ENMAR Hardwood Flooring knows that knowledge is power. We have put some Articles together along with some Frequently Asked Questions for a better knowledge and understanding on hardwood flooring, ENMAR products and services, and answers to commonly asked questions.
 
Q: I know I want wood flooring, but where do I start?
Q: What species of wood can I choose from?
Q: I decided on a species of wood, what other decisions do I need to make?
Q. I've narrowed down all my choices, what is the next step?
Q. I live in Arizona and I was told I cannot have solid hardwood flooring due to the dry climate? What do you think?
Q. My contactor states that we do not need to let the floor acclimate?
Q. Why does my wood floor have line cracks in winter and they go away in the summer months?
Q: Maintenence?
Q. Do you carry "Laminate Wood" flooring?
Q. I had my floor refinished and our finisher used a water base finish. It does not have the same shine or vibrancy to the wood. Aren't all finishes the same?
Q. How do I decide which stain color to use?
Q. What thickness of plywood subfloor do I need for ¾" solid wood?
Q. How should I choose a flooring installer?
Q. Will you install any hardwood that we have purchased ourselves?
Q: I know I want wood flooring, but where do I start?
A.The best place to start is by visiting our main showroom. We have a large selection of different wood species, solid flooring, engineered flooring reclaimed flooring, stain choices and different distressing options.
In addition, we also have several flooring types installed in our showroom to help give you a better visual of your choice. We request that you do schedule a personalized appointment so we can guarantee and give you uninterrupted time to help, answering your questions and showing you options.
Tip: When you visit the showroom, it is helpful if you bring paint colors, fabric colors, sample of doors/cabinets, etc. - anything that will help us determine the best choices for your project.
All showroom appointments can be made between 8-4pm Monday thru Friday. Saturday appointments are available from 9-1 pm. Evening appointments are available upon request.
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 Afrormosia from Africa - 20% Harder than Oak 50% Less Movement in Surface
This magnificent species is often termed "African Walnut" because of its origin and its beautiful coloration, which ranges from golden to darker brown, gradually mellowing to a deep, rich, walnut-like color. Afrormosia has long been a favorite in Europe for high-grade commercial and residential construction when quality and appearance rather than cost have been design objectives. |
Q: What species of wood can I choose from?
A. We carry traditional species such as Oaks, Hickory, Maple, Walnut, Cherry, Ash, Beech, Birch, Fir and Alder.
In our reclaimed line we carry species of Oak, Hickory, Heart Pine, Chestnut, Jarrah, Maple, Ash, Beech, Birch and Trestlewood.
Along with this we offer an exotic line that includes Brazilian Cherry, Brazilian Walnut and Tigerwood to name a few.
This list only reflects a small quantity of the types of species that we have available. If there is a wood that you have seen, and is still available; we can order it for you. We buy all of our products directly with mills and not distributors. We look for quality in wood products, excellence in the milling, customer service that goes above and beyond and a mill that will stand behind their product. As a consumer, you make a choice on the flooring company you choose that meets the standards you are looking for; we do the same for any mill that we work with.
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Q: I've decided on a species of wood, what other decisions do I need to make?
A. Once you choose the wood species, the next consideration would be what "grade" of wood would be the best choice for your project or your taste. The "grade" is simply the appearance of the wood. .
Clear: Clear grade may have some small imperfections, but it is free from defects.
Select: Select grade wood is similar to clear but contains some natural characteristics like knots and color variations.
Common: Common grade wood (No. 1 and No. 2) has even more natural characteristics. No. 1 Common has a diverse appearance, light mixed with dark colors, knots and wormholes. No 2 Common grade is rustic in appearance and emphasizes all wood characteristics of the species.
Once you have decided on your grade, the next consideration is what width or widths of flooring would be best suited for your project. Strip flooring comes is flooring with a width of 2 ¼" width. Traditionally older oak flooring or maple flooring utilized this width. Plank flooring starts at 3" and goes as high as 6" widths. There is flooring available (that ENMAR carries) that can go as high as 22". Any widths over 6" will have a natural cupping effect to the floor due to the weight and width of the board that is being nailed. This natural cupping is not a reason to replace your flooring. Your project may require only one width or several widths combined to produce the look or effect that you are trying to achieve.
