How To Tell What Kind Of Hardwood Floors You Have

Remove a floor heating vent with the screwdriver.

How to tell what kind of hardwood floors you have.

If you found gorgeous planks of hardwood under old flooring during a remodel or renovation this can add value to your home and more. Many floors have a polyurethane finish but certain finishes are harder than polyurethane and restorative finishes won t adhere well to them. Peek inside the opening to look at the type of wood that lies in the gap. You often can tell what kind of wood your floor is made from just by looking at it.

How to find out what type of wood floor you have. Engineered hardwood flooring is a popular option. Here s the easiest way to know if you have wood floors. It is particle board with a printed image on the surface.

If you ve ever watched an episode of home renovation tv you know the allure of wood flooring and maybe even have pulled up some old carpet in your own home furtively hoping for the glimpse of. If the room has a floor vent remove it they re rarely screwed in carefully push your fingers under the pad to lift reveal. Laminate is a hard surface flooring but is not actually hardwood. Laminate can be a beautiful product but it is not hardwood so it cannot be refinished.

This guide will help you to figure out what type of flooring you have in your home. If you have a scale you can take measurements of the length width and thickness of the wood and combine them to find the density of the wood. Before you restore your wood floor finish or even clean it you need to know what type of finish it is or your efforts could be for naught. Try gouging the edge with your fingernail to get a sense of its hardness.

Hardwood floors are commonly 3 4 inch thick tongue and groove boards. Many species such as oak pine and fir are easily recognizable. It can also be a pain if you aren t sure what types of old hardwood floors or softwood you are dealing with.