Top 10 Hardwood Flooring Trends 2022

Top 10 Hardwood Flooring Trends 2021

August 12, 2021

Patrick Gimmi

How Can You Tell the Quality of Hardwood Floors?

August 12, 2021

Patrick Gimmi

How can you tell the quality of a hardwood floor?

The Quality of a Parquet is Considered high if the following conditions apply:

a robust and hardy type of wood
a thick, solid wear layer
a strong, well-glued carrier plate
high-quality workmanship
a resilient surface treatment
trustworthy material origin and brand

In the following sections, we will detail the individual bullet points and explain them clearly so that you never have to worry about being ripped off.

Important side-note: Always pay attention to ALL points as a whole - a parquet may excel in one or two aspects, but if it fails in the other categories, it is very likely not a high-quality investment.

The Six Factors of Parquet Quality

Wood Type and Durability

The service life is one of the most important factors that influence the quality of any hardwood floor. Durability, which determines service life, depends on many aspects. One of the most important aspects is the type of wood the flooring is made of.

Hard and heavy types of wood such as tropical woods or hardy native species such as oak or elm are ideal candidates for durable, long-lasting parquets.

Hard species of wood are not so easy to damage and tend to be less susceptible to moisture than soft types of wood. They usually have little swelling and shrinking behavior, which makes them more durable and more suitable for boards in larger formats.

The trees of these types of wood are usually old at the time of felling. The resulting parquet flooring is, therefore, tougher. Soft tree species tend to be felled earlier in their growth. This is one of the reasons why their wood fibers are less compact.

The rule of thumb: The sturdier and heavier a type of wood, the higher quality the parquet produced from it is.

Wear Layer

The wear layer thickness is a clear indicator of the planned lifespan of a parquet board. The thicker the wear layer, the more often the parquet can be sanded - and the longer you can have it installed.

The wear layer is the top layer of wood on an engineered floor and is, therefore, the "heart" (or rather, the skin) of every wooden floor. It defines the parquet and is by far the most expensive element in it.

The thicker the wear layer, the more "tree" there is on the board. Accordingly, the parquet is also more expensive. A plank may only be called "parquet" if the wear layer is more than 2 mm (1/16th inch) thick - before that, it is only "veneer wood".

We at Ryser Böden only sell parquet with a minimum wear layer of 3 mm. However, we usually recommend wooden floors with a wear layer thickness of at least 3-4 mm (1/8th inch), provided that the floor covering is planned to be used for decades.

Carrier Plate

The base layer (or carrier layer) of a parquet usually consists of several thin layers of glued plywood. The following typically applies here: the fewer layers the entire carrier plate itself has, the inferior the plank.

High-quality carrier plates have several layers of different (mainly coniferous) woods glued to each other alternately along the grain. The arrangement in an alternating pattern ensures a reduced swelling and shrinking behavior of the plank, as the individual wood layers' fiber expansion mutually minimizes the other.

Additional work steps are necessary for processing a parquet with many layers, which understandably increases the price. But, more thin layers are less susceptible to changes in humidity than fewer but thicker layers. So, concerning the carrier plate, you can draw conclusions about the quality based on the price.

Processing and Workmanship

The processing is the most apparent factor for parquet quality and, at the same time, the most opaque. But how can you recognize high-quality workmanship in parquet?

As is so often the case, the details determine this factor to a large extent. Have the edges of the boards been sanded clean, and is the surface of the panels even? If so, you can assume that the processing is very accurate.

Poor quality hardwood boards often have flaws. You should pay attention to the following "quirks":

wood fibers protruding or broken off
excessive use of filler material
unsightly, unevenly sanded edges
oil or paint stains on the surface
dried-up impurities (dirt, hair, etc.)
gaps between the wear layer and carrier plate
brittle parts in the wood
varying board thicknesses (this causes edge offset)

If you recognize one or more of these signs in a parquet, you should pay attention to the price.

If the price point is relatively low, you should assume that what you're looking at is cheaply produced and most likely bulk ware with lousy quality control.

Also, if the price is moderate to expensive, we recommend the following: Stay away! This parquet is not worth the cost.

