Soft”: Eastern White Pine “Medium”: Spruce, Chestnut, Fir and Elm “Hard”: Cherry, Antique Heart Pine, Red Oak, Beech and White Oak “Very Hard”: Hard Maple and Hickory 3) Do you need a floor with a particular kind of stability?
One of wood’s inherent characteristics is that, as a natural product, it expands and contracts when exposed to varying temperature and humidity. All wood floors will move over the course of a year, and the way that a particular house handles seasonal changes will play a big part in determining how much the floor will move. Other considerations include the width of the floorboards and the species of wood. While wide boards will show more visible gapping as the wood shrinks, narrower boards will also move but just show thinner gaps. Also, species vary in their stability. For example, Oak and Maple are less stable than Heart Pine. Stability may or may not be a consideration for your floor. Those laying a floor over radiant heat may want to choose either a wood that is more stable or narrower widths. For some homes, the gaps that can occur between boards may simply add to the natural charm of their floor.
Related Questions
- Soft": Eastern White Pine "Medium": Spruce, Chestnut, Fir and Elm "Hard": Cherry, Antique Heart Pine, Red Oak, Beech and White Oak "Very Hard": Hard Maple and Hickory 3) Do you need a floor with a particular kind of stability?
- Soft": Eastern White Pine "Medium": Spruce, Chestnut, Fir and Elm "Hard": Cherry, Antique Heart Pine, Red Oak, Beech and White Oak "Very Hard": Hard Maple and Hickory 3) Do you need a floor with a particular kind of stability?
- Why Eastern White Pine?
