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History of Hardwood Floors

Hardwood Floor History

Having a hardwood floor means different things to different people. Most of us would think that a hardwood floor is very classy and expensive. Many home buyers today prefer hardwood floors. But there was a time when flooring in a home was simply cut boards or planks. It was not particularly considered special, even though they used solid wood.  (For the sake of brevity, this very short hardwood floor history will only cover hardwood flooring in America since the late 1800’s.)

History of Hardwood Floors

Technological advancement, the economy, and war all played a role in the development of the modern hardwood floor industry.

Hardwood Floor History: Technology’s Effect

Prior to the 20th century, the labor demands were extreme to create a hardwood floor.

Hardwood Floor History

Hand Scraping Harwood Floor

The first wooden floors in colonial America were wide, thick planks cut from the continent’s abundant old-growth forests.    Old House Online

In 1885 they developed tools to make tongue and groove flooring. This greatly reduced the labor requirements of installing hardwood flooring. Of course, everything changed drastically after power tools were invented, especially circular saws.

Hardwood Floor History: Economic Effect

In the 1800’s and early 1900’s, wood to be used for flooring was all hand-cut. The time required for laborers to install hardwood floors meant that most people could not afford it.

For centuries, wood floors were the domain of only the wealthiest people in the world. Expert craftsmen labored for years on the same floor, meticulously cutting each intricate inlay or pattern by hand. The only other wood floors in existence were the rough, hand-hewn planks that formed the surface of some commoners’ residences. Either way, each wood floor was the result of a painstaking hand-cutting process.  – Hardwood Floors / nwfa

Hardwood Floor History: The Effect of War

In the 1920’s many people had an abundance of money. The flooring industry was growing and advancing. But everything stopped when America entered World War II. All efforts were directed at winning the war. It was a matter of necessity and survival. If we had lost the war, today we would likely be speaking German and using German technology. Woodworkers were assigned to provide wood flooring for barracks and vast factories to help the war effort. Fortunately, the result of the war allowed our free enterprise to grow.

Today there are more options than ever to install beautiful hardwood flooring. Modern technology and tools make it more affordable for most Americans. The labor is still intensive but what used to take months or years to install, can now be done in days.

Hardwood Floor Maintenance

Hardwood Floor Maintenance

Your hardwood floors are the most used part of your house or apartment. Think about the daily usage of your floors. Without even thinking about it, you and your family uses floors constantly every day. It would be foolish not to pay attention to hardwood floor maintenance in your home. When your floors begin to show wear and tear, you have three options to consider: REFINISH, REPAIR, or REPLACE.

Hardwood Floor Maintenance

Hardwood Floor Maintenance Usually Only Requires A REFINISH Project

Refinish, refinish, refinish. In almost every case it is preferable to refinish your floors rather than replace them.  MacWoods.com

A prestigious salon in the Orlando area set up business in a second floor unit in an old building. The place was a mess. It was filthy, paint was peeling from the walls, and the floors were drab and stained. But the owner noticed they were hardwood floors and the rooms had crown molding. He saw potential. After a few weeks of work the space was beautiful and the salon clients love the environment as much as the services!

Refinishing can be accomplished at various levels:

  • SIMPLE: clean & wax
  • MODERATE: clean, re-stain, and wax
  • COMPLEX: clean, strip, re-stain, and wax

Depending on the condition of the floors, any of these options will do the trick. Almost anybody can do the first one, your Dad can do the second one, and (with help from a home improvement store) Dad can probably do the third one as well.

Hardwood Floor Maintenance Options

BEFORE & AFTER

Hardwood Floor Maintenance Occasionally Requires REPAIRS To Be Made

In some cases the erosion and wear and tear may have caused serious damage to hardwood floors. In this case you may not be able to do it yourself, and it might even be over Dad’s head. The worst-case scenario is if the underlying floor is ruined. This would require a construction project to replace the sub-flooring or even the wooden beams. Fortunately, in most cases that won’t be the case.

Minors repairs can be done rather easily. Sometimes a board is loose or bulging and glue or nails could solve the problem. Often corners and edges can be fixed simply by replacing the baseboards.

 

Baby Room Floors

Baby Room Floor: Safe and Practical Ideas

Are you thinking about providing a safe and enjoyable baby room floor? Do you have a child? Are you expecting one soon? Now is the time to make a place for a remarkable space for the baby.

Baby Room Floors

Read more

Cleaning Your New Floors

Floor Maintenance Essentials in Florida

Certain climate issues affect Floor Maintenance in Florida. Humidity, moisture, heat, and sand are a few things that make it a challenge.

