Best Hardwood Flooring Selection in Hopkins, MN

Few floors offer the same dynamic beauty as natural hardwood. Hopkins Carpet One Floor & Home in Hopkins, MN, is your local hardwood store, with a quality selection of products. Hardwood is an investment in your home. It often represents a significant upfront cost, but it usually adds value to your property thanks to its long-lasting beauty. In fact, many hardwood floors are designed to last for decades, even the life of your home. Come visit us to view our wood flooring options and talk with our friendly flooring experts. We can help you not only find a floor that fits your design vision, but also a hardwood option that suits your specific lifestyle.

Hardwood Styles

As you begin shopping for hardwood floors, you’ll find a huge range of styles and wood species. Popular species include maple, oak, hickory, mahogany, birch, among many others. Each species offers its own unique shade, grain patterns, and hardness. For instance, solid oak is one of the strongest hardwood options. These features are also determined by the age the tree was harvested. If your focus is to find a responsibly-sourced hardwood floor, our experts can show you which products are certified for coming from sustainably-managed forests. Beyond species, hardwood companies will style planks using special staining, texturing, and other techniques. You’ll find different shine levels, along with extra wide planks and choices with bevelled edges.

How Does Humidity Affect Hardwood?

Hardwood is one of the longest-lasting flooring products on the market and it’s also very durable, but it doesn’t mix well with moisture. Wood is naturally porous, so it will absorb water from the air during humid months. This can make the planks swell, shrink, warp, and gap. The ideal solution is to install your hardwood floors in a dry, climate-controlled space, or to choose the right type of wood flooring for your more challenging rooms. The first step to avoid warping wood in your home is to measure your humidity levels and try to keep them in a good range. Aim for between 30-50% relative humidity in your home. You can use a hygrometer to monitor this. During high humidity times, a dehumidifier is useful. During dry months, a humidifier will help condition the floorboards.

Solid vs Engineered Hardwood

There are two main types of hardwood planks, solid and engineered. Solid wood floors are made from a single piece of premium wood that’s typically about ¾’’ thick, meaning it can be sanded and refinished over the decades. Engineered hardwood features a special layered construction made from multiple layers of composite wood with a hardwood veneer at the surface. Both types of wood look identical from the surface, but engineered planks are more resistant to foot traffic and moisture. While you may not be able to refinish them as often, engineered hardwood is more versatile. It can be installed on every level of your home, including basements, whereas solid wood is only recommended for dry rooms that are on or above grade. Engineered hardwood can be refinished but the amount of times depends on how thick the veneer is.

Is Engineered Hardwood Better than Solid Hardwood?

Engineered hardwood is more stable than solid wood because the plank layers are laid cross-directionally and pressed together. This construction causes the wood grains to run in opposite directions and offsets wood’s natural tendency to expand or contract due to changes in moisture. and temperature. Engineered wood is good for above, below, and on ground areas and can handle changing seasons, but is still not suitable in areas with a lot of moisture like bathrooms. Due to the construction of engineered hardwood, it is a better choice than solid wood if you’re worried about humidity, temperature fluctuations, and foot traffic.

Our Hardwood Selection

We have many different hardwood options on display in our showroom, so we’ll certainly have a style to fit your design needs. We offer Carpet One Floor & Home exclusive brands such as Invincible™ Hardwood and Rustic River™, both of which offer natural style and premium strength. As members of the Carpet One co-op, the largest flooring cooperative in the nation, we have superior buying power with suppliers. That means you’ll find the same low prices as big box stores when you shop with us, plus we’re locally owned and operated. To experience the co-op difference, visit our showroom today.