Engineered wood or Solid wood? CA

last month

Hi, guys! I'm currently renovating and was originally leaning towards choosing solid wood flooring. However, my contractor strongly recommended engineered wood, saying that solid wood can warp and cause issues over time. I'm wondering if it's because engineered wood is easier to install. I also noticed that around here, people tend to choose either engineered wood or SPC. I thought the weather in the Bay Area should be okay, with mild climate and not much fluctuation, so it shouldn't cause too many issues, especially since it's not as humid as the South where floors are more prone to warping. Does anyone with experience know about this? Or what type of flooring do most people typically use?

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Comments (14)

millworkman
last month
" saying that solid wood can warp and cause issues over time "

Not installed properly it does not. That being said are you on a slab? If so it should be engineered.
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dan1888
last month
A benefit from engineered hardwood is the way it looks. Wide up to 12 inches planks show more of the grain structure when flat cut veneer is used. Solid can usually be 3.5- 4.5" wide. If you choose rift cut that difference isn't as noticeable.

This is European Oak from Denmark or more likely SE Asia. The varieties used do not have the open grain of white and red oak from N.America.
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li_ky_11 thanked dan1888
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solid wood is 3/4" thick. You can sand down to where the nails are which is where the 'tongue' is. Engineered wood is 3 5 or 7 plys with a veneer of hardwood on top. Its generally more stable than a solid. There is no intrinsic advantage of a solid over engineered, though there is a perceived difference as one is 'thicker'. That has really nothing to do with anything. Factory finishes are generally far more durable than anything you can do on site. Unfinished allows you to stain any color and sanding will make the floor real flat and smooth. Prefinished you can't pick stain color other than the std colors, and generally will have overwood if the floor isn't perfectly level. As anything in this industry there are tradeoffs to all flooring materials.
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Ok so it sounds like you have some good, solid professional advice - it’s always nice when you don’t get differing assessments and each pro says the same thing, usually makes it easier. That said, only you can know whether the perpendicular boards would bother you, but I would ask a different question: will it bother you LESS than the existing transitions and height differences? My guess is yes, and I think that once everything is the same level and finish you won’t even notice those boards. We have one that transitions to the tile in the entry from the living room and I never really notice it - and I can be rather type A about those kinds of things lol. I think your freak outs are normal, especially since you are under pressure making a lot of time sensitive decisions while trying to plan a move. Not the best of circumstances for being able to think clearly and not freak out. That said, there are always surprises to be found and things that weren’t noticed in the tours you did before deciding to buy, it’s inevitable once you spend more time in a house that these things pop up - even in GREAT houses. It probably is a great house, and if this is the only “surprise” you discover it truly is a gem and you should feel happy/lucky that it’s very minor and easily fixable. Take a deep breath and hire one of those guys to fix the floors and move on to the 1.3 billion other things on your list to do before you move :-)
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As Uptown Floors explained, "solid" wood treads are not cut from a big tree - they are made from smaller pieces glued together. Look at the first photo you posted - you can see the stripes of different grain. These are different pieces of wood. But they are assembled and glued so well that they act as a single piece of wood - without the propensity to warp that would happen if they were sliced from a tree in one piece. Your contractor who recommended solid treads was referring to treads exactly like those shown in your photo. Good luck with your project!
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Came across this thread and hope I can get some advice. I’m dealing with a situation like Kay L - dated engineered hardwood that is glued on the slab in the downstairs living areas. We would like to have all the downstairs flooring the same (except for bathroom). We also want new matching floor on stairs and second level, like Candri. My husband wants to diy the downstairs with floating engineered hardwood on top as he thinks this option eliminates the problem of potential moisture/mold issues from a glued EH floor or waterproof LVP (my preference). I am super hesitant to undertake this project. #1 The cost of covering up all that perfectly beautiful, albeit dated, wood. #2 Floating floors sound hollow when you walk on them. #3 Covering the tile kitchen floor with wood increases risk of water damage, which is why I would prefer LVP. (We had a busted pipe in the bathroom 11 years ago that ruined carpet and led us to installing our current floor.) We haven’t considered gluing down new EH over the existing glued down EH. I read somewhere that glue over the finished wood can cause problems. Not sure if nailing is an option since the base is concrete. There is NO WAY we will take up the current glued EH. We’ve seen YouTube videos, and trying to get up 900 sq ft of glued down EH would take forever and create more mess than I want to deal with. Any thoughts???
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li_ky_11
Original Author
last month
@millworkman I got it! Thanks!
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Echo
last month
Engineered wood is definitely the better choice—durable, low-maintenance, and it still has that real wood feel since the top layer is actual wood. Plus, there are tons of color options. Don’t just rely on what you see online or in stores—it’s hard to tell what’ll actually look good in your space. Before installing, I brought home five big samples, laid them out in the room, and compared them side by side. That made choosing the perfect color so much easier, and I couldn’t be happier with the result!
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li_ky_11
Original Author
last month
@Echo what is this flooring？
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li_ky_11
Original Author
last month
@dan1888 Thanks!
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PRO
G & S Floor Service
last month
If, your house is not drafty and the flooring is installed properly. You shouldn't have issues other than seasonal gapping.

The west coast does deal with more ocean wind. The air will be more moist. Drafty walls will allow all that in. Air seal outside and inside, repair any holes or rotting wood. Corners are weak points, check for gaps and damages, then make the necessary repairs.
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dan1888
last month
Here's a website for a manufacturer in China. Many colors, grades and both Siberian and European Oak are woods he uses. Unfortunately, the cost to you has just gone up by 20% and it may be more because of tariffs. He can use Ciranova staining/finishing products. https://www.lordfloor.com/
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dan1888
last month
DuChateau charges high dollar for this product. They use 8 different factories across SE Asia to manufacture. Eucalyptus plywood is their substrate. Hakwood manufactures in Denmark. They also use Eucalyptus plywood. If you get the specifications correct, you can save a ton of money.
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dan1888
last month
Gluing and nailing/screwing solid wood to your wood subfloor is basically creating an engineering wood floor with less quality in the materials and process.
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li_ky_11
Original Author
last month
@G & S Floor Service Appreciate the tips! I’ll keep an eye on that and make sure everything’s sealed up.
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Echo
last month
@li_ky_11 Engineered wood from vellichorfloors.
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li_ky_11
Original Author
last month
@dan1888 Thanks your advice!
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dan1888
last month
Test lvp and engineered wood samples with the tines of a for. Different manufacturers of the two types of products makes the results variable in their scratch resistance. You can start the testing with samples from HD and Floor & Decor. test scratch resistance of lvp - YouTube
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Engineered wood or Solid wood? CA

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