Featured Product: Tigerwood

Tips to Save you Money

In doing some research for a different project, an article online made me stop and think about what goes into a flooring purchase. Everyone has a different reason as to why they make the choice they do. And I think we all consider the cost. Here are some things to think about when you are making that decision.

Most consumers choose hardwood flooring for the feeling of warmth, beauty and comfort it can give a room. Because of today's modern technology, many manufacturers are coming up with great new synthetic flooring that not only looks good, but is also durable and low-maintenance, a definite plus for those who are always on the go but want stylish floor coverings; however even though synthetic flooring is a great alternative, many people still crave the look and feel of all-natural floor coverings such as wood.

There are many other reasons to go with hardwood floors, such as the value they add to your home, easy care and easy cleaning, great style and durability and they're natural and safe for the environment. Although carpeting is an easy alternative to floor decorations, many home decorators are now setting a new trend with exotic hardwood flooring.

If you know a building contractor or hardwood floor contractor, they may be able to help you get a nice discount. In most cases, refinishing your floors will increase the value of your home, not to mention, adding style and beauty. Some of the most well known hardwood floor manufacturers include Bruce, Shaw, Mohawk, Mannington and Armstrong.

If you're looking for great ideas, get a copy of Hardwood Floors magazine; it's sent to more than 24,000 hardwood flooring professionals throughout the world, including contractors, dealers, distributors, manufacturers, builders, architects and many other industry professionals. If you own an older home, if the floors are structurally sound, why not go ahead and refinish them and bring your old hardwood floors back to life. After all wood is wood, and what can be more ecologically clean than natural wood planks after very little chemical processing?

There is no need for cleaning chemicals, carpet shampooing, or replacement carpets whenever you have big spills. When you're deciding on what type of flooring is the best for you and your home, the first step to making sure it's really right for you is to list all the pros and cons.

Today's hardwood flooring has made advances in style, durability, maintenance and care, making it more widely usable throughout the home, except in the bathroom where its use is not recommended due to possible moisture problems. Many people are now installing hardwood floors in their kitchen and it can also be installed over concrete. The cost of hardwood flooring depends on what type you choose.

With tons of web pages online, you can easily check online for all types of hardwood flooring including: red oak, white oak, American cherry, Brazilian cherry, maple, red birch, ash, hickory, walnut and even bamboo. If you're thinking about a do-it-yourself project, you can easily learn how to install flooring with a few of the proper tools like sanders, nailers or nail guns etc. which you can easily rent or borrow.

Summarizing, we can say that hardwood flooring provides the utmost warmth and beauty for your home. Most hardwood floors almost never need to be replaced and can add thousands of dollars to the value of any home.

Hardwood floors are the healthiest choice for interior living, especially if you live with children. If you're looking for a great way to improve the look, durability and value of your home, they are definitely the way to go. They are one of the most important design elements in any home or business.

Visit GateWood Floors to see what options are available to you and to find out more about your flooring choice. As always, if you don't see what you want, ask - we usually have it!

Featured Product: Brazilian Walnut

Featured Manufacturer: Bois Chamois

European White Oak

Fumed White Oak

Check out our website for more from Bois Chamois! And others! As always, if you don't see what you want, ask - we probably have it for you!

Featured Product: Prefinished Heart Pine

Warm Sable

Golden Honey

Antique Brown

Bamboo Used in Sports Flooring

As a follow up to the last post about bamboo flooring, we received an email from Smith & Fong Plyboo, announcing their increasing success with bamboo sports flooring. Here's what they said:

Bamboo emerges as a solid contender in the sports flooring segment.

Mt. Vernon Presbyterian School
Atlanta, Georgia

PlybooSport® – North America’s first bamboo sports flooring – faced a uphill battle in the marketplace when it was introduced five years ago. But as more and more corporate and institutional building projects have adopted sustainable products into their plans, PlybooSport has experienced dramatic growth.

The company sold its first PlybooSport floor to the City of Dallas, Texas, in 2005. Since then PlybooSport has enjoyed a robust annual growth rate in sales. Floors have been installed in 16 states as well as Mexico and the UK, and the company has a backlog of orders for projects as far and wide as the UAE, Pakistan and China.

Smith & Fong attributes PlybooSport’s increasing popularity to a growing awareness of sustainability and environmental health among commercial and institutional architects. PlybooSport is PlybooPure formaldehyde-free, California Section 01350-compliant, FloorScore®-certified and Forest Stewardship Council (FSC)-certified, offering numerous green attributes attractive for school gyms, recreational centers and corporate fitness centers.

“We identified PlybooSport flooring as a product that would make a highly visible statement about the importance of sustainable and rapidly renewable materials,” said architect Clayton Daspit, of Atlanta-based Collins Cooper Carusi Architects. His firm specified PlybooSport for a gymnasium project in Atlanta’s Mt. Vernon Presbyterian School, which ultimately achieved the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Silver certification, in part due to its use of PlybooSport flooring.

And some more recent installations:



NetApp Corporate Headquarters
Sunnyvale, California
PlybooSport


Hillside High School
Marlborough, Massachusetts
PlybooSport


Singing Hills Recreation Center
Dallas, Texas
PlybooSport

If you are researching sports flooring, bamboo may be right for you. Contact us to find out more!

A Review of Bamboo

Some interesting facts about bamboo in a review posted by Fast Floors:

Bamboo is not just for pandas anymore. Its fibers are used to make clothing. The shoots of young bamboo trees are nutritious and to some quite tasty. But it can also be used for new home construction, and it makes for some spectacularly beautiful flooring.

To a lot of people, the use of hardwood trees for flooring is a poor use of a precious resource. An oak tree takes 60 to 120 years to grow. While on a larger scale, all wood could be called a renewable resource, the 'guilt tax' for a hardwood floor is a price more and more people are unwilling to pay.

That's where bamboo comes in. Bamboo goes from seedling to mature plant in just five years, growing several inches per day. It grows in a variety of climates, both in its native Asia and even here in the USA.

Bamboo provides a habitat for small animals where it's grown. Because it's basically 'mowed' and not cut down like a tree, the habitat isn't destroyed by the harvest. Pesticides are unnecessary, as the plant has natural chemical defenses against insects and disease.

All of that is wonderful, but the fact is that unless it's a good product, it won't succeed on the merits of its environmental resume alone. So here are the selling points of bamboo flooring.

• Hardness and durability: Bamboo flooring is as hard as oak or maple, yet resilient and flexible. This means it's pleasant to walk on and easy to work.
• Cost: While quality varies, bamboo is generally quite inexpensive, sometimes running half of the price of hardwood.
• Upkeep: Bamboo requires some upkeep, but no more than hardwood floors. The care for bamboo is the same as for wood. Bamboo, a tropical plant, is naturally resistant to moisture. This makes it the perfect choice for kitchens and utility rooms.
• Appearance: Bamboo floors have a unique look, unlike any comparable wood or laminate product. The grass has a system of nodes that creates darkening bands of spectacular color. Bamboo can also be finished into darker colors to match any decor.