Quick side-note: There are wooden floors that purposefully have certain "defects" engineered into them. For example, some manufacturers vary boards thickness and unevenly sand off edges to make a wooden floor look more rustic. This, obviously, has no impact on quality whatsoever.

That said, the probability of invisible defects during processing (short-lived glue, toxic chemicals in the carrier layer, etc.) is high if the number of visible inaccuracies is high.

In the case of poorly processed goods, typically, almost every aspect mentioned is inferior. For example, at Ryser Böden, we have never come across a poorly produced cherry wood parquet with a 6-millimetre wear layer - that would make no sense.

Surface Treatment

As described in other articles, the surface treatment type and quality are decisive for a wooden floor's appearance, robustness, service life (and much more).

A good quality oil or a solid varnish can make the difference between "alright" and "wow!".

The finish on a wooden floor impacts the durability and thus the quality significantly.

Should you choose oil or varnish? This choice can significantly impact the properties of a wooden floor, but this is not the topic of this article. If you're interested, you can find out more here.

However, it is essential to know that the price of a hardwood floor, whether oiled or varnished, doesn't change significantly.

Still, the quality of the product that was used to treat the surface is crucial. And, as is so often the case, higher quality equals higher prices. The same goes for oils and varnishes.

How can you tell which surface treatment was used on a pre-fab parquet? There are the following options:

Ask your parquet salesman
Ask the parquet manufacturer (google)

If neither option bears fruit, you will be hard-pressed to find the exact surface treatment.

This circumstance is one of the reasons why we as a company finish a large part of our wooden floors ourselves with oil or varnish. This way, we always know which surface treatment is on which flooring.

There is another hidden advantage to treating parquet yourself: We can use the same products again to repair any parquet damage (even after years).

Brand and Origin

As usual in every industry, the brand behind the product already says a lot about the expected quality. People associate the "Bentley" brand with high-quality cars, right? The same applies to parquet.

You may not know a lot about parquet manufacturer brands. And while that is fine, we recommend that you do at least some research if you're looking to buy a new hardwood floor. If you are interested in a specific parquet, we advise you to research the brand behind it. Find out more about the company in question.

Otherwise, you can ask your parquet salesman what he thinks of this specific parquet manufacturer. Most sellers answer honestly - they don't want to sell you a parquet that cannot meet the quality requirements.

The origin of the parquet and its components can also provide information about the quality. For example, it is widely accepted that perfectionism is pronounced in Central European countries such as Switzerland and Germany. In these countries, even the slightest inaccuracy in cutting wood gets criticized. A similar deviation is often within tolerance in other parts of the world.

There are several factors that you should consider when thinking about purchasing wooden flooring from distant regions. The most important factor, in our opinion, is the certification for sustainability.

Although this factor has little to do with quality, it has a lot to do with environmental protection and excessive clearing of forests. Also, freight forwarding over thousands of kilometres makes no sense from an ecological point of view.

You should pay special attention to tropical woods. Make sure you see an FSC certification on flooring made of such precious exotic woods. Please. We despise parquet manufacturers who do not produce sustainably.

We cannot tell you which brands and countries of manufacture you should prefer when choosing a parquet. It is also not possible to say precisely which ones are the highest quality ones. Only your experience can tell you this.

In other words: You're going to have to go with your gut feeling.

The Mix Defines the Quality

As mentioned at the beginning of the article, it is crucial always to keep an eye on all aspects of quality. The overall mixture of the six aspects makes a specific wooden floor appear to be of high or correspondingly low quality.

If your dream parquet scores slightly below average on one or two points, you don't have to worry. However, you should be suspicious of certain aspects if its performance is well below average.

For example, you should NEVER choose a mahogany parquet that is FSC-certified, beautifully processed and has a wear layer thickness of 5 mm if you can see from a distance that the wear layer is peeling off due to poor gluing.

In conclusion: Don't be too blinded by little things and use your common sense when selecting a high-quality hardwood floor. The overall performance of a wooden floor defines the quality, but a single aspect that is far below average can destroy the "wood floor experience".