Floor Maintenance - cleaning

Floor Maintenance: CLEANING

It is very important to keep your floors clean. Regardless of the type of floor, keeping it clean ought to be a regular activity. The time invested is well worth the reward of beautiful floors.

VACUUMING

Modern technology has made it easy and fun to vacuum your floors. The iRobot is affordable and makes vacuuming nearly effortless.

(For more information go to: irobot.com)

CLEANERS

  • Liquid

(For more information go to: bona.com)

  • Dry or wet

(For more information go to: swiffer.com)

Floor Maintenance: REPAIRS

Oh no! We damaged our floors!

Think when you bought your first car. It was perfect. Shines bright in the sun. Looks great under the stars at night. Then you got your first ding. Or your first scratch from someone in the grocery store parking lot that didn’t care about letting their cart roll free. This can be agonizing. However, when it comes to your floors, you have two good options:

Contact your installer

There might be a way where they will fix or replace the floor section at no cost. Again depends on your warranty and your agreement. This is great for any floor type.

Do It Yourself

If you have hardwood floors, and it is a small nick you can pickup a Minwax marker and cover up a blemish. The Minwax® Wood Finish™ Stain Markers are ideal for that small scratch on floors or furniture.

Carpets

Bissell carpet cleaner makes cleaning up spills and stains relatively simple, either by hand or with a Bissell carpet cleaner. (For more information go to: bissell.com)

Floor Maintenance: USAGE

An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of care.  – Benjamin Franklin

This is common sense. If you want to continue having beautiful and functional floors, you need to be thoughtful about what you allow to happen on them. Allowing the kids to roller blade on hardwood floors in the living room would not be wise. Moving furniture without smooth footing would also be a mistake.

These are choices the responsible home owner needs to make. If you regularly control the manner in which your flooring is used and faithfully maintain it, you likely will never have to think about repairing it. Then you can enjoy your beautiful flooring without stress or worry.

flooring trends 2016

3 New Flooring Trends in 2016

Radio stations this time of year are playing the greatest hits from the past year. 2016 is upon us and instead of looking back we want to help you look forward to what is to come in flooring trends. Some flooring trends are timeless others are very modern, while others seem to be put a new spin an a traditional technique. Call us (813.605.1204) for a free consultation on any flooring trends you see below.

flooring trends 2016

Here are three flooring trends for 2016 we will be looking at:

  • Creative Flooring Combo Trends
  • Modern Angle Flooring Design Trends
  • Luxury and Stone Flooring Trends

Creative Combo Flooring Trends

The first image in the gallery below is a simple combo with concrete and wood. This organic look is simple yet still honors sustainable design. This combination is perfect for any style home but works best in a modern space.

Aparici double fired tiles and bathroom

Aparici moving tiles double fired show style and elegance. They are not for the faint of heart or those not willing to take a risk. The tiles are busy, but mixing them properly can be a talking piece for guests when entertaining. Bathrooms cannot benefit from mixed material as well as mixed color and seamless transitions. Aparici Waterford Castle Hotel bathroom is a fabulous example using black and white tiles on trend for 2016.

41zero42 adding character to a space

This Italian design combines two materials to exude style. Pay attention to the unique use of mixing piece colors. This is a great approach to helping add character to a large space.

Creative flooring combo gallery

Modern Angle Flooring Trends

Parquet floors have been making strides over the last decade. 2016 will bring floors composed of short trips, unique patterns, and inlays of diverse woods and materials to the forefront.

Tex Hex tiles in porcelain in matte and mixed-finish black and cream by Artistic Tile. These are great for smaller space as they will give an appearance of a larger space. Take note to lay them out in a diverse and random order for a truly unique look. Also, symmetrical large tile pieces can be angled to add a unique style to an otherwise boring space.

Perfect tile trends for 2016

Ceramica Sant’Agostino porcelain tiles can have a grain texture that can portray carpet while still having the durability of tile. To conclude our look at modern angle flooring trends we look at the featured image. Markmcclurestudio.com is an artist that has decided to bless us with angular design fit for 2016. Call us (813.605.1204) for a free consultation on any tile flooring trends.

Luxury and Stone Flooring Trends

The last, but certainly not least, flooring trends we will look at today is about the richest most elegant of styles. There are two stunning examples of luxury flooring and precious stone work that we’d like to share with you. Remember that Go Mobile Flooring has many options. We can always find alternatives to meet your budget, but gold has innate value, so keep this in mind as you explore trends below.

Sicis, the world is a mosaic

Sicis is more than just flooring. They are a design brand that has products ranging from doors to jewelry and watches to furniture… and everything in between. They are trailblazers of the mosaic and have built a company and a brand around that style. The images below show the Sicis gold collection. This consists of mosaic for walling decor to compliment tile flooring.

