Tongue and Groove Flooring

Tongue and Groove Flooring

Tongue and groove is a method of fitting similar objects together, edge to edge, used mainly with wood, in flooring, parquetry, panelling, and similar constructions. Tongue and groove joints allow two flat pieces to be joined strongly together to make a single flat surface. Before plywood became common, tongue and groove boards were also used for sheathing buildings and to construct concrete form work. Each piece has a slot (the groove) cut all along one edge, and a thin, deep ridge (the tongue) on the opposite edge. The tongue projects a little less than the depth of the groove. Two or more pieces thus fit together closely. The joint is not normally glued, as shrinkage would then pull the tongue off.For many uses, tongue and groove boards have been rendered obsolete by the introduction of plywood and later composite wood boards, but the method is still used in higher-quality flooring. Plywood may also be tongued all round to fit it flush into a framed structure, and plywood for sub-floors used in platform framing is often supplied with tongue and groove edges

TYPES OF WOODEN FLOORS

There are also different kinds of wooden flooring that you can choose from, and some of them are quite affordable so they will surely fit your budget:

A.Hardwood Flooring – This is the most popular, and most expensive type of timber flooring. Hardwood floorboards are made from slow growing trees so that the wood has a finer looking and more beautiful grain and they are also heavier and harder than other kinds of wood, thus justifying the high price tag.

B.Engineered Timber Floor – Unlike real hardwood floorboards, these are made from strips of different kinds of wood glued and pressed together with a veneer of the type of wood that it wants to emulate on the top. These are more affordable than hard timber flooring, but they can give the same look and feel because of the veneer finish; and just like real hardwood floors, engineered wood floors can also be sanded down numerous times and re-finished when it gets damaged.

C.Overlay Timber Floor – An overlay floor is installed directly to a concrete or particleboard sub-floor and the boards are glued down directly. Traditionally a 12mm Tongue and Grove board was used for overlay floors. Solid Timber Floors recommends using a 9mm thick Dressed-Four-Sides (D4S) overlay board.

D.Reclaimed Timber Flooring – These kinds of floorboards are made from already used lumber. Usually these floorboards are taken from old houses or barns, trimmed and sanded down to look a bit more decent. Although the wooden planks that you will get are a bit worn down, some even have nail holes and knots and slight stains, but it actually gives character to a home.

E.Bamboo Timber Flooring – Technically, bamboo is not really wood since it is a grass, but still you cannot deny the fact that it is very durable and actually looks great as a flooring material. And because bamboo grows at a rate of almost a meter a day, it is a sustainable resource, which is why it is popular with people who want to go “green”.

F.Laminate Timber Flooring – Laminate wood construction is made of four layers of materials, that when fused together, create durable, beautiful floors: Wear layer – A clear, top layer that provides resistance to stains and fading. / Design layer – A high resolution, highly-detailed photographic image that realistically captures the look of genuine wood. / Inner core – high-density fiberboard (HDF) made from wood fibers fused with resin. HDF is an engineered wood product that’s strong, hard and dense, and keeps the laminate board stable, flat, and moisture resistant. / Backing – A moisture barrier backing that protects the floor from warping.

If you’re looking for a wood floor, but your budget won’t stretch for it, consider a laminate floor with a wood look. With today’s technologies, laminate wood floors are manufactured to look like exactly like real wood. Laminate is fast and easy to install because it requires no adhesives or nails. Instead, laminate uses a lock-and-fold installation method that’s popular with DIYers. You can install laminate in any room, even moisture-prone basements and bathrooms