Natural or Engineered wood floors near ocean

last month

We will shortly build a new home near the ocean in the northeast and wondering if engineered wood is a safer option than natural wood floors against cupping and other probs in a humid environment. We will want relatively wide plank, which I know will require gluing and not just nailing and know that the temperature and humidity of the floor and base need to be controlled at the time of installation.

We do like to have windows open when we can so the interior heat/humidity will not be always be strictly controlled after we are in the home.

Thanks for any advice.

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Comments (8)

cpartist
last month
Engineered
PRO
Jeffrey R. Grenz, General Contractor
last month
Engineered, especially when wide. More stable if you leave the HVAC system off when you're gone but check if min temps are required.
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Thank you Pam for the information. I found a Prosource Flooring place about 1/2 hour from me that I requested a quote from and since I am not a member, they may not honor it or maybe they will refer me to an installer that is a member so I can get my job done. I asked for a quote of both BR-111 Brazilian Cherry and the Mirage Lock in Maple Auburn (love the pictures on the Internet and the fact that it will not change color much and the Nanolinx coating it has on the finish). I guess your builder was a member so he got you the prices at wholesale. Mirage has no prices anywhere on the Internet so I have no idea what the product cost. Did you do a price comparison? Which cost more, Mirage Lock or the BR-111 Triangulo Engineered Floor? I do love the 4-5/16th width. I just wish the veneer was at lest 3 MM instead of 2 MM but maybe you are right that with the great finish on top maybe it will not matter. I guess I should have asked for a quote for the Ulti Mat padding also but first I will see what their reply is. It looks like you were looking at the same two pieces of wood species I was after I spent a long time also narrowing down my search. Are you installing the Mirage Lock in all your rooms including the foyers and kitchen except for the bathrooms? I am doing tile in the foyers and kitchen due to having a home office with some traffic and due to having 4 small dogs. It amazes me how I ended up with four but it is a long story. They range from 4 lbs to 8 lbs so I am not worried about their nails but I want tile in the foyer to put puppy pads on a puppy tray when I am not home to take them out in the backyard.
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dan1888
last month
I'd be very careful about the core make-up of your choice. No softwood. There are SPC core engineered hardwood flooring that will be very stable. Geowood is one.
chispa
last month
last modified: last month
I was going to say engineered wood would be great ... until you mentioned leaving windows open. Read the warranty on any engineered wood floors you are considering and their required humidity range in a home, so the floors don't have any issues.

We used engineered wood in FL, maybe 1/2 mile from the water, and there are very few days, even in the drier winter, where the humidity is low enough to open up windows/sliders.
PRO
Ouroboros Design
last month
Reconsider wide plank if you will not keep a steady humidity %.
Chris
last month
Hi. There are some tiles with small rectified grout that look like wood. We used to have a house at the beach. Tile stands up better to the sand and dripping bathing suits….
David Cary
last month
I live in NC and have a house on the ocean. We have tile. Our neighbor has narrow engineered hardwood. But I am sure they don't leave windows open very often.

Wood is a fragile product when it comes to humidity.

We have a humidistat that I can monitor. When the renters leave a window or door open, the humidity gets to high 80s in a hurry. I don't think even engineered wood can survive that for too long when it will plunge to 40's in the winter.

I have not seen any wide plank near the ocean here at all. We have wide plank inland but it is engineered. Our house is tight and humidity is always between 45% and 55% except for short bursts of running the vent hood at high speeds on a very humid day.

Never expect that a wood product will do well near warm water with windows open....
richard zimmer
Original Author
last month
Thanks all for your help. Guess I need to reconsider!

Natural or Engineered wood floors near ocean

Comments (8)

cpartist

Jeffrey R. Grenz, General Contractor

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dan1888

chispa

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David Cary

richard zimmer
Original Author

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Natural or Engineered wood floors near ocean

Comments (8)

cpartist

Jeffrey R. Grenz, General Contractor

Related Discussions

dan1888

chispa

Ouroboros Design

Chris

David Cary

richard zimmerOriginal Author

COMPANY

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richard zimmer
Original Author