Lapicida the stone specialist

Lapicida is from English origin and in its origin is acclaimed stone cutter. They cut, prepare and maintain the finest stones in all of Europe. Lapicida has served royalty and are a brand of elegance and bravado. We have listed a video below to show more about this amazing company and brand.

Luxury and stone flooring gallery

Lapicida has beautiful work that can be seen here (feel free to rewind or watch the entire video if you are interested in the history of these fine craftsmen):

Best installers for modern floors in 2016

Go Mobile Flooring (AKA TampaFlooringCompany.com) would love to help you with your project. We have stunning tile, hardwood, laminate and many more options to make your home on trend for 2016 and many years to come. Remember that upgrading your floors is the best way to increase home value. Contact us today for a free consultation.

Call us (813.605.1204) for a free consultation.


 

Entryway flooring design

Entryway Flooring Design: 3 Amazing Options

The first impression is the most enduring one. So as you begin planning your home, remember the entryway. This article will explore entryway flooring design and how to create a welcoming atmosphere for your guests.

Start with the type of flooring that is best for your Entryway Flooring Design.

When considering entryway flooring design, there are beautiful options. Keep in mind that entryways have a high traffic volume. It is wise to create this special location with durable materials.

Hardwoods

Everybody loves hardwood floors. Businesses and boutiques make sure they have hardwood entryway flooring. They know it will be noticed by their prime clients and customers. In the home it may be even more noticeable because it makes a statement.

Laminate

Easier on the budget and often indistinguishable from real hardwood, laminates offer another great choice. The finishes on laminates are extremely durable and resistant to scratching and fading. It is less slippery and is a good choice for high-traffic areas.

Ceramic Tile

When guests enter your home, they will be impressed by ceramic tile. It holds up well in extremely high-traffic and there are many designs to choose from. Ceramic is colder, harder, and more slippery, but it is hard to beat its natural beauty.

Entryway Flooring Design Increases the Resale Value of Your Home.

There are other options that can be explored such as natural stone, densely packed nylon carpet, and luxury vinyl tile (LVT). These three are the most popular for a wide range of homes and at every cost level.

The importance of entryway flooring design cannot be stressed enough. Many consider this aspect of the over-all home design to be the most critical for value and resale strength.

Most buyers know they are going to buy it when they see the foyer of a home. (Kay Barchetti, Coldwell Banker, Western PA, Beautiful Floors YouTube)

The expert quoted points out that her comment applied to homes in the 300K and up, but it validates the importance of entryway flooring design in any home.

If you are fortunate enough to be able to make these choices at the beginning stages of  your entryway flooring design, enjoy! It will give you the satisfaction of knowing you made the right choice to improve the beauty, functionality, and value of your home.

Call us today for a free consultation.

Home Buyers Prefer Hardwood Floors

Home Buyers Prefer Hardwood Floors

Home Buyers Prefer Hardwood Floors

The party was going great. People were having fun. Toward the end of the evening someone left an impression that you and your carpet will never forget. Bob spilled their wine glass and for the rest of time your carpet will remember this spill. There has been a dramatic change over the past decade where younger generation buyers are specifically looking for hardwood floors.

54% of home buyers are willing to pay more for hardwood floors and feel it is very important – National Association of Realtors, USA Today

Hardwood floors are wanted

Not only do hardwood floors increase the value of a home but they also increase the life of your flooring environment. Good carpeting typically lasts around 10 years. While some hardwood floors can last 30 years (or more). This is an easy way to improve home value. There might be a slight increase in costs over carpet flooring, however, if the floors last three times as long then it is worth it.  Here is a quick math example:

Hardwood floors cost $9,000

Carpet floors cost $5,000

In the above example, if we assume the carpet lasts 10 years and the hardwood floors 30 years, the financial investment of hardwood floors is worth it. The carpet floors will need to be replaced at year 10 (now your cost is $10,000) and then again at year 20 (now your cost is $15,000) while your hardwood floors are still fine. You add value with a time based investment — smart.

Hardwood floors are easy

Entertaining guests is less stressful with hardwood floors. Cleaning a hardwood floor spill compared to a carpet spill just isn’t fair. There are a few products that can make your life easier: Bona floor cleaner products and the Roomba iRobot are both must have tools to maintain your floor. Check back soon as we have an article coming out on products for maintaining your hardwood, laminate and tile floors.

Hardwood-office

Buyers Guide Series: Hardwood

Hardwood

Highly durable and practical hardwood floors.

