineered flooring. If budget is a consideration go engineered every time. The finished floors are very similar
As for doors the engineered ones will usually be fine for internal use, so long as they’re treated (oiled/lacquered) properly. You’d have to have a wierd set of accidents to get enough moisture on them to ruin the veneer!
Solid doors will be better made( mortised and tenoned) but need to be made of decent quality timber and will cost a small fortune . They will also age well and get you you’re worn but not worn out look
From a carpenter’s point of view I’d go engineered floor and solid doors if money was no object

I laid 50msq of solid oak myself as one big open plan kitchen and dining room.
Looks really nice and was OK to lay just screwed each bit 3x. No warping yet 4 years on and plenty of wet dog, dropped drinks and little people doing their best to ruin it.

Floors – engineered

Doors – solid

Looking at that combo right now, solid. Back to the whiskey.

We’ve had an engineered oak floor down for about 9 years, laid it ourselves throughout the entire downstairs. No problems at all, even after a pretty severe flooding from a busted water pipe. The floor bowed up a bit whilst it was wet but went back flat as it dried out.

Thanks all, plenty to think on. I’m currently heading towards solid doors, engineered over heated floors and solid floor over joists, all the while hoping our fitter will be decent!

We went for engineered in the kitchen because it is meant to be more tolerant of abuse than real wood. More likely to wear in than wear out. 3 years in an no problems so far*

*actually there is a slight creak where the base changes from solid concrete to wooden joists

Deadlydarcy will hopefully be along soon to give his opinion on variations and fitting.

We plumped for high qual engineered over boards and in terms of lack of movement and durability it has been fantastic. It doesn’t mimic floorboards though imo

By solid wood do you mean actual 3 inch floorboards? We were thinking about getting red pine floorboards put down. Do floorboards work if laid directly onto chipboard, or does the floor have to be suspended in some way? I’m ok with the whole warping moving thing as that’s where the character comes from.

By solid people are meaning 120mm wide by 18mm thick oak or similar which will be kiln dried to suit a normal domestic dwelling. It is overlaid on top of an existing chipboard or softwood floor.
Why would you put pine down; it is soft (will mark easily), it will not be kiln dried (you will get 5mm wide gaps)and won’t be any cheaper than oak. Reasonable quality oak is about £25 sq/m.

Cheers chickenman. Pine will hopefully be ok if varnished. Like the look of red pine and the 5mm gaps. Oak a good shout that hadnt considered.

Thanks for your thoughts all. Doors and floors are go.

I have no intention of moving, and if I ever do move I have no intention of renovating ever again.

Our builders are great, the project has gone smoothly – but I’m stressing about the impact of getting decisions wrong. I kind of hope I’m blowing things out of proportion (does it really matter if the door swings the wrong way), but I’m not cut out for this for sure.