There are some flooring choices that can be installed wherever you want. Others, like hardwood floors, are a little bit trickier. If you are considering hardwood for areas that are constantly wet or moist, it may not be the wisest option. Hardwood flooring can experience warping and other damage when it is exposed to high amounts of moisture. Mike’s Custom Flooring is here to talk about hardwood flooring in your kitchen and whether or not it is the right choice.
Do Kitchens Have a Lot of Moisture?
When rating your kitchen along with other areas of your house, it isn’t the highest rated in moisture. The bathroom and some basements are highly susceptible to moisture problems, but your kitchen isn’t the worst. Your kitchen is still an area that could potentially see moisture problems if your kitchen sink sprung a leak while you were away or if the refrigerator started to leak and was undetected. For the most part, when small spills happen in your kitchen, hopefully you are around to clean them up quickly.
How to Make Hardwood Work in the Kitchen
The key to making hardwood flooring work in the kitchen comes down to the sealant that is used. There are a couple options to help you get the right sealant on your hardwood flooring.
– Site Finished Hardwood Flooring: Having raw wood flooring installed, gives you the opportunity to customize not only the color, but the sealant as well. When the sealant is applied, there is a layer of sealant that spans over the entire area of the floor; closing in the seams so that water can’t penetrate them.
– Engineered Hardwood: Engineered hardwood flooring is a layer of solid hardwood on top of layers of stable plywood. When water penetrates the planks, the plywood core can handle the water better than solid wood flooring.
Are Hardwood Floors Durable Enough for the Kitchen?
There are many reasons that you want a durable flooring option in the kitchen. You may drop sharp utensils that can leave dings and scratches, as well as the amount of traffic that tends to flow through the kitchen. Even though, your hardwood could sustain damage this way, it can be fixed by sanding down the damage and refinishing it. So the answer to the question, “should I put hardwood in my kitchen?” yes, you definitely can. It isn’t the most durable option, and so you need to think about how hard you will be on the floor. If you have a big, busy family, you may decide that hardwood flooring isn’t the right choice for you and choose a more durable option like tile or vinyl.
Hardwood Floor Installation, Refinishing, Replacement & More in Van Nuys, Burbank, Glendale, San Pedro, Torrance, Santa Monica, Beverly Hills & Greater Los Angeles, California
If you have chosen hardwood flooring for your kitchen or any other area of your home, you can count on the experts at Mike’s Custom Flooring to handle the job for you. We have the experience and expertise to ensure your flooring is installed properly and beautifully. Call us today!