Engineered Hardwood Flooring In Basement

Most homeowners dream of having solid hardwood flooring throughout their home. In fact, it's popularity continues to rise and becomes a major selling point in most new home purchases. But not only do they look good, they are also functional and provide much needed relief to problematic allergy sufferers. Other flooring materials like carpet tend to just hold on to all those allergens, while with hardwood you can just wisk them away.

Because of this, more homeowners are contemplating on whether or not to use hardwood basement flooring so the rooms match the rest of their homes. There's still a ton of risks involved with using hardwoods in the basement like being easily damaged from flooding and condensation. If this happens to hard wood floors, they will start to warp and show very visible signs of damage. A lot of times this goes sight-unseen as it's working up through the concrete basement to the wood portion. Not to mention you may eventually have a pipe burst or the floor drain backup, then you've got a nightmare on your hands not only repairing the problem but starting over on the floors which can be heart-breaking. When you gotta replace, it can get pretty expensive.

That's why when you talk to any flooring professionals or waterproofing experts they will highly recommend that you do not use any type of solid hardwood or subfloors made from wood or OSB in the basement. There's just too much that could go wrong and leave you footing the bill for replacement costs.

Of course you can take precautions to better waterproof your basement, but no forms of waterproof paint or sealers are going to do the adequate job. This type of waterproofing can only be done externally and is even more expensive and time consuming and really not worth the trouble just so you can have hardwood in the basement. Engineered hardwood on the other hand does open up a lot of possibilities. But first let's take a look at all the differences between laminate, engineered and solid hardwood flooring.

Laminate flooring comes in a huge range of styles and colors from natural wood looks to tile to vinyl's. There's certainly no shortage of options for laminate. However, the actual "core" of laminate products is really a high density fiber and not actual wood. Laminate gets it visual look from an actual photograph that's "laminated" and sealed on top of this HDF. Most people think that laminates are naturally wood looking but that's not always the case. There's some very realistic tile and stone patterns as well that can be used also. When people typically think of laminate flooring, they assume that you are getting a "floating floor" solution and most of the time that is 100% correct. They are easily installed with simple tongue-and-groove "snap together" pieces and float on top of the concrete slab versus being nailed or glued.

Most all laminates are somewhat waterproof. This is why more and more people are installing laminate basement flooring in their homes these days. But with repeated exposure they will warp and begin to crack and come a part at the seams.

Solid hardwood flooring on the other hand is quite different. Unlike laminate, this flooring is actually a piece of solid wood. So whatever species of trees you can think of, their is probably a solid hardwood waiting to be installed in someone's home of that same type. Solids due offer a bit of an advantage in that they can be sanded and refinished from time to time when the wear and tear gets a little rough on them to shine them back into place. It takes a bit more to install them as they are typically either glued or nailed in place and don't necessarily float. But as far as basement flooring applications go, they are really frowned upon.

In comes technology and innovation and out comes a better solution for basement floors. Instead of solid wood, you can use engineered hardwood flooring in your basement quite easily and effectively.

Engineered floors allow you to avoid the damage and pitfalls in a basement that plague hard wood with moisture and heat. These floors can stand up a whole lot better to that. Although keep in mind that if these floors get continuous exposure to these environmental problems, it could cause them to warp and cup.

Engineered hardwoods are made quite a lot like laminates, except instead of HDF, they actually use multiple layers of ply. These layers are then glued and pressed together. The other piece that differentiates engineered from laminates is that engineered actually uses a veneer instead of a picture.

Because of the way that engineered wood floors are made, they are truly more resistant to moisture and water than solid wood flooring. This is what makes them so appealing to use in areas where there are high humidity levels and basements that get damp. You can get an installation of this flooring that does "float", but they can also be directly glued to a dry concrete floor that is either above or below grade level. Or, you could actually staple or nail them to a wooden framed subfloor.

Engineered Hardwood floors can last a long time, in fact some say they'll last as long as 40 to 80 years. The thicker veneered flooring can be refinished, but that's better left to professionals for this type because you don't want to "accidentally" go through one. Just check with the store where you purchase them as to whether or not the veneer is thick enough to sanded and refinished or if it can only be re-coated.

Engineered basement flooring can be installed in two different fashions. What we are talking about here is directly to the concrete, so no sub-floor is being used.

The first option (and probably the easiest for a DIY) is a floating floor. This is where you will put the strips of engineered flooring together like a puzzle and lock them in place to each other. They will not be connected to the concrete slab. The second option (and sometimes a bit messier) is to actually glue them to the slab.

One thing to note, if you are planning on using some radiant floor heat, it is highly recommended to not use the "glue" method of installation as it can cause the glue to break down and the boards to come loose.

Prior to either installation method listed above, you really need to give your HVAC system a good once over and ensure it is in proper working conditions. More importantly, you need to make sure you have it on at most all times. The heater will help to raise the overall temperature of the concrete slab thus reducing moisture seepage and the AC will help to reduce humidity in warmer months.

It really doesn't matter what you do, if you make a decision there is a risk involved. It comes down to being able to minimize that risk and be able to accept the consequences should they occur. Engineered hardwood flooring in basements actually takes a lot of that risk out of the equation over actual solid wood flooring while still allowing you the same warmth and comfort.