Is there any quality differences between prefinished flooring vs. unfinished flooring that is finished on site. Out kitchen is going under a remodel and I’ve been advised that it’s better to go with prefinished due to dust control.
I remember awhile back I read on FHB that unfinished wood floors make a tigher fit than the prefinished stuff. I’m currently lucking at the BR111 wood flooring line.
Replies
It would be tough to beat 6 coats of baked on polyurethane that some prefinished wood comes with. The good prefinished (I like Mirage) is kept in climate controlled situation through the whole process, it installs tight.
Have a good day
Cliffy
Thanks. What brands do ya'll like. I'm thinking about the Muskoka, or BR111 brans of flooring.
-alan
I put in 480 sq ftr of Bruce prefinished maple last August. Has held up well in the kitchen with very minimul shrinking last winter and no cupping so far this summer.
Alan,
I cant remember the name of the measure, but the prefinished finish is much stronger than what you could add.
They measure the quality by the amount of sanding rotations that it takes to break through the finish, and its much higher when factory finished.
Some of these companies put on 7 coats.
-zen
Edited 6/15/2005 5:53 pm ET by zendo
I think Zen is talking about the Taber Abrasion Testing there is also an extensive floor finish test that took place at University level in Colorado which can be found through the BonaKemi website. I prefer Muskoka flooring over Bruce by a long shot.
Prefinished flooring will have slightly rounded or beveled edges, so that the transition from board to board doesn't produce any sharp ridges (since one can't be sure that all the boards will end up fastened in exactly the same plane). Site-finished flooring is first sanded flat, so that all the edges meet exactly and will be sharp and crisp, while prefinished will have a slightly "softer" appearance.
It's probably the difference in edges that makes site-finished flooring appear to be tighter (assuming that both are fastened with the same technique).
Aside from the slightly greater tendency for prefinished flooring to pick up dirt in the cracks (due to the bevels), the choice between the two is more a matter of personal preference (and cost) vs technical issues.
Our floor finishers completely skim the floors with wood dough after sanding. They then sand the floor, vacuum and apply the finish. Between each coat they buff the floor, vacuum and finish.
They prefer to use Swedish floor finish which is much softer then the finishes on the prefinised flooring. It is much thicker however and creates a nice wear level. We recommend two sealer coats and one finish coat.
I have installed one prefinished floor. The boards were micro beveled on all four edges. This gives the floor a completely differant look than a sanded and filled floor.
There are many instances where I think that the dust free nature of prefinished flooring would make it ideal. Remodels for example. I think sample's should be shown to the customer to manage expectations. My customer did not like the microbevels even though they had provided the material and hired my company to manage the installation.Adam Greisz<!----><!---->
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Dan - I know that was true - about the beveled/rounded edges, but now some manufacturers are doing square edge. Bruce is one.
My preference is for site finish and definitely for a kitchen based on the site finished better resistance to water penetration between the boards (fewer cracks).
Matt
>>> but now some manufacturers are doing square edge
True, but this makes it even more visible to the eye (or at least some eyes) the small height difference between strips. No denying the ready-finished wins for better durability and practicality, however, a well site-finished floor looks more appealing to me, much smoother.
I think it depends on what your eye is used to. As a child I got used to seeing big gaps between boards because the large plank floors the colonials had put down in the house separated on a seasonal basis. So when I look at a plank floor, having apparent gaps (which the bevels kind of look like to me) is normal. When I look at modern, narrow strip floors, I expect to see tight edges because that is what I am used to seeing.
>> a well site-finished floor looks more appealing to me, much smoother <<
I agree whole heartily...Matt
Alan, I just had to make this decision for floors in an addition. It seemed to me it was hard to turn down the tougher factory applied finish and doing away with the sanding, which I've done a few times and detest. I would think for a kitchen in particular one would want the toughest finish available.
After reading through a lot of threads here, I chose Mirage Birch traditional plank for one room, and Hawa bamboo for the other. I purchased from an outfit called Hoboken floors; they have a number of warehouses in the NJ/NY/CT area. You have to tell them you are a contractor for them to deal with you, but once I got past that, they were great to deal with, and shipping was a flat $35 right to my door (their own trucks).
Ken
Thanks for the link on Hoboken Floors. I'm located in Brooklyn, NYC.
I may just start a thread on tile as I need a souce for *cheaper alternatives * to Walker Zanger / Ann Sacks Prices....
Durability aside, the problem with prefinished floors is that they come in 5' and smaller length packs, which to me disrupt the appearance of a smooth well-installed floor.
One advantage of the prefinished is the "odd" colored boards can be kept out whereas in site finished the same board could look ok until the stain or finish (a good stainer would probably not have a problem). I agree the site finished looks better than even microbevel, but I'd rather do prefinished.
Alan,
I just put down some prefinished hardwood in my daughter's room. I had serious concerns about the longevity of the finish since I live in Florida, and the dirt that gets dragged into the house is sand -- really abrasive. Since the walls are hardcoated, I didn't want to remove the baseboard before installation. Instead I undercut it using a Bosch Finecut saw with the flush cut blade, using a piece of the prefinished floor as the spacer to set the height. Ripping baseboard (painted pine) isn't exactly a strong suit for this saw and blade, so it took nearly two hours running that saw full speed. The blade got hot enough to discolor in spots and was rubbing on the same 30" or so of the piece of floor that I used as a spacer. I could hardly tell that I had done anything to that piece of floor at all. I actually wound up using that piece -- OK, in the closet -- but I'm not too worried about it.
Good luck.
How much of a difference does floor flatness make? I'm thinking in an older house with a few "rolls" to the floor the prefinished edges may stick out. Whereas the site finishing will smooth out the board edges.
eric
"Localized" lumps and dips should be taken care of before putting the flooring down, using sanding/filling as needed. A slow roll (over the length of 2-3 feet) won't make much difference unless the planks are fairly wide.The prefinished may actually have an advantage here. A gloss-finished, site-finished floor will tend to highlight any "rolling" (unless it's totally sanded out), but the prefinished planks add a bit of randomness to the reflections so that a slow "roll" isn't as obvious.