Hardwood floors get more beautiful with age. The textures and colors begin to deepen and become warmer as time passes. But as much as we love it when patina sets in, there are a few things to look out for in older floors. You want to get the aging characteristics, but you don’t want the splinters. So let’s talk about how to make sure your hardwood floor doesn’t splinter with age.
Without proper acclimation, wood floors may start to splinter at the edges.
Worn floors get splinters
As with anything, floors get worn over time. Even solid hardwood floors. Whereas dings, dents, and scratches aren’t going to be dangerous. But if the edges of your floorboards become frayed and start to splinter, this is every homeowner’s worst nightmare. Running across a hardwood floor in socks or bare feet and getting caught by a nasty splinter. Having a splinter grip your sock can lead to a nasty fall. But, one of those splinters could also end up in your toe. There’s nothing worse than a splinter. And once you get one, you lose a little bit of affection for your floors. So, we recommend taking care of your hardwood floors so that you never have to feel the pain of a splinter.
Why hardwood floors splinter
It’s easy to blame hardwood floor splinters on old age. But the truth is, if the floors were installed correctly from the beginning, no amount of time would cause your floors to splinter. Wood floors will contrast and expand, and a professional hardwood flooring contractor knows how to acclimate your floors to your home so that the floors can breathe and react normally.
Allow your floors to breathe
Proper installation prevents wood floors from splintering with age.
If you don’t allow for proper acclimation, you could be installing the floors too tightly. If they haven’t been allowed to properly acclimate, you could be installing the wood too soon. When the boards begin to expand with the climate in the home, there is no room to do so and the boards will smoosh up against each other. The pressure of pressing up against the neighboring floorboards will eventually split and splinter the edges. And ouch, you have a splinter in your big toe.
The right installation
Finding the right installation method for your hardwood floors can prevent splinters from forming. Sometimes nailed down floors are more prone to splintering, especially if there are raised edges exposed around nails that have been nailed in too deep. But any installation, if not done correctly could cause splintering.
Professional hardwood installation experts in Colorado
If you want to talk about the best way to install hardwood floors in your home or business, schedule a free consultation with one of our hardwood flooring craftsmen. We’ll help you understand the differences in installation, the differences in wood, and flooring finishes to help you make the right choices. We are professional, service oriented, clean, and efficient. But, we will never rush an installation job and skip proper acclimation time. We don’t tell the wood when it’s time to be installed; the wood will let us know when it’s ready.