Engineered vs plank flooring in a Brownstone reno
For what it’s worth, an architect friend raves about Mirage (from Canada), both solid and engineered.
NeoGrec
in Brownstoner Renovation 10 years and 5 months ago
8
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8 replies
chestnut | 10 years and 5 months ago
We need five floors of new flooring and are planning to go fairly high end on this part of our gut reno. We are also doing radiant between the joists topped with plywood. I’ve seen some very attractive engineered “euro” oak in wide plank and chevron, which is what we’re doing. (Particularly impressed with DuChateau.) It’s actually harder and more expensive to find what we want in solid wood. But I’m worried that the engineered won’t wear with the beauty and soul of solid flooring. In our last reno, we installed solid cherry planks with tung oil, and though over 17 years they moved and creaked and got scuffed, we loved the creaky naturalness. Is engineered going to feel flimsy? Too perfect?
nyc_sport | 10 years and 5 months ago
We put engineered 7″ wide plank flooring in a large renovation last year, that also was significantly more expensive than solid plank flooring. In a well-made engineered floor, the entire thickness above the tongue and groove is solid hardwood — typically 1/4 inch — so the “wear layer” is about the same as solid hardwood. The engineered floor does shrink and expand less, which is why we went this route (less black gaps in a light colored floor during winter shrinkage). But your natural creakiness typically comes from the subfloor if the hardwood is glued and stapled, so you can still have that. The one difference we have noticed, and it may be due to other things (we changed out subfloor), it seems shoes and heels are louder walking on the floor. But there is no flimsiness underfoot.
timber | 10 years and 5 months ago
I vote for plank flooring for sure
daveinbedstuy | 10 years and 5 months ago
A lot of engineered flooring does look good but as nyc_sport said above, the sound is different. Supposedly engineered is better for radiant heat than solid.
majorhints | 10 years and 5 months ago
what does the DuChateau or other high quality engineered flooring cost per square foot on average? (pls note with or without installation). Thx
chestnut | 10 years and 5 months ago
Majorhints, for the 7 1/1 Chateau collection, I’ve gotten a price of $9.50\. For the chevron, 17.95 a square foot. Tim, have you not liked engineered in other people’s houses or have you been disappointed in it yourself? Dave, a few very knowledgeable salesmen who sell both have said that if properly done, solid oak is as good or better than engineered over radiant, so not sure what to think about that.
snowman2 | 10 years and 5 months ago
I have oak over hydronic radiant in 2 rooms for 10 years with no problem. It expands/shrinks with the humidity (which roughly corresponds to when the heat is running) as expected. It’s in a 2 story addition to a brownstone (not the original brownstone) but other than ease of installation, I don’t think that makes any difference/
Augustiner | 10 years and 5 months ago
If you control your humidity levels, solid oak does not develop dramatic gaps. I would choose rift & quarter sawn, not only is it recommended for radiant because it expands differently than regular sawn, but it also looks best in my opinion.