Wide Plank Flooring in Cary, NC
We lay wide plank hardwood floors, solid or engineered, in homes across Cary, North Carolina.
- Quotes in writing
- 10 areas covered
Cary Hardwood Flooring lays wide plank hardwood floors in homes across Cary. We check the floor underneath, test the boards for moisture and plan the layout of each room.
What wide plank flooring is
The U.S. Forest Service's Wood Handbook lists 1-1/2, 2, 2-1/4 and 3-1/4 inches as standard widths for the top face of tongue-and-groove flooring. The wide plank boards we lay are wider than those strips, so a room has fewer seams and you see more of the grain on each board.
The National Park Service says the type of wood floor in an old building can go with how the space was used, such as hardwood strip or plank flooring in textile mills, apartment buildings and gymnasiums.
Why wide boards need more care
The Forest Products Laboratory says wood takes on moisture from its surroundings. Its Wood Handbook says cracks can open in a wood floor if the boards take up moisture before or after they are laid, then shrink when the house is heated. It lists cup among the six major types of warp, and it says warp is any change in a board's face or edge from flat. That is why we take more care with moisture on a wide plank floor.
Moisture in a Cary house
The Forest Products Laboratory also says the moisture left in wood tends to come to balance with the humidity of the air around it. The handbook says wood flooring is usually dried to the moisture it will hold in use, so shrinking and swelling stay small and the floor doesn't buckle or open large gaps.
So we check the boards with a moisture meter when they arrive and again before we lay them, and we open the bundles inside your house so the wood can settle to the air there. We also leave a small gap at every wall, hidden under the trim, so the boards have room to move.
Solid or engineered wide plank
We lay wide plank as solid hardwood flooring, one piece of wood top to bottom, and as engineered hardwood flooring, a layer of real wood on top of a base of thinner layers glued together.
A Forest Products Laboratory study says engineered wood flooring holds its size better than solid strip flooring because its sheets of veneer are glued in layers that cross each other. It says this cuts down how much the boards shrink and swell in width when their moisture changes.
When we talk about plainsawn and quartersawn boards, we mean two ways a mill cuts a log into boards, and each cut leaves a different grain pattern on top of the board. The handbook says quartersawn flooring shrinks and swells less than plainsawn flooring. We'll set samples of both cuts side by side for you, in white oak flooring and other woods.
What changes the price
We price wide plank floors for your house once we've measured, and you get that quote in writing.
We set our price by the size of the rooms, the width and wood of the boards, and whether you pick solid or engineered planks. We also count in taking up an old floor, repairs to the floor underneath, and sanding and finishing in your house if the boards come unfinished.
What to get in writing
Ask for these in writing, whoever you hire:
- The width, thickness and length of the boards.
- The wood species, the grade and whether the boards are solid or engineered.
- How the boards are cut, plainsawn or quartersawn, if you have a choice.
- Whether the boards are glued, nailed or both.
- How the moisture of the boards and the floor below will be checked.
- The stain and finish by name and the number of coats, if the floor is finished in your house.
- Whether moving furniture, taking up the old floor and hauling it away are in the price.
Questions about wide plank flooring in Cary
Do I need a permit for a wide plank floor in Cary?
Usually not. The Town of Cary lists replacing floor and wall coverings among the jobs that don't need a building permit. If you are unsure, the town says to call its Inspections and Permits Department on 311 inside town limits or (919) 469-4000.
Can you match old plank floors in an older house?
Yes, we can patch or extend an old plank floor. The National Park Service says every attempt should be made to match the board width and pattern of historic wood flooring. So we measure the old boards and bring samples to set beside them. Small fixes are on our hardwood floor repair page.
Is wood-look vinyl plank the same thing?
No, it isn't. The National Park Service says wood-look vinyl plank is a man-made product with layers of PVC vinyl and a printed photo layer that gives it the look of wood. It also says vinyl plank can't be refinished like a wood or engineered-wood floor.
Can a wide plank floor be sanded and refinished later?
Yes, we can sand and refinish a solid wide plank floor, and we check the top layer of wood on an engineered one first. More on that is on our hardwood floor refinishing page.
Can you stain wide planks?
Yes, we can stain them, or leave the wood natural under a clear finish. We try the stain on a spare board first. More on that is on our hardwood floor staining page.
What about sanding dust?
OSHA, the federal workplace safety agency, says wood dust becomes a possible health problem when sanding and cutting put wood particles into the air. So we close off the room we're working in and keep our saw as far from the rest of the house as we can.
What about the smell when you finish the floor in the house?
The EPA says varnishes contain organic solvents that can release chemicals into the air while they are used. Its advice is to make sure you have plenty of fresh air when using these products, and to keep them out of reach of children and pets.
What happens to the leftover finish?
The Town of Cary says household hazardous waste should not go out with your ordinary trash, and it lists turpentine and other flammable materials among those wastes. We take our own leftover finish, thinners and used rags away with us when the job is done.
Which towns do you cover?
We lay wide plank floors across Cary, plus Morrisville, Apex, Holly Springs and the other towns we list on this page.
Get a quote for wide plank flooring
Call us, or send the quote form with your ZIP code and the rooms you want done. We'll measure, go through board widths, wood and finish options with you, and give you a written quote. To see the other flooring work we do, go to the Cary Hardwood Flooring home page.
Ready to talk about your hardwood flooring job?
Call us or send the quote form with your ZIP code and what you need. We will get back to you with a written quote.