My pleasure as this *is* my current obsession, lol. The price was quoted at 7.41/sq ft, but because of the size of our job (over 800 sq ft with almost 30 stairs and some other work too) they seem to be willing to work with us on price. I had the same refinishing fears, but in the end for me, I realized that I probably wouldn't be there when and if the floor needs to be refinished. Not to pas the buck, but I'd screen if it came to that - have you heard of screening? I'd probably recommend that for engineered hardwood. Garrison does claim that a 3mm wear layer can be refinished up to two times, but I think if you want to refinish you'd be better off looking into 4mm or higher. I have seen a few brands that offered that or higher. I looked at a brand called Portofino briefly with an impressive wear layer on many of their boards - at least 4mm and 5mm on some I saw (Quercia Mezzanotte had 5 from what I saw - it's a dark stained oak). Of course that might be above your price point too. What range are you looking in? Walnut is typically on the more expensive side as you know. If you are DIY or into buying outside and contracting with a sub to install, I have seen better prices online for this wood if you like it. floorsbynature.com has it for 5.54/sq ft Here is a link that might be useful: Floors by Nature - Garrison Da Vinci Walnut Carrera

In the winter you dont want the fan blowing down, if it does you will feel cold. What you want to do is reverse the rotation so that it 'washes' the warm air down the walls. And yes I agree that bigger blades will move more air. But consider also the blade pitch and the motor speed.

Sprice, I just love your floors so much! I found the post where you first showed them off and I got to see more of your floors and home. I love your beautiful home. I wish more of the floor was showing. Thank you for sharing. I hope some others will share their exotic wood floors that are wide plank or even just 3.25" plank since I am trying to make up my mind now if the approximately $700.00 extra is worth paying for the wider and longer boards. The BR-111 Triangulo is 1/2" thick when it is 5" wide versus 3/8th" thick when it is 3.25" wide. Both have a nice wear layer on top that can be sanded 2 to 3 times with a 24 year warranty. Do the darker boards really stand out with the wider boards. One of my friends in Canada who I called tonight loves both widths but prefers widths no narrower than 3.25" and likes widths even up to 7" wide feeling more of the grain shows and the floor is less busy. My other friend who I called likes the 3.25" traditional look. I guess I will have to make my own decision but I hope I get to see some more pictures before ordering the floor. I wish I had some samples boards that were at least a foot long of the 5" wide planks. I only have the foot long sample boards of the 3.25" wide planks that someone on this forum mailed to me and I paid her for the postage. Is the 3.25" wide floor still in style and popular despite wider planks being very trendy right now?

To refinish hardwood (solid or engineered) you need a minimum of 3mm of surface wood (the "hardwood" you paid for if it is engineered). A "thin" top layer is 2mm or less. That is a "one and done" type of floor. You purchase it for a GREAT price ("almost too cheap" comes to mind), throw it down with the FULL understanding that this floor will look great for about 5-10 years and then you will simply "live with" the look you get after that time frame. You will put up with the dings, scratches, wearing/dulling of the finish until you can gather up another couple thousand dollars to have the floors ripped out and new one's purchased and installed. I've heard of these thin veneers reaching 15 years of age while still looking 'great' and I've heard horror stories of them needing replacement after 7 years (or less in some cases). The thickness of the wear layer (as well as total thickness) also indicate the QUALITY of the product. A $4.99/sf 3/8" engineered hardwood from Lowe's is well and truly a "too cheap" product. This is where I would expect to get 7 years out of a floor...10 if you are really careful and have perfect living and cleaning conditions. For the same price ($4.99/sf) you can have a TOP LINE laminate out of Europe that will be in EXCELLENT shape in 15-20 years from now. The finish on the floor also dictates quality. A low-end urethane (UV urethane, etc) will give you only a few years of service. A higher quality, multi-layered Aluminum Oxide finish (be careful: China is pumping out finishes that LOOK like 9 layers of AO...but it turns out to be 3 layers of AO on top of 6 layers of urethane = great sounding but poor performing finishes). And a thin veneer can have issues with checking (splitting), delamination (peeling), etc. When the top layer is thin it has a tendency to become upset if living conditions are not perfect (humidity maintained with PRECISION = 45% on the nose for the next 15 years). Let us know which product you are looking at and we will help with more concrete advice.