The next consideration is the look of the face of the wood. If you're looking to a achieve a smooth look or feel to the flooring, then we suggest a square edge flooring. Are you looking to achieve some texture to the look of the floor? A consideration would be some hand scraping or distressing. The amount of distressing can be adjusted from light to heavy. The reclaimed wood typically has natural distressing inherent to that type of flooring. Another choice to consider is if you want a bevel to your flooring? Any hand scraped or distressed flooring will have some degree of beveling required from micro to standard. Ok, thought you're done making choices, but you are not. Are you looking for a solid jobsite finished flooring-that would be a floor that is installed and finished on site or are you looking for a prefinished flooring-flooring that has been finished off site and installed? Are you looking for a solid thickness flooring (wood that is ¾' thick) or are you looking for an engineered type flooring (flooring that can be as little as 3/8" total thickness to as thick as 3/46" total thickness)?
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Q. Ive narrowed down all my choices, what is the next step?
A. We would do two things for our customer. One is to provide you with a customized sample that incorporates all of your choices. The second thing is to make an appointment to take the measurement(s) of the area(s) that you are considering for the wood installation. This will give us a chance to visualize the space, visualize the concrete( if able to), look to see what other type of floor coverings the wood maybe coming up against, types of transitions that maybe required, wood direction choices, baseboard or trim application or other options available, existing floor coverings to be removed, and any issues that may impede the installation to certain areas. We have a Customer Prep Sheet that we will go over with you to help eliminate any surprises. This process should be fun and not stressful for our customers!
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Q. Being that i live in Arizona I was told that I cannot have solid hardwood flooring because we live in a "dry" climate and have a concrete floor. What do you think?
A. I think I would have been out of business 34 years ago if that statement was actually factual! As a consumer, you need to listen to those companies that all they do is hardwood flooring and not just someone who is trying to make a sale! You can have solid hardwood flooring here in Arizona. If you have a concrete slab, we would need to install a moisture barrier and a plywood subfloor prior to nailing the wood. The solid hardwood flooring can be purchased either finished or unfinished on the face of the wood. The underside of the wood is unfinished to either unfinished or prefinished solid. There is no barrier between the wood and the concrete, thus the moisture barrier and plywood subfloor needs to be installed. Even though the concrete is dry, it will retain moisture during rain/monsoons. Lack of either of these is not a reason to forgo the moisture barrier and subfloor. Solid wood can not be glued to the concrete. There are those installers/sales persons that will say it can. We have repaired many a floor that was glued directly to the concrete and now has water damage issues. At ENMAR we will follow the guidelines set out by the NWFA. With the moisture barrier/subfloor installed and then the wood the total thickness of the flooring is 1 ½". This is not a reason for NOT installing solid hardwood. We create customized transitions from tile/wood, carpet/wood/vinyl/wood. These transitions are a graduated decline from the highest point to the lowest point. We have a sample of a transition in our showroom. Regarding our climate, actually we live in the best state to have solid wood due to the fact water and wood don't mix. We live in a stable environment in regards to humidity. Prior to the actual flooring installation to start, we would deliver the solid wood flooring to the jobsite a minimal of 7 days prior to installation. The reason being is that we treat wood like a living organism. Wood will normally expand and contract in relation to the temperature/humidity surrounding it. Wood also has a property that it will absorb. The mills we deal with are located in the Midwest/South and East coast. Their humidity factor is significantly different than ours. When we receive the wood from the mill, we moisture test the wood. Typically the moisture content will be a minimum of 7-8% and we need to achieve the moisture content below 6%. When we deliver the wood to your home the HVAC/Heater needs to be operational for a full week prior to installation and remain operational even after the installation is complete. The doors and windows needs to have been installed also. The reason is that all the moisture that is present in the air, especially from a new build construction, needs to be circulated out of the house. If this does not occur, since wood absorbs moisture/liquid from its living environment, the wood will absorb this moisture. Once the wood is delivered to your house, we moisture test it at delivery time and then again one week later. Typically within one week the excess moisture in the wood will have a chance to evaporate out and the installation can proceed. If the moisture content is not low enough, we will let it sit for another week and then retest.
