As a flooring chic, I have some idea as to what you are up against. The deciding factor is going to be the subfloor. What shape is it in and what can be done with it...or more to the point, what CANNOT be done with it. Benefits of hardwood: obviously the length of service you can get out of them. Drawbacks = COST!!! Cost of product AND INSTALL can be more than most people have to spend! Most hardwoods HAVE to be glued, nailed or stapled into place. Only rarely will you find a floating version! They require underlay = $1-$3/sqft MORE added to square footage. Most cannot stand radiant heat in floors. Should never go in bathrooms! Refinishing is a must! Depending on traffic, they should be done every 7-10 years (many people don't but it should be in part of the investment). Very dry, or very humid, climates greatly effect the wood and can reduce the length of service (shrinkage/swelling can be a problem in many areas of N. America). Subfloor preparation IS A MUST!! Benefits of engineered hardwood are: can be floated, nailed, stapled or glued in place (depend on brand and "locking system"). Install is usually a little less, but ONLY if they are a floating floor. Gluing/nailing/stapling will all cost the same as a hardwood install! They are often given the "OK" to go over in floor radiant heat. Rule of thumb, the thickness of the wear layer dictates how many times you can refinish (2mm = 1-2 refinishing; 3mm = 3 refinishes; 4mm = 3-4 refinishes; etc.). Draw backs of Engineered: limited "refinishing" chances" - the amount of times you can refinish the floor will depend on the thickness of the "hardwood" layer. Cheaper versions are often 2mm which means you can only refinish (sand, stain, refinish) just the once. The higher end versions ($6-$9/sf) can be 3-5mm thick. An engineered hardwood floor is really a "disposable" hardwood. Cost of maintenance is the same as a hardwood. Cost of install could be same as hardwood. On a tight budget, you might want to look at the engineered hardwoods. Please keep in mind the "hard wearing" finishes of today, (ie. Aluminum Oxide) can have detrimental effects on your health. They may "sound" great, but in the end they can be harmful. A cork floating floor - no need for underlay! ($2.29 - $4.09/sf at www.icorkfloor.com) Can give you all the advantages of the engineered hardwoods without any of the draw backs. The only place a floating floor can not go is a bathroom (that's what a cork glue down floor is all about). A tight budget might just benefit from a high end cork floor that is priced the same as the low end engineered hardwoods! Cost if install = laminate install!!! Can save you THOUSANDS of dollars on your project! I just saved a gentleman $11,000 on his flooring purchase!!! He purchased 3000sf of cork for $9000! He had been quoted $20,000+ for ANYTHING else! Your square footage could go down for as little as $2800 or for as much as $4,090 at Icork Floor LLC. Cost of install would add about $1500 to your project. Just a thought.

Glad to help with any information. You absolutely should remodel with what is appropriate for the neighborhood, and consider resale especially if you plan to sell anytime soon. Wood flooring, be it engineered or solid, is one of the best remodeling choices and gives a high return on investment. If cost is not a prohibitive factor then go for the solid wood flooring options, but just know that solid floors will have their limitations as mentioned above. Again, you need to have someone come out and inspect your property because no flooring project is exactly like another, every situation is different and unique. Its hard to give you all of the pros and cons since I don't know your particular situation. Ask your neighbors or friends that have existing wood floors what products they used and find out how satisfied they are with their floors. If a solid product will work for your situation and that is what you want, then go for it. There are many beautiful solid choices out there. As far as the statement about "a lot of engineered products are floating" is completely false. We are not talking about laminate flooring which uses a floating system (meaning there is no glue adhering the floor to the substrate, the floor is snapped together using a tongue and groove system). Engineered flooring can and usually is glued to the substate under most situations. If a customer is concerned with cost, then one of the options is to use a floating application if the manufacturer recommends it. But that is certainly not the norm, most customers do want the wood to be glued down. I agree if a floating application is chosen for an engineered product it will sound hollow when walked on and will feel different from a glued down application or solid nail down application. Engineered flooring is real hardwood flooring. It has a wear layer of varying thicknesses - the thicker the wear layer, the more expensive the product will be but it will have the opportunity to be sanded and refinished more often compared to a thinner wear layer. Underneath the wear layer is a composite of layers that can be of the same species, or of different species. The grain of each layer runs in different directions, which makes it very stable. This means that the wood will expand and contract less than solid wood flooring during fluctuations in humidity and temperature. I have 2 kids and a large chocolate lab and the flooring in my home is glued down engineered Santos Mahogany. It does not sound hollow when walked on, nor has my dog contributed scratches to my flooring and it has been down for 9 years. The biggest culprit of scratches to tell you the truth is my wife's vacuuming over the wood. The vacuum will pick up rocks or small pebbles and scratch the floor. The safest option is to clean with a broom or microfiber dusting head followed by a manufacturer approved cleaning system. I hope I have not confused you anymore than necessary. I just don't want you to think that you only have one option. Check out the following website for the National Wood Flooring Association (www.woodfloors.org) they have a wealth of information on wood flooring. Good luck with your flooring search and again contact me with any questions, I can go over your exact situation if you provide me more details. Call me at (949) 279-8858 and I would be happy to tell you more. Jason Elliott - www.elliottfloorcovering.com

hardwoods are always better for resale value. laminates have harder finishes that most common hardwoods, though. you really have to make an effort to scratch the good ones. the bad ones are cheap, and they're cheap for a reason. that holds true for engineereds and hardwoods too, frankly.

Solid hardwood would be the best, however, you must take into mind that it is thick (from 3/4" to 1+ "), so the adjoining floors, if any, would have to be propped up. Engineered hardwood is OK, but you have to be careful because a lot of it comes off of a roll and sort of pleats itself onto the floor in almost no time at all. Be sure to buy whatever you use from a wood store that will give you some kind of guarantee as to warping and the pleated look. The cheaper the wood you buy, usually the shorter the pieces. (leftovers) Hardwood maple seems to show seams fast, as it is not too stable. Talk to a real pro because this is a huge expense. Don't even think of using vinyl. Have you seen it used in some of the stores where it has worn off at the edges?