Materials
Carpet
Today’s carpet comes in numerous styles, textures, designs, and colors from berber, frieze, saxony, loops, etc. Carpet also is available in many yarn systems including Stainmaster Tactesse, Wear Dated, PET, and many more. Our design associates can help you select the perfect choice for your lifestyle and traffic situation.
There is nothing quite like the feel of new carpet beneath your feet. Almost as important as the carpet itself, carpet cushion helps provide durability, increased comfort, and some styles even offer assistance with stain resistance and antibacterial elements. When selecting a carpet it is important to spend a few minutes choosing the proper cushion for the specific carpet chosen
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We are proud to feature products from the following manufacturers. Please browse the website links below and do not hesitate to call us with any specific questions you may have. The websites also feature a stain removal guide that may help you overcome some of life’s little mishaps.
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Tile
More durable than most any other wall or floor covering, ceramic or porcelain tile offers timeless beauty and the advantage of being easy to clean. Whether you are designing your kitchen, bathroom, or entryway, ceramic tile offers many attractive design and style options. From high gloss finishes to more stone textures, there is a tile choice that is right for every home. When installed properly and maintained well, ceramic tile will last as long as the house itself.
Ceramic or porcelain tile offers a variety of styles from classic, to Mediterranean, to stone looks, and more. Colors vary from bright and shiny to muted and earth tone. Again, our design team is educated on the latest styles and trends and we are more than willing to assist you in achieving the look you are envisioning. There are a substantial number of tile suppliers that we work with as well as a high number of processes for manufacturing tile. The links below should provide you access to each of the manufacturer’s we feature and all of the info you need to educate yourself before making your tile selections.
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Natural Stone
Natural Stone is extracted from massive quarries or formations that were formed millions of years ago. The enormous resulting blocks are then sliced into specific thicknesses, then usually honed or polished on one side. The stone can then be manufactured into tiles or slabs for applications throughout a home. Each piece of natural stone is a cross-sectional representation as it originally appeared in the massive deposit from which it was extracted. The process reveals the unique characteristics and imperfections that make natural stone one of the most beautiful flooring products available.
Types of Natural Stone
Aggregates, Alabaster, Bluestone, Cultured Marble, Dolomite, Flagstone, Limestone, Marble, Onyx, Quartzite, Sandstone, Serpentine, Siliceous, Slate, Soapstone, Terrazzo, and Travertine are a few natural stone options that are available in all forms and colors.
What to expect from Natural Stone
When choosing a stone product, it is important to remember that it is “natural”, and that it will not always appear perfect or consistent. It is extremely common for a specific stone with a specific color to be chosen at a showroom and have the same stone with a different variation of color shipped to and installed within the home. Natural stone is an organic product that has continuous variations throughout. It is also common for a specific stone to be discontinued due to the simple fact that the specific stone’s quarry has dried up. This inconsistency in natural stone must be considered when choosing a flooring product. If fluctuation in the color of the stone tiles or slab is something that does not interest you, ceramic or porcelain tile would probably be a more consistent option that may more adequately fit your needs.
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Vinyl Flooring
Offering an extensive array of products and styles, vinyl flooring has been meeting the needs of the homeowner for decades. Vinyl flooring is typically found in kitchens, bathrooms, utility, and laundry rooms. With the advancements in today’s technology, vinyl floors can now replicate the natural beauty of hardwood, stone, ceramic tile, and stained concrete. Vinyl floors present the perfect combination of moisture resistance and ease of maintenance.
As for durability, vinyl is a very dependable product and is used in numerous commercial applications.
What to expect from Vinyl (Resilient) Floors
Manufacturers provide many types of warranties for vinyl products. More expensive vinyl floors provide better resistance from scratching, tearing, gouging, and staining. Warranties and similarity to replicated product also improve with the increase in price. Again, vinyl products are resistant to moisture, gouging, scratching, etc., and cannot endure all rigorous situations. Use extra care when moving appliances and furniture to avoid marking the floor. Do not use bleach to clean and reseal and seams that may begin to separate over time.