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Q. My contractor states that we do not need to acclimate the wood as there is no moisture in the air in the winter and our lot is in an area that keeps the humidity low?
A. Re-consult with your contractor and make sure they are following the proper protocol, if not reassess your current contractor. In a new build there are multiple trades that utilize water based products or procedures that add significant amount of moisture to the air. These trades can be tile/stone installers, painters/faux painters, concrete, rock installed (indoors). If this moisture does not have an ability to circulate and evaporate out of the environment, it will just hang in the air in your new build. Have you been inside a new home under construction when any of the above trades have completed their work or in the process-did you feel very sweaty and sticky? That is the moisture that is hanging in the air. Use of space fans is not appropriate as that is just moving the air and not causing the moisture to evaporate. Use of space heaters is not appropriate as that is only warming the air and not causing movement with evaporation of humidity. If we would bring the wood into this environment and start to install, the wood would absorb all of this moisture and expand. Once the HVAC/HEATER is turned on and acclimates the surroundings by stabilizing temperature and decreasing the humidity, the wood is going to contract and significant gapping to your floor will occur. If the wood is going to shrink, you want that to occur during the acclimation process and not after installation.
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Q. Why does my installed floor have hair line cracks during the winter and they go away during the summer months?
A. Wood expands and contracts normally to temperature/humidity levels. The outdoor humidity level directly affects the inside humidity. When the outside humidity level falls due to dryness in the air, so does the inside humidity level drop. In turn that causes the wood to react by pulling itself in and a small separation can be noticed between the boards. This is perfectly normal! Some wood species have more movement than others and the separation maybe more noticeable than with others. Once the outside humidity starts to rise, that will directly affect the inside humidity, thus causing the wood floor to expand causing any gaps to disappear. With a newly laid floor we will require the floor to go through one full cycle with regards to changes in temperature/humidity( i.e. one year) before we make any changes to boards that for whatever reason have not reacted to the changes in the environment.
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Q: In regards to maintenance what am I supposed to do being as there are so many choices?
A. After we have finished our installation of either a jobsite finished floor or an engineered floor, we will supply you with our maintenance sheet that will help you preserve your investment and elongate the longevity of the floor. When asked as to how long will my finish last, I answer that question with how much are you willing to put into regular maintenance. That is the key to the longevity of your finish. Maintenance of polyurethane finish flooring is nothing like the labor intensiveness of waxing/buffing; don't walk on the floor with your shoes remembered from the ritual of my grandmother's time. In her time yearly and more frequent maintenance of waxing/buffing were a given. Those type of finishes reacted like furniture polish of today does. Looks great, but quickly you saw smudging/dullness of the finish that could only be rectified with the repeat of the care needed. Today the care is much different. The basic thing that needs to be done on a regular basis is dry dust mopping the floor to help remove the surface dust/grit. Out here in Arizona our dust is gritty just by the nature of the natural desert surroundings. Living on a dirt road is just the same principle. We recommend a spray to be applied to the dry dust mop that will help magnetize the dust to the mop and not just spread around the floor. How frequently you perform this is going to depend on how much traffic (people or pet), kids, toys, etc. Some dry mop once a week, some every day. With the removal of the surface dust on a regular basis, that helps prevent the grit from being ground into the top of the finish. That grinding becomes abrasive and starts to wear down the finish. What we see all too often is a floor needed to be sanded much sooner than expected due to improper or lack of maintenance. The average length of time before you should have to sand your floor is between 7-10 years. That time frame can be longer with proper, consistent maintenance. The time frame can be shortened significantly if you choose to do no maintenance or improperly performing. There may be a need to just recoat the floor with not sanding the floor. That is called screen/recoat. Typically, we would be performing this about 4-6 years, again depending on the proper, consistent maintenance being done. We would perform this if everything with the finish coats is ok-no wear through areas, no significant scratches; the finish is just dull. The process for that is abrading the top coat with a pad that is like the scrub brush you use in the kitchen. The reason for the abrading is to help with adherence of the finish coats that are applied. Without abrading, once dry you would be able to peel the finish coats right off the floor. Screen/recoat typically can be completed in 2+days, depending on the amount of square footage. Screen/recoat does not remove any scratches-we are not sanding the floor. Screen/recoat does not alter stain color to the floor-we are not sanding the floor. The product that you should be using is the products that we recommend only. You are not to use any products that contain oil/wax in them. These products will start to cloud the polyurethane finish. It will start to appear milky gray. The only way to remove that discoloration is with a sanding. Any products you can buy in a grocery store, box store, etc. all have wax and /or oil- (i.e. Murphy's Soap, Pinesol, Swiffer products, Lemonglow). If you are not sure, please give us a call to ask. See our online shopping as to the products we recommend.