If you are unsure, please ask a specialist you trust. You can do that via our contact page, for example. Thanks for reading.

OUR NEWEST ARTICLES:

Top 10 Hardwood Flooring Trends 2022

Juli 20, 2021

Patrick Gimmi

Why do Hardwood Floors Squeak? [And How to Fix it]

Juli 20, 2021

Patrick Gimmi

Parquet creaks and squeaks due to many reasons

Why Does Parquet Squeak?

When a parquet creaks, it has to do with the fact that two or more elements rub against each other under load and generate noise in the process. This noise happens because the wood rubs against nails, walls, or other wooden elements.

It is essential to know that a creaking sound can only occur if there is enough play. In other words: a parquet must be able to move.

If a parquet is entirely (and correctly) glued to the sub-floor, there is hardly any play. So there can be hardly any squeaking or creaking. However, if the wooden flooring has not been glued, it can move around under load and thus rub against other elements.

This begs the question: "Which elements do we mean, and how do you fix a corresponding creak?"

Nailed Wood Floors

The really creaky wooden floors are the ones that are nailed to the subflooring. Such parquets can usually only be found in old houses. They squeak ever so lovely (or hideously) when you walk over them.

This squeaking is caused by the friction of the wood on the fastening nails. The rubbing up and down on the nails while walking generates a sound that gets conducted through the floor and projected into the room and often the neighboring rooms.

The older a nailed wooden floor, the looser its nails get. Thus, creaking usually increases over time. If you're bothered by a creaky parquet floor, there are a few tactics to remedy the situation.

To fixate a floor so that you can't see the nails themselves, you have to nail diagonally through the side of the plank into the subfloor.

Get Rid of the Squeaking Caused by Nails

If the nails are visible on a creaky wooden floor, you can try to grease them up with lubricating oil or graphite to reduce friction. Unfortunately, this only makes sense for very local applications and usually does not last very long. Also, you can't lubricate nails you can't see.

Reducing friction is the only option that you can quickly implement. For the other alternatives below, it is advisable to hire a professional.

The next major operation would be to remove the nails from the afflicted parquet and either replace them with new nails or with screws. Screws require more space, but they prevent annoying creaking almost 100%. This procedure works with both exposed and hidden nails.

Sometimes it is necessary to replace the entire subfloor (also called screed) in order to construct a new sub-structure. Often, the same flooring can then be re-laid on top again. Although this procedure is laborious, the squeaking disappears completely with correct installation.

As a last option, the complete replacement of everything including the screed and parquet can be considered. This saves a lot of effort and is usually the simplest solution to the problem.

Astonishingly, it is also often less expensive than renovating and reusing the old floor covering - albeit less environmentally friendly.

Floating Hardwood Floors

If a parquet was professionally laid floating, the risk of it creaking is quite minuscule, but it can still happen. In such a case, the following may be the cause:

The flooring on which the parquet lays is too uneven. As a result, when walked on, the boards move up and down excessively.
The impact sound insulation that was underlain is too soft and leaves the parquet too much room to move.
Moisture penetrates through the underlay and causes parts of the parquet to dampen and swell. Damp sections between the boards (e.g., tongue and groove) no longer fit perfectly and begin to squeak under pressure and movement.
The room temperature fluctuates too much and causes the planks to shift and warp excessively over time. This creates unequal pressure conditions between the parquet boards, which are shifted by walking loads. These shifts in pressure make a creaky noise.

Floating parquet makes a lot of sense when it comes to reducing footfall noise, especially in the rooms below. You have to consider that a non-anchored / glued-down parquet can creak under load and thus generate a different type of noise (especially room noise), though.

Noise reduction is a good reason to choose sound impact insulation.

The floating installation significantly reduces the sound of foot impact in the rooms below. Unfortunately, it increases room noise in turn, making your footsteps much more audible within the same four walls.

How do you fix the creaking of a floating parquet?

