Ask the Flooring Expert

Q: What is hardness?

A: Hardness ratings for hardwood floors vary from country to country, but the most common test is known as Janka Hardness Rating. This test measures the force required to push a steel ball into the wood up to half the diameter of the ball. This ball is 11.28 millimeters, meaning the force measured is to push this ball 5.64 millimeters into the wood. Essentially this measures a wood's density and thus its dent resistance. White oak which is one of the most common woods used in flooring has a hardness of 1360 on the Janka scale.

A good way to gauge the dent resistance of a wood is to determine how it rates when compared to white oak. If the floor is much harder than white oak, such as Brazilian Walnut (also called Ipe) which rates at an amazing 3680 is far more dent resistant than white oak, where American cherry rates at 950, making it softer than white oak and more likely to dent.

To sum this up, hardness rating gauges the dent resistance of a wood floor. when looking at wood floors, if your worried about the floor being dented by foot traffic, find a floor with a higher hardness rating.

Q: Thanks for all the informative articles on laminate flooring. I still have one question before purchasing. Perhaps you can help. I want to put new flooring down in my utility room and kitchen. I have read the info about water in utility room and I am taking that into consideration. My question is-
Is there a laminate that WILL NOT show scratch marks from dog's toe nails? I am considering laminate or vinyl.

Thank you.

A: I'm glad you like Steve's educational articles such as Brand Wars II: A Laminate Showdown.

When it comes to putting a floor in an area where you are more likely to encounter water, such as bathrooms, kitchens, and utility rooms (I've had my washer flood a few times sadly); the mind set of wood and water do NOT mix is good to keep in mind. Now several people have had past with various floors in these areas including 3/4” solid hardwood floors which I tend to cringe at the thought of installing in a high potential moisture area.

Your major question has to do with pets, namely dog toe nails. Unfortunately with wood flooring, even super tough floors like AC5 rated laminates, no floor is impervious to damage. That being said, if you keep your dog's nails trimmed this will significantly help in reducing scratches.

In your case, when combining dogs and water, I would honestly suggest using a vinyl product or a higher rated laminate such as Westhollow's Vise-Loc series. Using cheaper laminates would not be advised.

Congoleum makes a very nice, very easy to install wood looking vinyl in their forum plank and regal plank collections. This way you can still get the great look of wood, but the durability and benefits of a vinyl. This is actually one of Steve's top picks for DIY friendly products and from the time I have had to look over the Congoleum planks myself, it looks great!

Keep in mind, nothing will be impervious to traffic from our furry friends, but with a few precautions such as trimming nails we can vastly improve the longevity of a floor. Our purchasing specialist, Ryan W., related the story of his own floor and pet experience. Ryan has Westhollow's South American Walnut installed in his home with his dog Jin. Jin is an 85 lbs. Dog who loves playing. Ryan mentioned that he has had this floor for 2 years without a single mark on it. He mentioned occasionally when Jin “gets a bit crazy” he'll leave white marks on the floor, but these are from his nails and not damage to the floor. A simple wipe with a lightly dampened cloth and they are gone.

Here is a picture Ryan took of his floor, you'll notice a few of the white marks left by Jin's nails (and the use of a nice area rug to protect the floor with furniture over the top)

Here's a picture of Ryan's dog Jin. To give you and idea of the type of dog running over his laminate floor.

Ryan and I both agree that if the room has high humidity or there are issues with standing water, such as a leak from a washer, then laminate might not be the best bet. Ryan commented "If the room has normal moisture in the air, 28 to 40 percent, then it should be no issue. You just can't put wet clothes on the floor or leave standing water on it, like I always say: it's a floor not a pool and if you treat it like a floor then you should have little or no issues"

So, as long as you trim your dog's nails and prevent moisture issues like standing water or high humidity, a good laminate can stand the test of time even with medium sized dog like Jin. Now keep in mind, some rather large dogs like Great Danes or St. Bernards might not be as forgiving to a floor and now floor is impervious to damage, but many are rather tough. Good luck!

Q: I’m a professional builder. I’ve installed a number of laminate floors for clients. 5 (?) years ago I used Wilsonart’s Classic line in a couple of rooms in my own home. I’ve been pleased with the results. When I chose the Wilsonart Classic product five or so years ago it was a glue-up product (click-lock was just coming on to the scene). I chose the Wilsonart product after careful consideration of composition, warranty, oxides etc. Price was not a consideration. I was and am more concerned about durability and performance.

Tim O.
Seattle, WA

A: Tim thank you for the excellent question. Furniture like pianos or pool tables where they have concentrated point-loads become a subject of various questions when installing a hard surface floor.

Laminate nowadays is very similar brand to brand in the sense of core density. Also, most locking mechanisms are similar in the concept and application. The key points to focus on for your project would be underlayment, furniture cups and the floor.

Furniture cups are big on ANY wood floor. This will prevent the furniture from making direct contact with your wood floor and provides a buffer which will help to prevent denting and scratching.

In regards to underlayment, you will want to use a dense underlayment, which in this case I would suggest 6mm cork. This will keep your floating floor stable and the natural qualities of cork will prevent it from breaking down some over time.

In regards to the floor there are a few approaches to take. Since this will be a floating floor, you can look at some of the click-together engineered hardwood floors, such as Philharmoniker's line. The advantage to an engineered hardwood is the value it adds to your home along with the beauty of real wood. Should you wish to use a laminate, I would suggest using an AC4 rated floor at the minimum. Personally I would look for a thicker laminate such as the 12mm offered with Westhollow's Vise-Loc line or 10mm laminate like Pergo® Select.

The issue you will run into with laminate is that most of the really well built laminates have a beveled edge. Keep in mind, these bevels are designed to give a more realistic look to the floor. Micro bevels rarely cause issues with cleaning because of how slight they are.

If you want to avoid a bevel, you might want to consider an engineered hardwood over laminate. If the bevel issue is less important than finding a product with the specs to work with your piano, there are several great laminates to look at such as the Westhollow Vise-Loc, Pergo Select, Quickstep Perspective.

I will also mention that I know several customers, even in the commercial aspect, whom have had great experiences with cork flooring for similar applications, which could easily fit the project you have here as well if your not dead set on the wood plank appearance.

To sum everything up: get a dense underlayment (6mm cork is preferred), a good floor, and furniture cups. If you want a floating floor, look into engineered hardwood, an AC4 or AC5 rated laminate or cork.