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Hardwood Flooring
There’s nothing like a hardwood floor for natural beauty, warmth and ease of cleaning. Its distinctive characteristics offer unique looks that provide a classic style throughout your home. Great looking, long lasting and a great investment in your home’s overall value; hardwood flooring is a timeless addition to any home.
Styles
All hardwood flooring comes in one of two styles, either strip or plank. Strip flooring comes in widths that range from 1½” through 2½” and thicknesses of 5/16″ through 3/4″. Strip flooring creates a traditional look, and can produce an illusion that a room is larger than it is. Plank flooring also comes in strips, but they are wider, usually from 3″ through 7″. Plank flooring can be used to create a more rustic or earthy look as well as a historical appearance with antique applications.
Finishes
Hardwood floors are manufactured either Prefinished or Site Finished, both offer unique benefits. Prefinished Hardwood is finished in a controlled factory environment with more than six coats, decreasing the fluctuation in color, grain and texture within each piece. This type of production creates a more consistent product that can bring aesthetic perfection to any room. Homeowners prefer a prefinished wood floor because of the lack of sawdust, harmful vapors of finishing coats, and immediate access following installation. Site Finished Hardwood usually requires two to three coats and provides a smooth, uniform surface. This type of finish allows the rich natural colors and grains of the wood to show which provides timeless beauty and character.
Types
There are three basic types of hardwood floors: Solid, Engineered, and Hand Scraped. Each type is available in any of the two styles and/or finishes listed above. With solid hardwood, planks are cut out of a solid block right from the tree, and then are processed into flooring planks with tongue and groove edges. Engineered Hardwood is made up of 3-7 plies of layered wood; each layer’s grain orientation is perpendicular to its above layer, then glued together. This type of technology offers several advantages over solid wood. It can be installed in almost any room, even on concrete slabs and due to its structural composition it is less vulnerable to moisture. Engineered wood floors are versatile and very stable. Hand Scraped Hardwood is an absolutely gorgeous way to capture the look of an old distressed wood floor presented with today’s fine finishes. Hand scraped wood is sculpted, plank by plank, to create its unique look. We offer Hand Scraped hardwood floors in both solid and engineered styles.
Understanding Product Variations
Many factors determine how your hardwood floor will look. Consider how much natural variation there is in the grain and coloring of a wood, a range that contributes to wood’s endless appeal. Product photos can offer an example of each wood product, but they may not be a true representation of the range of color, or the grain and texture variations that could possibly occur upon installation of the product. Sunlight, durability and moisture are other crucial factors that can affect a hardwood floor. Exposure to sunlight can darken the color of your hardwood floor and have some impact on the appearance and durability of the finish. Hardwood can also be scratched, dented, or dinged. Wear ability can be strengthened with specific species of wood or with certain finishes, but no hardwood is indestructible. All hardwood contains some moisture, but if exposed to higher amounts it will begin to cup and/or buckle. This reaction can be limited using engineered floors.
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Laminate Flooring
A high level of wear resistance and numerous styling options make laminate floors both a trendy and lasting choice for your flooring needs. By offering numerous colors and designs that emulate today’s most popular products, such as hardwood, stone, and tile, laminate manufacturers have done a great job fulfilling the needs of today’s consumer.
Laminates offer the best of both worlds; a wonderful style matched with superior durability all at an affordable price.
Laminate Flooring Basics
Most laminate products are made to resemble other popular flooring materials such as: hardwood, natural stone and ceramic tile. All laminates are constructed with at least four layers: back, core, design and wear.
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The back layer provides stability for the plank. It is also resistant to moisture and prevents bowing.
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The core layer is a high-density board that increases moisture resistance and prevents indentations.
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The design layer is high quality photograph that replicates the beauty of hardwood, natural stone and ceramic tile.
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The wear layer is constructed of a clear aluminum oxide which provides protection against abrasion, fading, staining and burns.
What to expect from Laminate Floors
Laminate floors prove to be an excellent alternative to other hard surfaces when considering durability, ease of maintenance and affordability. They provide protection from all sorts of damage ranging from pet scratching to cigarette burns. While they are very tough, laminate floors are not indestructible. Another feature of laminate floors is their click together installation which allows for single board replacements if any damage should occur.