Question Category: General

Site Finished Flooring versus Pre Finished

Unfinished vs pre finished hardwood flooring?

Asked:

All hardwood floorings should have a finish applied to it to protect the integrity of the wood and bring out the natural beauty of the wood. You have two choices prefinished wood and on site finished.

The advantages of prefinished wood are many and most installations are going to involve prefinished wood. First of all a prefinished wood flooring project can be installed in a single session and be walked upon immediately. There is no multiple stages of sanding, sealing, staining and applying surface treatments such as polyurethane. Thus the cost of installation is also lower since you do not have a crew onsite for days. 

The environmental impact to your house with unfinished floorings is something to consider. Not only will you have dust from sanding to deal with, You may need to deal with and avoid the area for several  days to avoid the solvents and polyurethane resin vapors. These are known as VOCs (Volatile Organic Compounds) and can be carcinogenic.

So despite the obvious advantages using prefinished flooring products, some professionals prefer to use site-finished wood. Why?

Finishing the floor on site in a large construction project allows the contractors to repair any damage to the floor caused during construction.

There is also the advantage of having a smoother look to the floor. With prefinished flooring, each plank is going to have a small bevel on all edges so that any discrepancies between the size of each plank can be accoun

Answered:

Tags: Aluminum Oxide Finishes Installation Smooth