If you are looking to purchase hardwood floors for your home or office you really have two choices. You can either go to your local flooring high street shop or let your fingers do the walking and purchase the floor online. Buying hardwood flooring online will save you money as the online store does not have expensive shop floor to rent and can pass on the savings to you, however you need to know what to look for to avoid disappointment. Here are couple of tips to help you:

1. Know your wood – Hardwood floors are divided into two main groups, solid wood and engineered wood. Solid wood also known as ‘real wood’ is made from 100% wood and due to its construction tends to expend as well as retract due to certain temperature changes. Engineered wood also known as ‘semi solid wood’ is made from a combination of hardwood together with plywood or MDF and a top layer of hardwood veneer. If you’re looking for more information on the differences between the two, read this guide.

2. Order a sample if possible – Some sellers will openly offer to send you a sample, normally for a small nominal charge to cover its postage costs. On the other hand, if you have seen a type of floor you really want but the seller does not appear to offer a sample, contact them. Chances are they will respond to your request by sending you a sample. The sample is designed to allow you to feel the wood and ensure the colours match your expectations.

3. Ensure product availability – Straight after ordering the floor chances are you’ll either book a floor fitter or take some time to fit the floor yourself. There’s nothing more disappointing than receiving part of your order or not receiving it at all. Some sellers will only display products which are in stock, while some will display coming back into sock soon type of message. If you see this message contact the seller prior to ensure your entire order will be sent on time. Better safe than sorry.

4. Allow waste – Most online sellers will have a type of online room calculator which is designed to help you ensure that the right quantity of floor is ordered. In most cases it will ask you to input the dimensions of the area to be covered and will give you a suggested quantity. On top of this you should also take into account some waste of about 5% to 10% for areas which you might have forgotten to measure such as a hall cupboard and for general waste due to the fitting circumstances.

5. Pay attention to heating – Underfloor heating is a popular choice for many home owners. If your property has underfloor heating you can still fit hardwood flooring provided the floor construction has a heat distribution layer that provides a very even temperature over the entire floor area, in order to avoid localized excessively high temperatures. Once fitted, the surface temperature of the finished floor must never exceed 27 degree C at any point so you must have the means to control and limit the surface temperature with great accuracy.

There are many online sellers offering high quality wooden floors. Before committing to buying from any seller make sure to price compare, try to order a sample and of course take into account floor availability as well. Enjoy your new floor.

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Article by Michelle Strassburg of www.woodandbeyond.com