Good flooring forms an integral part of an admirable home design. Floors make up most of the surface area in your home, making it important to choose quality flooring material. A poorly designed floor depreciates the value of your entire house, which is why most homeowners still prefer hardwood floors when choosing their floors.
Hardwood floors are available in different materials, designs, colors, finishes, and treatments. One common hardwood floor option is the wide plank wood floors. Read on if you aren’t sure if this hardwood floor option is best for your house.
What are wide plank wood floors?
Contents
Wide plank floors are solid hardwood floors designed in planks wider than the conventional 2 ½ to 4-inch wood flooring options. Even though most hardwood flooring currently are made of 4-inch plus wide planks, the real wide plank floors are a subtype of hardwood floors with boards measuring between 6 and 20 inches wide.
The width of wide plank wood floors is what makes them notably more expensive than other hardwood floor types. Wide boards are also visually proportional with long planks. This means very few trees can produce these planks. A great deal of waste is produced from milling these boards from trees.
Wide plans are also only cut from tree trunks since branches can’t produce such measurements. Solid wide planks measuring 10 to 20 inches are very expensive, given the limited number of trees that can produce such boards.
Wide plank floors installation
It’s easier for professionals to install wide plank floors, especially if they are reclaimed vintage planks. Unlike fresh wide planks, reclaimed floors require some skills set to fix the cupping, prevent cracking of boards, and ensure that the boards are installed without gaps. Fresh wide planks are easy to install, and even DIY-ers can complete the installation.
Installation techniques of wide plank floors vary depending on the design of the boards. Freshly manufactured floors have tongue and groove edges that perfectly fit. However, you should have some finish nails to blind-nail the edges. On the other hand, reclaimed wide plank floors don’t have tongues and grooves, making the installation process complicated.
Wide plank floors maintenance and repair
Maintenance practices of wide plank wood floors are similar to those of any other wood floor. For starters, you shouldn’t clean the floor with a steam cleaner or water. Instead, use a hardwood floor cleaner and damp duster. Spills should also be cleaned immediately. Like other wood floors, you should regularly seal wide plank floors with polyurethane varnish.
You should always have some extra planks for replacing damaged boards. However, like installation, repairs aren’t easy for wide plank floors, and you should hire a professional. Over time, wide plank floors may start aging. If such happens to your boards, sanding and refinishing them afresh can renew their appearance.
Wide plank floors cost
As mentioned, wide plank floors are relatively expensive, both material and labor-wise, than other wood flooring options. For instance, reclaimed wood planks require a lot of skills and expertise to match the wooden grains and avoid gapping and cupping between wooden boards.
This explains why you might end up spending between $12 and $50 for every square foot for new wide plank floor materials. Reclaimed wide planks are somehow cheaper, averaging at $10 per square foot. However, these prices vary depending on the wood species. This is way pricier compared to the cost of narrow board hardwood, which retails at $2 to $5 per square foot.
Apart from the material costs, you should include the installation or labor costs of about $2 per square foot. Interestingly, installing reclaimed wide plank floors might cost you more than new planks.
You should consider wide plank floors for the following reasons:
- Classic appeal
Some interior design features, such as grand pianos, large windows, white walls, and hardwood floors, specifically wide plank floors, will remain classic. Interestingly, instead of replacing classic hardwood floors, most homeowners prefer refinishing them for a spruced-up appearance. Installing wide plank floors should give you confidence, knowing that you have chosen a style that will last a lifetime.
- Vivid appearance
Unlike narrow planks, wide planks expose a more gorgeous surface area of the natural wood. The same cannot be said for narrow planks, as the arrangement pattern takes a lot of precedence. Wide planks give an uninterrupted appearance, especially wide wood planks with a natural finish instead of paint treatment.
- Creates space
Interestingly, wide plank wood floors make the room appear larger. While it might be some form of an illusion, such flooring gives your home an open, airy look. This is a good way of adding space to your home without increasing the square footage.
Endnote
Wide plank wood floors are an excellent addition to your home that very few things can match. Hardwood floors have been a classic for a long time, and wide planks have a special appearance not found in most homes. You should consider them if you need a classic floor that allows for quick installation, easy maintenance, unmatched comfort, and convenience.
