I haven't yet lived with the hand scraped floors, as it is still under construction. I will tell you that our GC started to install them, and I had a heart attack!! I HATED them (so did the builder who was insalling them)!!!

We spent over $16,000 for them (up & down stairs) and I called the flooring company, but the restocking fee and shipping was a little over $5000!! (gasp) Idecided that it was a mistake I was going to live with.

BUT... after more of the floor was laid, the beauty came through! I LOVE, LOVE the floors - and so does the builder! I had beautiful, "normal" hardwood in my previous house, and now these.. and I can't see ever getting tired of them. PLUS, they fit perfectly in our farmhouse style home.

tinker, how thick are your hand scraped floors? Are they planked or individual strips? Where did you obtain the wood. We live in L.A. and I want planked thick oak floors for my kitchen. The various contractors I have interviewed rolled their eyes because of cost. What has been your experience with the purchasing and process of getting your floors? Thanks in advance for your reply.

Janie O

Hi Janie,

I purchased Harris-Tarkett, Hickory - Artisan Sculptures. They are 5" engineered planks, and I really like them.

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We have both engineered 5" hand-scraped maple plank (stained) and 2 1/2" solid maple (natural) in our house. Each has its own attributes but I love the look of the hand-scraped, especially in larger rooms. It has such a rich warm look.

First off I want to say I'm really happy everyone here loves their floors. Personally, we don't care for the hand scraped look (different strokes...). Both DH and I feel that many of the "HC" floors have such a uniformed repetition to the scraping and such high sheen finishes, you can immediately tell they're engineered.
We're trying to find an engineered 6"-8" wide plank unfinished Eastern pine (hickory as a 2nd option)- But with "HC" and "HS" finishes in vogue, it's hard to find anything else.

I have the Anderson Dellamano handscraped floors in hickory with espresso finish, 6" planks. We've lived on these floors now for 2 years & I have to say that we absolutely love them. They are so durable & if you use the cleaner they recommend (Bona Swedish Formula Hardwood Floor Cleaner), they become more beautiful over time. When the guy was installing them (new construction), he was concerned that it was too soon in the construction process & that "he could not guarantee the floors if they were damaged during the rest of the construction. However, he decided to do an experiment. He took a ballpine (sp?) hammer & began to bang on one of the planks. There was not a mark made from the hammer. In fact, that was the next plank he laid. He said that he didn't think there would be a problem with the guarantee. We did cover the floors with heavy brown paper just to make sure that nothing damaged them. We have 3 dogs & currently have our 2 grandkids living with us temporarily. They drag toys, roller skates, chairs, etc. & the floors have held up nicely. In fact, we've decided to pull up the living room carpet & continue the wood floor in there. Our wood floors are currently in the entry hall, hallways & kitchen. Not had a problem with water damaging them either although I do wipe up any spilled liquids. Best investment we've made.

We are putting down Anderson Appalachian Hardwood Floors, throughout our entire house, even the bathrooms, in the Vineyard Collection Maple Chablis.They are 6 1/4" wide Maple planks. They come in many types of wood.To(kats)they come in Hickory. These are not hand scraped. We were not so keen on the hand scraped look for our decor but Anderson does supply a lot of hand scraped flooring. Glad to hear(dshep4248)that you are happy with your floors and they are holding up fine. We hope we will feel the same about ours. Take a look WWW.appalachianfloors.com Vineyard Collection.

joanne7,
Thanks so much for the Appalachian suggestion. I'll check them out! :)

They had them all over the street of dreams houses here and I was sick of them by the time I got to the fifth house! They seem a bit too trendy for my taste, which tend to be more classic, but they do put a homey look in a room and look warmer than the regular wood foors.

forgive my ignorance, but how do hand scraped floors look different from typical wood floors?

dshep - Did you purchase your Anderson floors online? I'm in California and would like to find a good retailer for these beautiful floors.

I love my handscraped and distressed floors. I've had them for 1.5 years and still love them as much as when they went in.

Tinker and anyone else who has purchased hand scraped flooring: How long were the pieces of wood? I have purchased a hand scraped (which really is more hand sculpted by machine look) by Qualitycraft. It is a 5 inch siberian Oak plank flooring. I have only opened two boxes, but the longest piece I have so far are only 3 feet. It is going in a very large room and I am wondering if I should have purchased a wood that comes in longer lengths. Has anyone purchased this product? It is 3/4" thick by 5" plank. 25 year warranty.

i think it's a look that works well for farmhouse style or more casual spaces. personally i don't care for it. sort of like fake "distressed" finishes on furniture or cabinetry, not my thing.

I just finished up 1350 sq.ft. of handsraped and distressed, 5" plank, stained a dark walnut and I have to say... That is one sweet looking floor. It has that aged with time feel, all over it. I don't think it would look right in a brand new home, it would look good, but out of place.

We have a brand new home and two guys spent all day on their hands and knees doing the hand scraping with the grain. Rather than the side to side scraping that rips the grain out, this kind of distressing leaves the beauty of the wood but makes the floors less pristine, thus no worry about furniture and dog damage. Rough spots and "chatter" pick up the stain and this is what we wanted in our new home.

We looked for engineered but the only "distressed" we found looked obviously done by machine, with ripples rather than irregular scrapes and chatter that we wanted. Plus, we get the stain and finish we want since we went with real 3/4 inch solid oak, and did not have to settle for a prefinished product.

The home is a country style with pine trim, wood windows, and beadboard wainscoating, all stained, so it goes with it pretty good.

We found a great place www.authenticpinefloors.com. The handscraped engineered prefinished floor samples are beautiful. We lost our home and everything in it during hurricane Katrina, so this time around we are going for a more casual look, away from the water this time - ha. We've been told because of humidity, it's a good decision to go with the engineered rather than solid wood. Our builder is a big fan of the A. Hayes Town design - hardwood, beams, brick accents, and this floor fits the plan perfectly.

The best hand scraped product I have run across to date is the Anderson Virginia Vintage line. Just finished up a job using that but it's pricey.

I am looking at the Anderson Mountain series "Lullabye", which is hickory. Handscraped. The installer I have used in the past that showed me this, said he would do it for $11 sf installed including some prep (there is a layer of MDF over the plywood and tile in the foyer that need to be pulled out). I have to pin him down about any possible additional costs (rotten, damaged plywood replacement costs) that might be extra.
Does this price seem reasonable? I have to decide quickly - we bought the house and then sold our house quickly (very grateful) to people who want to move in by the end of next month. I have to order the wood and plan installation w/in the week. Any help is appreciated.