WHY ALL FLORTEC?
Before we dive into the meat and potatoes of today’s blog, which involves a hefty amount of hardwood-floor-fact-providing, we’d like to remind our readers about what kind of flooring professionals we are. So, here it goes!
We are specialists in hardwood floor installation, refinishing, design, repair, and restoration, proudly serving New Jersey and New York for both residential and commercial flooring projects. While hardwood flooring will always be our bread and butter, we also provide molding and tile installations from porcelain to ceramic — old floor restorations are our passion!
No matter the scope of the project, we put our clients first in all that we do, from operating with respect in your home or business to hiring an experienced staff with advanced machinery. Put it all together and you have a world-class hardwood flooring company.
If you are interested in learning more about our commercial project history, some of our recent commercial clientele and projects include:
- Panera Bread- Philadelphia Pa & Moorestown, NJ
- The Long Horn Steak House- Rochelle Park, NJ
- Pizzeria Uno– Wayne NJ & Somerville, NJ
- St. Peter’s College – Jersey City, NJ
- “The Gym”- Armonk, NY
James Hernandez, our owner and founder, is a licensed flooring contractor who has over two decades of experience in the flooring industry. We don’t claim to be the fastest or the cheapest, but we do take pride in what we do. And what we do is install and repair beautiful wood floors all over New Jersey and New York!
FASCINATING FLOORING FACTS
Now that we’ve established who we are and what we can do for home and business owners in the area, it’s high time we started listing some fascinating flooring facts! Whether you are a fan of interesting lists or you are considering getting hardwood flooring installed in your home, either way you should read on! Let’s dive in.
The Janka hardness test involves measuring the force needed to embed a .444 inch steel ball to its radius (half way) in the wood. Essentially, the higher the number, the wood is. The Janke test is performed on both sides and the end of the wood because hardness always varies with the grain of the wood in question.
The Red Oak has a Janka rating of 1290. This is used as the industry benchmark for determining the relative hardness of various species of wood.The harder wood is, the less apt it is to get dented or gouged.
Going back in time, wood flooring was first utilized as a design element for a living space as early as 17th-century France. It was something of a status symbol, as only the social elites could afford solid-plank floors — any such floors were handcrafted and cost a pretty penny.
Machine-made hardwood flooring rose to prominence in the late 19th century, after the invention of the side matcher. This signaled the beginning of strip hardwood flooring.
Everything changed for our industry in 1926, when a young American inventor by the name of Art Emmons developed the portable electric belt floor sander. Instead of scraping blades across the floor by hand, hardwood floor installations were now significantly more efficient.Despite the improved efficiency the electric sander provided, hardwood installation remained a taxing, labor-intensive project well into the 40s and 50s. Projects needed professionals to sand, paint two coats of shellac and wax. The upkeep was not much fun either; hardwood floors needed to be waxed every week.
The wood flooring industry took a hard crash in the 60s, for several reasons. For one, the U.S. Federal Housing Authority approved carpeting to be included in 30-year mortgages. For another, the shift towards using concrete-slab foundations for home construction meant that hardwood couldn’t be installed due to the buildup of moisture between surfaces. Other flooring options became cheaper, and as a result, the hardwood flooring industry suffered greatly.
After the industry hit rock bottom in the early 1980s, wood flooring manufacturers pivoted to introduce prefinished hardwood flooring. Contractors were able to offer more stain, finishing, and species options, including traditional, engineered hardwood, prefinished, floating floors, glue-down hardwood, exotic hardwoods, and others.
Hardwood floors can last a lifetime. Assuming you take care of your wood floor properly, hardwood floors can last more than a century. Of course, finishes on hardwood usually last for a decade or so, but the same floor can be refinished numerous times. This makes hardwood floor not only a beautiful design choice, but a shrewd investment as well.
Hardwood floors are allergy-friendly, especially when compared with carpeting. Hardwood floors don’t trap mites, dust, bacteria, or anything like it, and that means people with allergies will be less affected than with carpet. Hardwood flooring is more easily cleaned as well, which has the net effect of fewer germs and less dust to contend with on a daily basis.
Hardwood flooring represents an eco-friendly flooring option because the manufacturing process requires fewer resources and less energy to be produced. Hardwood flooring absorbs carbon dioxide to boot, making your indoor air quality superior to carpeting in yet another way.
Hardwood floors help make small rooms look big. If you go with longer strips of flooring, it will lead to fewer end joints (which tend to be eyesores). This helps the room appear larger than it really is!
Hardwood floors increase the value of your home. Most people who are looking for a new home find hardwood flooring to be a major perk. What’s more, 90 percent of real estate agencies in London claim that homes with wood floors sell faster and for more money than those without!
A LIFETIME WARRANTY ON ALL WOOD FLOORING & REFINISHING
Our flooring company of New Jersey has a passion for bringing today’s decor to yesterday’s floors. Whether you are interested in a new (or repaired) hardwood floor, tile floor, or a brand new deck and patio, we are the experienced, passionate flooring contractors to get the job done. Request your free estimate at your convenience! We’d love to hear from you!