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Q. Do you carry "Laminate Wood" flooring?
A. A true laminate like Pergo, Wilsonart, etc. is not wood. It is a picture of a specific specie on particle board. You can equate this to a laminate countertop except for your floor. Laminates are composed of 65% paper products. These products can not be glued directly to your floor. Being the composition is paper products, picture your newspaper when it gets wet-that would happen to this type of product if it came in contact with water/moisture-you would have cupping to the floor. This type of flooring is a "floating" floor. Between the concrete and the wood is a piece of foam. When you walk on this type of flooring, the sound bounces from the back and forth between the back of the laminate and the foam. The sound is very hollow and echoing. This type of flooring can not be sanded; board repair is not possible, as these boards when tongue/groove are glued, crystallizes, making board removal impossible. This floor will scratch if a sharp object is pulled across, same as any hardwood.
We do not carry any laminate flooring, but will refer you to a very reputable installer who would be able to help you if that is the flooring you have decided on.
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Q. I had my floor refinished and our finisher used a water base finish. It does not have the same shine or vibrancy to the wood. Aren't all finishes the same?
A. Water base and oil base finishes are not the same. One has the base of water and the other has the base of oil. The water base finish is a more matte type finish. The finish is there but does not enhance the natural appearance of the wood. There are new water base finishes, a semi gloss sheen level. This is close to polyurethane finish appearance, but does not have the same degree of luster. The water base finish dries much quicker than oil base finish, so from an installer/finisher, it is less labor intensive time wise for us. Polyurethane finish, with the oil base brings out the color/character of the wood. The dry time is longer.
Typically we recommend a satin finish for the polyurethane finish for residential use. One thing to keep in mind with sheen levels, is the higher the gloss level, the more that is visible on the floor-dust, scratches, etc. The finish results are an area that we discuss with our customers and provide a sample to show the type of finish and the characteristics that they have prior to us applying any of the finish coats. There are products also that we have that are an oil, but give that old world, natural look without any sheen.
Q. How do I decide what stain color to choose? Do I have to stain my floor?
A. You absolutely do not have to stain your floor. The natural color to every wood is beautiful. There is a natural color variance, different grain patterns inherent to each species. It is your decision as to how light or dark of a floor you would like. It may be just choosing a species that is naturally dark to accomplish your vision. The reverse is also true.
There is a standard color palette that is available for stain choices. However, here at ENMAR, we custom blend all of our stains, so we have an infinite color palette available to our customers. Just keep in mind, we cannot stain lighter than the natural color of the wood. Whatever the natural color of the wood is, adding a stain color to that wood will blend the new stain color with the natural color (i.e. Walnut that is naturally brown with a Sedona Red Stain applied will produce a reddish stain with brown hues present). That is why it is very critical for us to produce a custom sample board for you to see and approve prior to staining the whole area. Another frequent mistake we see is that the wood floor is stained to match cabinets, doors, furniture, etc. Matching colors to any of those items now makes your floor part of the cabinets, doors, etc. You want all elements of your project to stand out on its own and be noticeable. Rule of thumb is to go one shade lighter or darker than the other main wood items in the area with your flooring.
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Q. What type of subfloor do I need for a 3/4" solid wood?
