Congratulations on a new home! I understand your confusion with picking out wood flooring..it can be stressful. I don't have advise about solid wood flooring because that was not an option in our case. We had to go with engineered because our home is on a concrete foundation/slab. I can say that I feel our Lauzon flooring has been great and we are so very pleased with the milling/manufacturing and the factory finish is very durable. It's been a year, and so far so good! Good luck with your search. Keep us posted on your decision and show pictures after it's installed! -Laurie

There are advantages and disadvantages to both solid and engineered. I still haven't decided between them myself. Engineered will have less movement than solid. Probably. Solid probably resists denting (like from dropping objects) better. Solid is a simple product. It's a board, dried and machined. There's a lot less to go wrong in the manufacturing process. Site finishing is a well-established practice. Engineered products are all over the place in quality. Study the specs CAREFULLY. I have seen cheap ones with paper-thin veneer. That's just ridiculous IMO. Sales reps reassure you that the finish is incredibly tough and durable and has a 25-year warranty. That's completely worthless and irrelevant to what happens when in the course of everyday living, the veneer gets gouged completely through. Besides, who knows what company would be around in 25 years to honor any warranties. There are products with rotary peeled wear layer. This doesn't look like a solid wood floor; it looks like a plywood floor. I wouldn't expect the wear layer to hold up as well. Besides wear layer thickness, some have better substrates. 2 additional layers of soft wood is common. Occasionally I see Baltic birch-like plys with wood that is much heavier and denser. I don't agree with the sales rep that Bruce 1/2" engineered would perform better than solid. 1/2" is quite thin, and I just can't see it holding up over the years. I often don't agree with sales reps. Many are ignorant or only spout marketing. But there are some good ones you can learn a lot from. If you do independent research, you'll be able to tell them apart. Personally I don't think you should pick a floor based on holding up under extreme flooding. Only tile would hold up, and even then, you might have mildew you could never get rid of. Marine layer humidity is NOT going to cause great problems in any quality wood floor that is properly installed. It will not buckle if there's an expansion gap and the subfloor is dry. So, look for a product that will look good for the lifetime you plan to be in the house, and the lifestyle you lead.

Vinogirl, Heart Pine. I'm torn here because I've gone to houses and seen it finished on-site. I've also seen UA's Pine as well as Crescent Hardwood's Pine in the natural and Amber (darker) finish. Stunning. I know it will be slightly softer than oak but that's part of the character of heart pine. And heart pine is harder than regular pine. But it's not cheap. They do have engineered with relatively no sheen. Both the UA and Crescent Hardwood were 7" planks. I've gone to a fantastic local flooring place with my photos. The guy that's helping me pulled out the heart pine engineered as well as a beautiful brazilian walnut floor that was a bit less and much much harder. The third choice I liked that he pulled for me was Mannington Marrakech Hickory in a med/deep stain. My goal is to have a floor with character but something that won't overpower the space and that helps the space feel comfortable. I was happy with these three over everything I saw. Then I saw the site finished reclaimed heart pine and my heart stopped a little. If we only had unlimited funds!!

I have Lauzon engineered wood flooring and the finish is very durable!! I have red oak natural and not the American cherry that you are looking at. We don't have any dogs, but we get plenty of foot traffic including pointed heeled shoes on occasion. It's been about 2 years and I am amazed at how well the finish is holding up. There is a portion of flooring in the FR that gets a lot of strong afternoon sun coming through the sliding glass door. After 2 years, I cannot see any sign of fading from this sun exposure. Dh and I have been very pleased with the quality of our Lauzon floor. Which ever floor you choose, I hope you will post a follow up. For us, it was such a good feeling to have wood flooring after years and years of old dirty carpet. I hope you enjoy your new floors as much as we have! Laurie