40 to 50% might be perfect for wood, but apparently it isn't perfect for everything else. http://www.thermastor.com/information/Relative-Humidity-And-Your-Home.aspx Maintaining relative humidity below 50% prevents dust mite infestations, mold and mildew growth, and inhibits bacteria. This lower relative humidity also reduces the out-gassing of VOCs. In colder climates, wintertime humidity levels must be even lower—generally 30-40%—to prevent condensation on windows and other surfaces. https://www.woodfloorbusiness.com/installation/how-to-prevent-wood-floor-gaps-in-winter.html Engineered flooring is supposed to be more stable than solid wood. From a technical aspect, this should be true. But many engineered flooring manufacturers restrict the use of their products to a certain RH range. I've seen warranties that specify 35 to 55 percent RH or 40 to 60 percent RH as the acceptable range. If the flooring is exposed to conditions outside these ranges, the warranties are void. In my 30-plus years of experience dealing with indoor environments in the U.S., I don't know any location that will consistently maintain those RH ranges. So using engineered flooring may be an option for reducing winter-time floor issues, but check the manufacturer's recommendations and warranty. Honeywell, another large manufacturer of humidifiers, recommends an indoor RH no higher than 35 percent when it is 20 degrees outside, 30 percent at 10 degrees, 25 percent at 0 degrees, 20 percent at -10 degrees and 15 percent at -20 degrees. According to Consumer Reports, when the outside temperature drops below 20 degrees, even 30 percent RH may be too high. What all this means is that if we add too much moisture to a house, we can cause condensation and possibly mold on windows. In some cases, walls can rot Bottom line: Winter weather dries out wood flooring, causing gaps, possibly increasing squeaks and opening surface cracks. Wood will be wood. Physics will be physics. Inform your clients of these facts, and don't rely on humidifiers or other sources of moisture to prevent normal winter conditions. Humidifiers can help some, as can choosing the right wood flooring for the right situation, but only to a certain extent. If your client wants 7-inch hickory plank flooring with minimal winter gapping, major changes to the house may be necessary. If hairline gaps aren't acceptable, even 1½-inch quartersawn oak strip flooring may not work. Establish proper customer expectations, and everyone wins. Really sounds like this is just the way it is, if you have wood floors. How convenient that flooring warranties are unrealistic.

i have had nothing but issues with this product! i have had the company i purchased the product from come out, months with no answers, finally got a company rep out to review the product in my house....still no answers back from the manufacturer! my house humidity is around 32%-37% totally within canadian home builder standards, not to mention the product is sold as 100% water proof?? how is that possible when they are concerned about humidity that has been proven by the rep not to exceed industry specs??

My biggest concern is the total thickness (5/8" is thinner than 3/4" gold standard for solid hardwood). My second concern is the thickness of the wear layer...what is it???? Shaw is notorious for not mentioning these things. And the third concern is the wire brush finish. Do you have a sample that you can measure to figure out the top layer thickness. This will tell you if you are purchasing quality vs. a name with a 'look'. For an engineered wood floor that comes in at $12+/sf I would expect to see 4mm - 6mm wear layer (top wood layer). The width of these planks requires full glue spread install. That gets expensive. It will require an extra $1-$2/sf for labour + material (glue). Please DOWN LOAD and READ the installation instructions I'm including below: PDMS - PDMSViewDetails (shawinc.com) There are big warnings in the instructions which clearly point out what they cover and won't cover. This is normal...but Shaw has gone to the extremes (8 pages of SMALL PRINT instructions). They spell out the NWFA Wood Flooring Installation Best Practices. This tells me they have had PLENTY of 'builder/installer' issues in the past and they are sick and tired of taking all the blame. The requirements 'look' strict but they are in fact part of the NWFA (and Canadian Wood Flooring Association) Installation Hand book. The book, if you want to purchase it in Canada = $750! Right...so Shaw is covering it's collective butt in the VERY DETAILED installation instructions. The reason why I tell you to PRINT IT OUT and READ IT is you will need to PASS IT ON to the builder/installer SEVERAL WEEKS before the wood ARRIVES. I would print two copies. One for myself and one for the builder/contractor/installer. I would give one copy to the builder - with date and personal signature on the front page on both copies. This is to cover your own bottom line. If you have issues with the floor look to the INSTALLER first. This is normal but some homeowners blame the product first....which is not the right way to do it. Remember: 95% of flooring issues come from the HUMAN who installed it. Human error. The other 5% (or less) come down to the manufacturer.

Excuse the mess, but here’s some pics. We got Verano Orzo from American Floor Covering Center in Los Angeles. We saved a ton of money going through them, about 7+ dollars a sqft off the big box store prices. Encourage you to buy sample boxes, as this one i liked the least in the store. Keep in mind, ours is grainier because Galleher’s distributing screwed up our lots and i didnt notice different lots (ie trees) were delivered until the boxes were already off the truck bed, and by then, it was too late.