If the cause for the squeaking is the unevenness of the screed, the best thing to do is to have the parquet removed, level the floor underneath, and then put the parquet (or a new one) back on it.
If it creaks because the impact sound insulation is too soft, you have to replace it. In other words: parquet out, replace insulation, then parquet back in.
If it is due to the moisture from the concrete or the lower floors, you must also remove the parquet (and let it dry). But then, you must lay a so-called vapor barrier under the impact sound mat, which retains the moisture from below. You can then spread the wood floor on it again, should the boards have regenerated sufficiently.
If the cause is room temperature fluctuation, you have two options: First, you should ensure that the temperature and humidity no longer fluctuate as much. Second, you would have to install a wooden floor that does not swell and shrink as much under the influence of humidity.

But what should you do if the creaking isn't coming from the parquet itself but rather from the baseboards?

Luckily, this is an infrequent scenario. It usually means that the wooden floor has expanded and is now rubbing against the walls under the skirting boards.

When you step on the afflicted regions, the parquet grates either against the walls or the baseboards. Such grating produces a noise similar to parquet creaking, albeit slightly more dull and scratchy.

If this is the case, all that remains is to either trim the parquet along the edge or to lay an entirely new one.

The first solution is a little unattractive and only really works if you also have baseboards to "cover up the mess". But yes, it is financially more attractive than the second solution.

The latter is the "comme-il-faut" variant that we usually recommend because it rarely brings new complications.

Fully Glued Hardwood Flooring

With fully glued parquet floors, you significantly reduce the risk of creaking noises. Since the boards are firmly glued down to the sub-floor, there is almost no play - even under load.

However, in extremely rare cases, creaking can occur. It then usually has to do with the fact that the floor underneath is uneven or the glue used has become brittle.

A high-quality adhesive lasts longer and prevents many problems in the long term.

In more modern buildings, it rarely happens that a poured foundation (usually with flowing concrete) is uneven. Therefore, squeaking wooden floors are very rare in newer buildings, even if cheaper glue was used.

In old houses, it can very well happen that the subflooring is uneven. Sometimes, this is even strongly the case. In such scenarios, you have to tear out the parquet and lay a new. While doing so, you must level out the subsurface. Otherwise, you are bound to have the same problem again in a few years.

In short, if a parquet is fully glued and still starts creaking, it usually has to be lifted out completely. You should then level the subfloor and glue the new flooring down with a high-quality adhesive.

You Have a Creaky Hardwood Floor - What Now?

As you can see, parquet creaking can have many causes and solutions. You may now be able to determine for yourself which reason is the actual cause in your scenario.

However, if you would like help and advice, we (or your trusted flooring expert) will be happy to assist you. Do not hesitate to contact us, and we will help you reduce those noisy creaks and squeaks so you can finally go to the bathroom again at night without waking up the whole house.

Now, you have not only learned the reasons behind squeaky flooring but learned something about floating and glued parquet floors as well. We will be happy to introduce you to more about this in one of our future articles. Stay tuned for more, and thanks for reading.

Our newest articles in english:

Top 10 Hardwood Flooring Trends 2022

Top 10 Hardwood Flooring Trends 2021

Juni 9, 2021

Patrick Gimmi

Top 10 Hardwood Flooring Trends 2021

Juni 9, 2021

Patrick Gimmi

The top 10 hardwood flooring trends for the year 2021

Read the article in:
GERMAN

Trends are constantly changing. They change from year to year and bring momentum to every industry - including the parquet industry!

To keep up with trends, it is vital to analyze the market at an early stage. So you can find out in which direction trends are moving and whether (and how) you can even be at the forefront.

Recognizing and even helping to develop hardwood flooring trends is very important to us. We want to present the most modern and progressive hardwood flooring fashion to you so you always know what is hot and currently brings you the highest ROI (return on investment).

Well-chosen, contemporary flooring increases the value and attractiveness of a property enormously.

After an extensive market analysis, we proudly present to you our "Top 10 parquet trends for the year 2021":

10. Natural wood colors (natural look)
9. Smoked oak
8. Bamboo parquet
7. Industrial parquet
6. Parquet in bathroom and kitchen
5. Oak planks
4. Skirting boards as a design element
3. Ecology and environmental awareness
2. Customizable parquet
1. The top trend in 2021: ???