Hardwood doesn’t only have the ability to transform a room into a bucolic, warm space; it is also highly durable, practical and can increase the value of your home significantly. It is no surprise then, why we have so many different styles of hardwood flooring to choose from. For many homeowners, such variety in both cost and taste can make buying new hardwood flooring a bit overwhelming and even discouraging. But buying the right hardwood flooring for your home doesn’t have to be a nightmare.

When buying hardwood, it’s important to have an understanding of the basics and that means getting to know and choosing the hardwood species and grade for your project. Being a natural product, each species of hardwood has a distinct grain pattern which makes them unique and valuable. Exotic hardwood such as bamboo, for example, is very popular because of its distinct color and grain patterns. Once you’ve established the species and grade you prefer, finding flooring within your budget will become much easier.

Keep in mind that buying prefinished hardwood floors that are already stained and finished is an option. Though factory or prefinished hardwood floors can be significantly more expensive up front, a factory finish is nevertheless warranted by the manufacturer and makes for a more efficient and convenient installation. Additionally, prefinished floors often last much longer than an on-site finish, meaning you save money over the long term.

Other things to consider when shopping for hardwood flooring are dimensions and size of the planks, photo sensitivity (how natural light will affect the color and look of your floors over time), as well as the wood’s hardness or ability to resist damage from common use. With proper care, top quality hardwood can last a lifetime; follow your manufacturer’s guidelines for information on weather-proofing, floor updates and suitable cleaning products. Whether oak, hickory, or any of the other of the many species available, hardwood flooring will add charm and natural beauty to your home.

This post was written by Thais Sousa. Follow Thais on Google.

exotic-wood-floors

Monthly Manufacturer Spotlight: Forest Accents

wood

With their broad and unique variety of hardwood, Forest Accents can bring your vision to life.

 

Hardwood is renowned for its iconic beauty and unrivaled ability to transform an ordinary space into the remarkable.  Forest Accents offers only the best in hardwood flooring, with a broad range of styles that frees your sense of adventure and allows you take creative control.

Engineered or Solid Wood

When it comes to hardwood, understanding how the material will fit and interact within your project’s environment is vital.  Engineered hardwood is designed to reduce the wood’s rate of natural expansion and contraction, offering protection from the elements in regions with difficult, humid weather.  Solid wood on the other hand generally require s a gap between the wall and the floor in order to allow for swelling; however, because it’s thickness solid wood offers greater structural strength.   Whether engineered or natural hardwood, a qualified Forest Accents retail dealer will help you select the hardwood flooring that works best for you.

Textures and Styles

With Forest Accents you can choose from a wide variety of domestic hardwood species, including Oak, Hickory and Maple.  And for design palettes with international flare, Forest Accents delivers exotic hardwood options such as Brazilian Cherry, Bamboo or African mahogany.

As it is natural product, each species of hardwood bears a distinct grain, making it unique and valuable.  Forest Accents delivers a collection of beautifully surfaced hardwood including hand scraped, wire-brushed and smoked, in an array of beautiful colors ranging from pecan cherry to maple.

Renovating or installing new floors can completely change the look and feel of any space; with their broad and unique variety of hardwood, Forest Accents can bring your vision to life.

This post was written by Thais Sousa. Follow Thais on Google.

replacing hardwood

Home Value Increases by Replacing Flooring With Hardwood

replacing hardwood

A well-maintained hardwood floor has the potential to increase your home value by about 15 percent.

Looking to sell your house but unsure whether or not you want to rip up your floors and replace them with a better material? Although the stats vary depending on other factors, a well-maintained hardwood floor has the potential to increase your home value by about 15 percent.

If the hardwood doesn’t raise your home value, it will surely up your perceived value of the home. Hardwood is fairly affordable, durable, and easy to maintain. It also opens up a room nicely and really makes the house feel like a home. Another great plus of hardwood flooring is that the wood is an excellent insulator and the wood is an excellent option when dealing with allergies for it does not produce mildew, dust mites, or mold.

According to a survey of realtors executed by the National Wood Flooring Association, 82% of the realtors interviewed claimed that homes with hardwood floors sold faster and sometimes for more money. The gleam and glamor of hardwood simply goes unmatched by carpet or tile.

Be smart about where you choose to install your hardwood floors. If you like to lie on the ground in your family room area, chances are the people buying your house will too! If that is the case, opt for hardwood floors in the kitchen area and hallways. This way you can have comfort in the family room and bedrooms, while still getting the open and sophisticated feel of hardwood in your home.

Hardwood is the cream of the crop and it might increase your home value. There is no guarantee, but perspective homebuyers are sure to appreciate a durable and easy upkeep hardwood floor.

This post was written by Thais Sousa. Follow Thais on Google.