Type of Hardwood Floor

If you're looking for a fantastic way to improve the look, durability and value of your present home, solid hardwood floors are the definitely best way to go. Besides being beautiful and hard wearing, hardwood flooring is friendly to the environment also. Basically wood is a great natural resource that is both renewable and recyclable. Most hardwood floors almost never need to be replaced and can add many thousands of dollars to the economic value of your home. Hardwood floors offer many aesthetic options, too. From the kind of wood you choose to the finish of the floor to the design of the floor pattern, hardwood floors will fit almost anyone's taste.

Hardwood floors come in a wide variety of styles to meet the big demands of today’s lifestyles. There are many colors, species, types and grades to choose from.

Here are a few of the hardwood types of floors that are available on the market today:

Red oak hardwood floor – This is probably the most popular of the flooring species. It's cost-effective, very hardy, and adds exceptional value to your home at a very affordable price. Red oak does turn amber over a long period of time and oak does accept stain very easily.

White oak hardwood floor – White oak is a little darker and grayer than red oak  and can also be stained nicely.

Maple hardwood floor – Maple does go amber over time. But staining maple is usually not recommended.

American cherry hardwood flooring – American Cherry will definitely darken with age and American Cherry is one of the more softer woods available. It definitely does dent more easily than any of the harder woods.

Brazilian cherry hardwood floor – Brazilian cherry is a rich wood that is much darker than American cherry. Brazilian cherry also ages in areas that are exposed to light so it will darken as time goes by. The color works very well on an entire floor or as a border.

Red birch hardwood flooring – Red birch will turn amber over a period of time. It is stable and hard which makes it a very good choice for just about anywhere you want to put it in your home.

Ash hardwood floor – This is close to the appearance to white oak, but frequently it has more of a yellow tone. Ash will amber over a [period of time also. Staining ash is not usually recommended.

Hickory hardwood flooring – Hickory may also amber over a period of time.  Staining hickory is not recommended. This wood is very hard and it is very beautiful. It has nice patterns of tans and browns.

Walnut hardwood flooring – Walnut flooring can lighten over time. And walnut flooring is often used as a highlight material for borders or other inlaying.

These are the most common types of hardwood flooring that you can find on the market today. Make sure you understand the change of color that will occur over time with many types of hardwood floors.