How to choose a floorboard for a house or apartment - tips (video)

Parquet - the so-called floor covering material made of natural wood. Apply it began relatively recently, replacing the well-known piece parquet. Invented and patented floorboard in the 40s of the last century in Sweden. In our country, this material is only gaining popularity, so the question of how to choose a floorboard needs to be covered.

The concept of the floorboard

To get to the question of which floorboard to choose, it is necessary to understand what the floorboard is, its parameters, pros and cons.

As mentioned above, a parquet is a floor covering that consists of two or more layers responsible for different functions. The top layer is usually made of valuable wood. To serve it for a long time, it is opened with a varnish or an oily coating.

Next comes the layer that gives the board stability. As a rule, it is HDF or less valuable wood species. The layer protects against changes in temperature and humidity and is placed perpendicular to the previous one. Its purpose includes the containment of the castle connections. And another layer responsible for the greater rigidity of the floorboard and preventing its excessive bending.

Analyzing the demand for this type of coverage, you can see that it is quite prestigious and popular among consumers. It is caused by its natural naturalness, thanks to which it provides coziness and comfort in the room. You need to decide which floorboard to choose.

Quality and basic parameters

Choosing a floorboard is not as difficult as it seems at first glance. For this it is necessary to pay attention to the basic parameters and, of course, the quality of the material. Naturally, it is useful to correlate these criteria with the price of products. After studying this, you will see that the question of how to choose a floorboard will disappear by itself.

Before laying the floorboard, pay attention to the base where it will be located. The smoother it is, the longer the purchase will please you. As a result, you will not get any creaking or unnecessary, unnecessary openings. Connections will not collapse and, moreover, there will be no detachments.

When making a purchase, you should pay attention to what kind of wood was used to make the coating, as there are problem rocks that are more susceptible to moisture and temperature fluctuations. These are beech and hornbeam breeds and some others. Avoid them, making your choice, and you will not be affected by the extra hassle and problems. If you wish, you can find the entire list of undesirable breeds.

It is unlikely that you will be able to meet the required level of humidity, stated by the board manufacturer, indoors. Winter will be an ordeal for this coating. Therefore, it will not be out of place to acquire a conventional hygrometer and various air humidification. This will bring you closer to the optimal, recommended temperature.

The durability and quality of the floorboard is very easy to determine: manufacturing precision, lock design and quality of glue, varnish.

If we consider the basic parameters on which quality depends, we need to highlight the following:

1. Floor width, maximum. This parameter will tell you about the strength of the lock. If it is small, then stacking the board diagonally, you can not load the floor along two walls. Locks can not afford such a load, they will notify you of this by the appearance of cracks. If the mark of the board is good, then this parameter will be indicated in the range of 16-18 m. Its complete absence in the characteristics should make you doubt the correctness of the choice, as it indicates questionable product quality.
2. The admissibility of the uneven ground, maximum. Here you will learn about the strength of the structure as a whole. It includes the strength and method of joining each lamella, as well as the quality of the adhesive. With a good brand, it reaches +3 mm for every 2 m. You must understand that high-quality glue costs more than average or bad, and its use will significantly raise the cost of production. Therefore, the manufacturer often saves it.
3. The next important parameter is characterized by the ability to lay the floorboard on the warm floor. Hence, it reveals its tightness - how dry wood is, whether internal stress is removed, the quality of glue and varnish, as well as the gluing of lamellae. Reputable manufacturers advise doing this styling according to the standard rules specified in the instructions.

And one more thing that will allow you to avoid mistakes when choosing a floorboard.A manufacturer of good products will always provide for review a certain set of documents: instructions, certificate, patent, etc. This is evidence of a serious attitude both to the result and to the client.

Before you buy a cheaper version of the product, think about it. Miserly pays twice, says the famous saying. And this is what threatens in the case of the floorboard:

• damage to the lacquer layer during the year;
• squeak;
• cheap varnish coating will be damaged when you try to erase it spot (brilliant green, iodine, etc.);
• structural elements tend to exfoliate after several seasons;
• damage to the interlocking connection;
• poor quality and processing of the lower layers.

Main advantages and disadvantages of

1. Environmental friendliness. Absolutely pure and natural material. If you compare it with the parquet floor, the advantage is not on the side of the latter.
2. Easy installation. An important advantage, noted even by experts. Board fit and fit to the size of the room. Connecting locks significantly simplify the assembly process, the resulting surface is rigid, without any sagging or cracks.
3. An undoubted advantage that speeds up the work is that this type of coating is different from parquet and does not require additional polishing and varnish / oil coating. No unnecessary processing steps.
4. You can decorate the interior in any style using the floorboard. Your design will be original and unique. If you wish, you can otten the coating to your liking with the help of oil.
5. A large variety of patterns of the selected coating. Two- and three-strip deck, wicker, herringbone and others. The popularity of single-sided boards.
6. As mentioned above, the floorboard is perfectly placed on the warm floor. A prerequisite for such work is the presence of waterproofing, board thickness 13-15 mm and a surface temperature of not more than 27 ° C, regardless of location.
7. Convenience in operation.

Wipe the floorboard with a soft cloth or use a vacuum cleaner.

If the cleaning is wet, do not forget to squeeze a rag well. Stains are removed with a detergent that does not contain ammonia.

If you compare the floorboard with the same piece parquet, it is more than 1.5 times cheaper than the latter.

Like most building materials, this type of coating is not without drawbacks. But the fact that there are not as many of them as positives is good:

1. The main and main drawback is poor resistance to water. A large leakage deforms the coating so much that you can no longer restore it. In some cases partial restoration is possible. And that only when the laying was made on plywood. This parameter can be increased with the help of special oils and varnishes.
2. Another drawback identified by some consumers is that the floorboard, having the widest product line, is still inferior to the laminate and piece parquet for choosing colors.

Secrets of the right choice

A few practical advice from experts will help you make the right choice:

1. Choose a bar with a minimum thickness of 9 mm. The optimum thickness is 13-15 mm, the upper part is 4 mm. This is a great option for residential premises, which will withstand the desired load. If the room is planned for other purposes, purchase a board of 26 mm.
2. Choose a coating in which the facing part is attached with UV rays.
3. Carefully determine what kind of wood was dried using.
4. Give preference to high-quality glue.
5. If you plan to lay the floorboard on a warm floor, then avoid such wood species as beech, hornbeam, maple and the main range of exotic derivatives.
6. Decide on the size of the slats in advance, as some members of the class reach 2-2.5 m in length and 20 cm in width.

Summing up

Whichever vendor you choose, you will receive final confidence in the quality of products only by touching what you are going to purchase. The material should be smooth, and all joints are ground.

Remember that a light board will visually enlarge your room. Use it in small rooms. Dark is better to use in a spacious room, for example, in the living room.

If you want to see natural material, but you can't afford the price of piece parquet, if you want to cover the floor quickly and not have any hassle with further care, you are completely satisfied with the design, the parquet flooring the board is your choice.