From nature to your home: The journey of the hardwood floor

It’s well known among homeowners that a hardwood floor enhances every room and brings a certain unique air to the room. Whether it gives it a cabin-like rustic feel, or a modern but homely atmosphere, real hardwood floors will always be unmatched in their beloved characteristics. Depending on the interior design and your furniture, a wood floor can be extremely versatile but always bring a homely and elegant feel. That cozy wooden floor, however, was not always in the form of shiny and perfectly cut slabs of wood. Its origins are the wild and wide expanses of forests throughout North America and the world.  So how does it get from there to your living room? Let’s take a brief look at the process.

Finding the Right Wood

Good wood will usually come from well-managed forests. Foresters will check the trees and make sure that the wood is ready to be cut. It is a selective process about which trees to cut, when to cut, how and why.

There are several methods of how this happens. Trees will usually be cut when they have reached maturity. For example, in the selective method there is an inventory taken, a plan is devised,  and professional tree markers will go and mark the trees to be cut based on the plan. Group selection might use areas of timber that are under-stocked or undesirable.

Loggers always know ahead of time what will be cut before they move into the forest. Once trees are cut, the branches are cut off and they are delivered to the mill.

The De-barking Process

Once they are at the sawmill, the bark must first be removed. This is done with special machines that work to cut off this layer. The wood is then cut into strips and turned into lumber boards and sorted by quality and grade. The highest grade wood might go to musical instruments or furniture, then the second highest grade will go to wood flooring or for construction.  After this, the boards will be dried out and moisture will be controlled in an attempt to reach an 18-30 moisture content. The purpose is to dry out the wood so that it is ready for use. Air drying is the most traditional way to do it, but the lumber might also be placed into kilns that can also remove moisture from the wood and sterilize it. Then it would be set out to cool off.

The lumber is then cut to the desired lengths and taken to flooring retailers or carpenters across the nation where they will turn it into your favorite wooden floor.

The Most Common Wood Floors in North America

• Oak. Here in North America, you are likely to find red oak and white oak. It is highly resistant to dents and scratches and has a unique grain pattern.
• Maple. A  light-colored wood with a closed-grain pattern. It is very durable and can have neutral beige color to grey, to deep brown.
• Hickory.  Can have a tan to reddish and even cream color. Hickory also has a very unique grain pattern, is easy to maintain, and it is very durable and resistant.

Choose Casa Carpet & Tile

Here at Casa Carpet & Tile we have only quality wood that is ready to spruce up your home with a new floor. A hardwood floor is not only aesthetically superior to most other floors but it adds value to your home, as it is a sought after feature.