Are you ready for our full ranking in detail? Let's start the countdown to this year's number 1 among the hardwood flooring trends.

10. Natural Wood Color (Natural Look)

Nature and its colors are becoming more prevalent indoors. Wood and natural textiles are a clear trend in 2021, not only for floor coverings but also for furniture and decorative items.

Everything should be and look as natural as possible. Accordingly, pastel tones are fashionable for textiles - not over-saturated colors that indicate excessive dying. Sand and off-white tones, which suggest natural cotton, are the big sellers this year.

This trend isn't significantly different for parquet. The demand for white-oiled floorboards is falling, while that for naturally-oiled parquet is increasing.

An oak wood floor with a natural oil finish.

By using so-called "natural oil finishes", the wood retains its natural color and feel. It looks elegant and "tamed" but at the same time left with its original look as if it were still raw wood.

A natural oil finish makes the connection to nature in your own four walls not only visible but also palpable.

9. Smoked Oak is Growing in Popularity

Do you know how elegant, warm brown oak wood looks? Do you know why the branches and annual rings of oak often stick out so firmly and thus fully express the character of the wood? Only smoked oak has these attractive characteristics.

Oak planks that lay in a smokehouse turn dark brown over time. In addition, some aspects of the wood become darker and more vibrant in color faster than others.

The branches and annual rings take on the darker shade more quickly than the rest of the wood fibers - this is how the well-known "smoked look" is created.

Smoked oak in its purest form - also with a natural oil finish.

Smoked oak is not only visually beautiful but also very interesting because of certain improved properties. It is a little more robust and stain-resistant than unsmoked wood. Therefore, it requires less aggressive surface treatments to withstand demanding loads.

Smoked oak looks very natural and is therefore gaining in popularity, as already described under #10.

If a parquet made of smoked oak gets treated with ecological parquet oil, it looks (even more) modern - more about this trend in #3.

8. Bamboo Flooring is on the Rise Again

From a biological point of view, bamboo is not wood but grass. Nonetheless, it has been used to manufacture "wood" flooring for a long time.

Many do not know that bamboo is even harder than oak, making it very suitable as a floor covering. Bamboo parquet was already popular in the 1970s and 80s. But since then (unfortunately or fortunately), it has been forgotten.

Nowadays, bamboo is experiencing a "revival" again. Even if we do not register any increased interest here at Ryser Böden, we know of the increasing global demand - primarily because more and more bamboo products are flooding the market every day.

However, it will be a while before flooring made of bamboo truly finds its way back to Switzerland, Germany, and Austria.

Since there are hardly any European bamboo parquet manufacturers, we, as bamboo flooring sellers, will have to be patient. From our perspective, it makes no sense to import bamboo from distant countries and unnecessarily pollute the environment due to freight forwarding - even if bamboo is generally considered ecological.

7. Industrial Style Paired With Industrial Parquet

The well-known and modern industrial style, which consists mainly of exposed concrete and brick elements with dark gray-colored and rustic wooden accents, has been in trend for several years.

Industrial parquet is a perfect match for this (interior) architectural fad, both visually and functionally. The upright, rowed mosaic pattern brings a kind of visual robustness and strength to a room like hardly any other floor covering and thus goes exceptionally well with the industrial look.

This trend in industrial parquet is growing increasingly noticeable since last year, so by now, it can no longer be neglected.

Industrial style wood flooring has a modern look.

The demand for this is steadily increasing - even if mainly only from architecture offices and not (yet) from private customers.

6. Parquet in Bathrooms and Kitchens

In our last year's report on the parquet trends for 2020, we described the popular technique of uniform laying of parquet floors in all rooms of a property (at that time in 10th place). This is nowadays hardly a fad but rather a custom.

However, not everyone wants to have parquet in kitchens and bathrooms. Many customers do not yet fully trust a wooden floor when it comes to water or oil stains. However, this distrust is now entirely unreasonable and has been for a few years already.

People are beginning to realize that parquet floors can actually be very suitable for bath and kitchen areas - but it always depends on the execution - more on this topic in another article.

Two trends in one: industrial style plus wooden flooring in the kitchen.

