If you are like many of customers who own a dog or two, then what are the best choices to go for when choosing your flooring options?
When it comes to flooring for pets, it’s essential that it’s hardwearing and durable. At First Floors we have some fantastic vinyls on offer, these are scuff resistant and will be an excellent choice if you have pets. They are also fantastic to keep clean and most house-hold cleaning products can be used. All of these factors make it a great all rounder for practicality but, if you have set your heart on a real wood floor then here are some pointers. We would say it is best to stay away from softer woods, like pine or birch.
One of the best woods to choose and is still fashionable (we think it will never go out of fashion) is oak. Oak has fantastic shock absorbency attributes, which in the long run, will serve your floor well. Scratches from dog nails and denting is greatly decreased due to the natural properties of this wood. The natural grain of the oak is very rich and with dog or cat nail scratches and everyday denting, this will really help them blend into the wood. As time goes by, it will help make these marks blend into the grain. When it comes to flooring for pets, you may be surprised as many people would avoid real wood.
A brushed surface is also a good idea when choosing your real wood floor if you have pets. It literally means that the surface of the wood has been brushed. This process brings out the fabulous grain, making it even more prominent. This is turn is extremely helpful when it comes down to the scratches that animals can leave. As mentioned before, this finish will help the marks and denting to blend into your floor and to become part of it. A matt oiled finish will also be beneficial. The board is given up to about 5 treatments of oil which really penetrates into the wood. This will bring out the natural grain especially if it has been brushed.
This board, which comes in both solid and engineered, is really one of the most beautiful floors you can choose. It is fantastically natural looking and for all the reasons mentioned above is a great choice if you are a dog owner. It is great for spot repairs, and although oiled floors are recommended to be re-oiled on average about every 2 years, it is not a hard job and can be done one person. We would always recommend a luxury vinyl such as Moduleo. This is an incredible product using cutting edge manufacturing techniques and is often used by our commercial customers due to its hardwearing nature. It’s scratch proof, waterproof, fade proof, non-slip and has a 15-year guarantee. What’s more, our customers often struggle to see the difference between this and a real wood floor such is the sophistication of the methods use to create the look and feel of wood in many species. Last week we had a customer in the showroom who was set on a solid black nut.
However, they have pets so were very concerned about marks. We believe that marks add to the character, but we could see it would bother them. They ended up opting for a laminate floor which looked exactly like a solid wood floor – so for them to choose that over a solid just goes to show how great these floors look now compared to a few years ago. Come into the showroom in Giffnock to see a range of samples, and by all means bring your dog along too!