Sports is something that everyone of us likes. We all play certain numbe of sports in our school, high school and college days. Basketball is one such hugely popular sport in United States. Virtually every school, university, play ground would have basketball courts. The amount of time spent shooting hoops or dodging your opponents are often cherished by all of us. How fondly do we remember the sound of our sport shoes thumping and sliding on the wooden court below our feet? Or remember the strong wooden floors of your gymnasium or the badminton court.
Good Flooring is like strong foundation of any structure. A strong and sturdy floor is critical to sustaing the huge weight of all the furniture we have in our house. any is a very critical step into making a good house or good sport facility. Centuries ago, humans tried clay and sand were the common flooring material. Then glass, paper, grass, sand, marble, granite and many more materials have been tried. Currently, Laminate and Wood floorings are two of the most popular type of floorings.
Solid Wood flooring, is an ever green option for flooring. In Wood flooring , their are a variety of options available. Different wood types have different color, strength and other characteristics. Again wood available in the forests of United States may not be always same as available in European or Asian forests. Oak wood is the most popular wood type for flooring. In Oak itself, there are different varieties. Oak available on east coast of US may not be same as that on the western coast. Red wood is a commonly found flooring across the country.
If you are living in a area which receives high amount of rain and has high amount of moisture in the air, then Wood flooring may not be a viable option. But apart from this drawback, the wooden floor can work in any other environmental conditions. Also with little polish and re-finish, it gives a new floor like look and feel.
Laminate Flooring on other hand would look like wood at first glance. However, it’s very different then the real Wood flooring. It is actually a thin decorative paper glued to a board below. The laminate flooring is very easy to apply and is also a very durable option. It’s also comparatively cheaper option then the hardwood flooring. Good quality laminates have borders which don’t chip or break easily. They can also sustain high impact caused due to falling of heavy objects on the floor.
Solid wood flooring can be made of many variety of wood. The common varieties are Oak, Maple, Beech, and Walnut. The Oak flooring, which is the most widely used variety, is described below.
Oak flooring, a popular type of wood flooring, is widely used in construction of health clubs, basketball courts, badminton courts, table tennis courts, and other such sports facilities. Red Oak is found on the southern and eastern sides of North America. It is coarse grained and has darker shades. The oak from these states also has black knots which look like black stains. The red oak found in Canada is lighter in color, less coarse and also with lesser knots. California gets a good supply of the first type of red oak.
White oak is harder then the red variety. However, its color tones are not as dark as the red oak varieties and the black knots are smaller and fewer in number. White oak comes from northern part of the United States. Next time, you are on the basketball court look down and try to see what type of oak floor you are standing on. Red oak also undergoes a slight color change with passage of time.
European floors have distinct features as compared to American floors. They have lesser number of black knots. Also the size of an average knot is smaller.
Buying a type of wood flooring requires some amount of research and judicious judgement. Any reputed flooring vendor would have a variety of oak flooring. A wooden floor has coats over it. With different variety, the number and quality of coats vary. Lacquer coat is the most commonly seen coating on them. The amount of load one can keep on the floor also varies from type to type. The size and number of black knots can also vary depending upon the oak floor type selected.
Oak tree is a symbol of longevity. Oak trees are known to stand for number of decades. Hence, the Oak flooring also has long life. Not only you but even a couple of future generations can use the same flooring with complete security and peace of mind.