In any case, parquet is becoming increasingly common in bathrooms and kitchens. This is mostly because more and more advanced surface treatments are being developed for wooden floors.

Well-engineered, high-quality parquet oils make it even easier for parquet enthusiasts to have a wooden floor installed even in rooms that were previously deemed "unsuitable".

5. Oak Planks are Still a go-to

This trend will inevitably persist in 2021. Even if customers are increasingly interested in other parquet woods and formats, they still often resort to the classic oak plank 1-strip.

As in the previous year, oak is the most popular wood for hardwood floors. Oak is a robust type of wood that is very suitable for flooring. Oak parquet - especially in a one-strip plank pattern - is a timeless eye-catcher.

There are many other reasons why oak planks are still one of the top trends of the year. You can find out more about this in our article on oak parquet.

4. Baseboards as a Design Element

This is certainly not a trend that you would have expected, is it? Neither did we, but the signs are unmistakable.

Our customers are increasingly asking for baseboards that are not only classically white and inconspicuously small and simple. More often, they now ask for curved and elegantly decorated skirting boards to perfectly pair your floor to the walls.

Often the desired boards are even more than 10 cm (4 inches) high and curved at the top so that their design is reminiscent of noble French châteaus.

Elegantly designed baseboards are trending in 2021- — Elegantly designed baseboards are trending in 2021.

Though we predict that the times of simple, inconspicuous skirting boards are far from over, they face increasing competition. We look forward to being able to install decorated skirting boards more and more frequently.

What we are already increasingly offering our customers are solid wood baseboards colored to match the flooring. These are currently an absolute favorite.

Such perfectly coordinated skirting boards round off the image of a (primarily customized) parquet perfectly. Skirting boards that used to be something you just did or didn't install are now more often used as actual design elements.

3. Ecology and Environmental Awareness

We have already reached third place on our trends list for 2021. Unlike the previous position, it is clear to everyone why this one has made it onto our list: it is a global and omnipresent trend.

There has also been increased awareness of environmental issues in the parquet industry for some time now. Hardwood flooring should be as sustainable as possible. Make sure to choose local woods for your flooring endeavors.

Therefore, more and more companies are paying attention to environmentally conscious behavior and advocating sustainable raw materials and production.

We warmly welcome this trend because we've been riding this wave for a long time. Now more and more customers are jumping up and leaning in the direction of sustainable flooring.

Three aspects are particularly crucial to our customers:

The wood used for the parquet should come from Switzerland or Europe if possible. This prevents long, unnecessary transport routes that pollute the environment. At the same time, it strengthens the local/regional markets.

We suggest you do the same with the country in which you live.

If possible, the wooden floor should consist of reclaimed wood (antique/old wood), which has been refreshed. After all, there is nothing more ecological than upcycling a renewable material.

Solvent-free and environmentally friendly (even vegan) surface treatments and varnishes are increasingly preferred. Modern technologies ensure that their performance hardly differs from conventional products.

All aspects shape the trend of increased environmental awareness in Ryser Böden and the whole of Switzerland and the surrounding countries.

This is exactly why we as a company focus strongly on ecology and install European and Swiss products and use (where possible) environmentally conscious surface treatments. We also plant one tree for every square meter of wooden flooring we install.

2. Customizable Parquet

Yes, last year's trend # 1 has been pushed down to the second place. Nonetheless, it is an important one.

The will to constantly customize everything is important to more and more people - and rightly so! When you have the opportunity to get exactly what you always wanted, you should finally seize the opportunity.

What is hardly feasible with mass-produced goods works flawlessly with personalization methods. At least for small to medium quantities. In this way, you can modify the perfect product down to the last detail.

Oak parquet flooring can be designed and colored in a multitude of ways. There are endless possiblities. — Oak parquet flooring can be designed and colored in a multitude of ways. There are endless possibilities.

Since last year, over 80% of our customers use this service! Thanks to our infrastructure and our trained staff, we can create samples on-site and then complete the finished floor of your choice. Who wouldn't want to benefit from that?

