Wooden Flooring, How Long Will It Last?
Wooden Flooring is a very durable & versatile long lasting material. Like wood it’s self used for hundreds of years, as long as wood/ wooden flooring is kept dry and at the right room temperature/ humidity then it will last indefinitely. The structural warranty on our wooden flooring products is 20 years, this simply means there will be no repairs or break edges for this time. Cosmetically however we can not offer a warranty as it depends on how you use/ abuse you wood floor. If you take your shoes off at the door and Hoover & clean & maintain your floor regularly whilst using proper furniture protection pads, then there is no reason why wooden flooring or a recently refurbished wooden floor shouldn’t last 15/ 20 years before needing floor sanding done.
However if you have large dogs, who’s paws are clipped, have kids that throw things across the room, don’t take shoes off & never clean or maintain your wooden flooring then guaranteed you will be getting a floor sanding quote within 5 years. Even with engineered wood flooring and tough lacquered finishes, nothing can stand up to abuse or neglect.
How many times can wood flooring be sanded?
Depending on whether you have solid or engineered wood flooring & what wear layer your engineered wood flooring has it can vary a lot. For example a 14/15mm thick engineered wood floor generally has 3/4mm of hardwood on top. A 20mm engineered wooden floor can have up to 6mm of real hardwood ontop. Solid wood flooring as the name suggests is solid wood throughout, although you may assume this can be sanded many more times, I wouldn’t be so sure. Read our blog on the differences (link). Essentially engineered wood flooring is a far more stable product, meaning it’s far less likely to expand/ shrink & this means it will stay very flat. Flatness is very essential when floor sanding. The flatter the surface, the less the sanding machines have to remove to achieve a perfect finish. If a solid wood floor had expanded and shrunk over the seasons then the edges where the boards meet will be crowned and the boards themselves cupped. When wooden flooring has this effect they can need up2 3mm removed to make them flat, compare this to stable, flat engineered wood flooring that maybe needs .5/1mm sanded.
Either way you swing it an average rule of thumb is 1mm per sanding for engineered wood flooring and 2mm sanding for solid wood floors. On this mathematics a wooden floor can be sanded 3/5 times easily. Remember the best way to get value for money is defensive maintenance, keep your wooden flooring protected, clean and dirt free.
The life cycle cost of wooden flooring cheaper than laminate, LVT or carpet?
YES! So Many people buy for the here and now rather than looking at life cycle costs, if your going to Be in your home for more than 20 years then it’s a clear financial decision to go with wooden flooring, let me explain!
-So example, 20 SQM room if you consider pre finished wooden flooring costs the same as most Modern LVT and laminate or carpets. So all options have the same starting installation costs.
– let’s put a number on it as £1650 supplied and fitted. (Prices may vary from products and requirements)
-Then assuming you will maintain your 20 sqm wooden flooring correctly and have it sanded once every 15 years. At an average cost of £25sqm (£550/£600). Over 45 years, that’s £1500/£1800 …..
-Name me a carpet or laminate that can last 20 years let alone 40!!?! So let’s be generous and say a carpet/laminate/ LVT has a life Of 15 years. That means it has to be ripped up and re installed 3 times!! Costing an eye watering 3x £1650 =£4950/£5000 on install alone, plus rip
Up and disposal, you’re looking at life cycle cost of £6000 for laminate/ LVT/ carpet, compared to £1800 for wooden flooring.
– The clear winner regards life cycle span and cost is obviously wooden flooring because put simply it can be sanded and made a new. Without the need of ripping up and replacing, saving lots of money and time.
To summarise, the lifespan of wooden flooring will outlast any of us if installed and maintained Properly.
Choose from a variety of colours and widths/ sizes by visiting our showroom or our online shop.