If you are installing solid (3/4") hardwood on grade with a concrete substrate, the thickness of the plywood needs to be ¾; we utilize 5 ply CDX. The plywood not only acts as a barrier between the concrete and the hardwood, it also is where the nails/staples adhere. When we use a pneumatic nailer to staple the hardwood to the plywood, the force that is exerted needs the ¾" thickness to adhere the staple to within the plywood. Using a lesser thickness of plywood (ex. 5/8") the force of the nailer would cause the staple to go clear through the plywood and not adhere in the plywood. Over time the board may loosen and cause a squeak. If you are installing solid ¾" wood to an area that has existing plywood, you do not need to install another sheet of plywood. We then apply a felt underlayment over the existing plywood and nail directly into the existing plywood. The underlayment is used so there is no wood-to-wood contact that may cause squeaks. We cannot nail into MDF that is acting like plywood. The MDF is too lightweight and will crumble when trying to secure the wood with the nailer. In this instance we would glue a sheet of ¾" plywood over the MDF first, and then nail to the new sheet of installed plywood.
Q. How should I choose a flooring installer?
A. Don't choose an installer on the lowest price alone. I am amazed on the amount of phone calls I receive wanting to know if we carry a particular brand and what is our cost per square foot. They don't inquire as to whom we are, how long we have been in business or request references. They don't ask whether we have a showroom or use subcontractors. In our world there is a familiar saying that holds true for wood flooring as well - you will get what you pay for. The cost should be a part of making your decision, but not the whole reason. In today's economy, we do realize the need to spend appropriately, but unbelievable deals rarely are.
Referrals from past customers are a good start. If the referring customer was happy with the product and service, they will pass it on to someone who is looking for a good installation company. But it should not stop there. You need to make sure whomever you choose has an active license from the Registrar of Contractors and they are in good standing. You can check out a company on their site; see if their license is current and if they had any complaints against them and what the disposition was.
A contractor with just a business card does not mean they are reputable; anyone can print up business cards. Printers are not required to check validity. You should ask to check references with a name and phone number. Check more than one reference. Visit their showroom. Do they have a main showroom or are they utilizing someone else's showroom as their main location. You truly don't want someone who is just working out of the back of their vehicle. What does their vehicle look like? Was the person at the showroom knowledgeable regarding hardwood flooring? Were all of your questions answered to help you make the best decision? Were you pressured to make a decision on a type of flooring you did not want? Is it cared for? Do they have signage and license number on their vehicle? Inquire as to how long they have been in business. How much actual installation experience do they have?
Just because someone owns a hardwood flooring company does not equate to them having actual experience in laying hardwood flooring. They could just rely on their installers for that. How much hardwood flooring/installation experience does the person who did your bid have? Someone who has laid one or two laminate/engineered floors and have gone out on their own to install solid hardwood has nowhere near the experience that would qualify him for that type of job. You should inquire if they subcontract out any of their work and how much? Saying they have installers does not mean those installers are actual employees of their company. They could very well have a list of subcontractors that they utilize to see who is available to do the job. It is very much like Russian roulette-you can get a great installer or you could suffer the consequences of a poor installation.
ENMAR Hardwood Flooring, Inc. does not subcontract out any of our work. We have our own employees that work only for us. We put a lot of time and money into our employees for training and education to help keep abreast of any changes in our industry. We have a very high benchmark for quality of employees and work they perform. We take great pride in our customer wervice and problem resolution. The floors we install are our signature, no matter how big or small the project was. The floors, unlike a painting, cannot be folded up and put away if you don't like it. Our promise is absolute Customer Satisfaction.
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Q. Will you install any hardwood that we have purchased ourselves?
A. Yes we do. We have done numerous installation-only projects for customers that have purchased the wood outright. There a few things that you need to keep in mind. Be very cautious about where you purchase the wood. Do your homework. Buying wood on the Internet is extremely risky. Check out all companies that you are considering. Check out the Better Business Bureau. Having a wonderful website with gorgeous photos does not mean the quality of the wood will match it. You need to know the warranty of your product. What is their complaint resolution or return policy? Does the price include shipping? What is that cost? Are you responsible for off loading the material? If you will be purchasing the wood yourself, you need to know that the installer will be warranting their workmanship only and not the wood product.
At ENMAR Hardwood Flooring, Inc., we work specifically with the mills of our products. We only deal with reputable hardwood flooring vendors. We coordinate shipping and delivery to site, timeframe of delivery, correctness with product ordering and any issues related to the customer's specific order. We are responsible for the warranty of the material with the mill/manufacturer. You can be assured that if any issues arise regarding the product we install, we will be there to help rectify to our customer's 100% satisfaction.
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