Cedar Flooring

Wood floors can add a distinct element of drama to a home with their warmth and deep luster.  They can be cozy and elegant at the same time.  One of the warmest of wood floors is the cedar floor with its rich rosy hues.

Types of Cedar Flooring Avaiable

Cedar flooring is available in solid wood and what is known as ‘engineered’ wood.  Engineered wood is a composite of wood fibers with adhesives for binding plus a thin veneer of ‘real’ wood.   Solid cedar is more expensive than engineered cedar and is available in longer lengths.  The solid wood floor can be refinished many more times than an engineered floor since the wood grain on an engineered floor is, as beauty is, only skin deep.

Cedar Flooring – Too Soft ?

Cedar ranks approximately 900 on the Janka hardness test.  The hardest woods are well over 4,000, and the softest is balsa at 100.  This means that cedar is a soft wood. It will need refinishing a bit more often than a harder wood floor but for many people the beauty and feel of the soft wood is worth the trade off.  Pre-finished softwood flooring can be hardened by the use of special finishes at the factory, before installation.

Cedar flooring, being soft, will show marks more readily than hardwood floors despite any protective treatments.  Small imperfections, as they appear, create a certain personality in the floor.  This is an attractive quality for some homeowners.  It’s also generally less expensive than hardwood flooring, vinyl, or carpet.  Cedar flooring is roughly just over $1 per square foot, but this is highly variable depending on quality and discounts available.  The more rustic the look desired, the less expensive the flooring. There are regional differences in price as well.  More accurate pricing can be had by checking local flooring outlets.

Installation of Cedar Flooring

Installation of a cedar floor can be done by the homeowner if he has the proper skills and tools.  If not, then he needs to contact a professional flooring installer to do the job instead.  There are kits available that make installation easy for first-timers.  It’s best to do simple rooms first without complicated corners and angles involved if there is little or no previous experience.  Measuring is extremely important.  A good rule of thumb is to measure carefully and then add 5% to that figure.

The homeowner should read any guides that accompany the purchase or are available from the supplier, and should feel free to ask any questions that come up.  They can provide valuable information, some of which could prevent costly mistakes or bothersome do overs when you decide to tackle your cedar flooring installation yourself.