Mostly it is oiled oak parquet, which our customers request. The color of the planks should correspond precisely to the individual wishes (nowadays mainly in a kind of natural look, like in #10), and the feel/structure of the surface should also be realistic yet robust.

We hope and expect that this trend will continue or even intensify in the future. In this way, we can provide all customers with precisely the hardwood floor they have always wanted.

You can find out more about the many customization options in our corresponding article.

1. The Top Trend in 2021: Angular Installation Patterns

Who would have thought? Angular patterns are at the top of the trend ranking this year! In our last report, they were only in 7th place.

The demand for herringbone and chevron laying styles rose significantly late last year - more than any other trend on this list. Previously, only a few customers wanted an angular installation pattern, but there has been a fundamental rethink over the past few months.

Now herringbone patterns and noble chevron parquet flooring are super popular. They are an excellent match for modern interior design, and this is probably why they are becoming increasingly desired - albeit unconsciously.

Chevron Flooring is the #1 trend in 2021

An angular laying pattern gives every room an elegant and sublime look. You automatically feel comfortable and a little "in the lap of luxury" when you're the owner of a chevron or herringbone parquet. It is therefore hardly surprising that this trend is snowballing nowadays. After all, more and more people are spending time at home.

GOOD TO KNOW: HOW DO WE MEASURE PARQUET TRENDS?

Finally, we would like to explain to you how we are able to create a ranking list like this:

Are we just estimating our expectations for the coming year on what we deem suitable, or are we basing our future visions on concrete, analyzed data? Well, a little bit of both.

On the one hand, we know which types and forms of parquet we are currently selling and laying the most in our company. So we see and understand the demand (at least in our customer segment and in our region) perfectly.

On the other hand, through our 40 years of experience in the industry, we have made many connections, which constantly provide us with new information about sales and customer requests.

In addition, we use analysis tools on our website (like all others), which allow us to analyze general user behavior. This helps us to quickly find out which elements on our website are the most popular and seem to be more in demand over time.

Finally, we should say that we also conduct extensive internet research on the subject. There are simple and reliable tools that can help, such as Google Trends.

We take a snapshot from these four data sources and create a (partly subjective) trend curve. We ask ourselves: "What is currently in the greatest demand, and where is this demand heading?"

We compile our list from a combination of the answers to both questions. Voilà! This is how we create our top 10 parquet trends for you year after year.

Our Newest Articles in English:

Top 10 Hardwood Flooring Trends 2022

Top 10 Hardwood Flooring Trends 2021

Mai 26, 2021

Patrick Gimmi

Which Hardwood Floor is the Most Durable?

Mai 26, 2021

Patrick Gimmi

Ryser Boeden the most durable hardwood floor BANNER.png

What Makes a Parquet Durable?
How Do You Increase The Robustness of a Parquet?
Which Veneer Best Increases Durability?
Which Robust Types of Wood Are There?
Which Type of Wood is The Least Sensitive?
The Build of a Durable Hardwood Floor
The Winner of Our Analysis
Our Ranking for The Most Durable Hardwood Floors

Read this article in:
GERMAN

A high-quality hardwood floor gives every home an elegant look. However, parquet requires regular maintenance to last for a long time and remains resistant to stains, matting, damage, etc.

It's not only the amount of care you put into it that makes a difference but also the veneer (oil or lacquer) and the selected type of wood that is used for the parquet. Not surprisingly, some types of wood are more durable than others.

How robust a parquet is, always depends on how it is treated. When buying a hardwood floor, you can positively influence the expected service life and ease of maintenance by paying attention to some of the factors that we’ll describe in this article.

Which is the most durable hardwood Floor?

The most durable hardwood floor is a well-built multi-layer, engineered parquet made of Wenge (also called Wengé) which has a top layer of around 4-5 mm (3/16 inch) thickness. It must also have a high-quality plywood backing layer and have been treated with modern high-end hard wax oil.

But how do we come to this conclusion, and which woods are in second and third place?

What Makes a Parquet "Durable"?

"Durable" is the term used to describe a hardwood floor that can withstand a wide range of stresses and strains without being damaged. Durability requires:

A high level of moisture resistance
A hard surface
A solid backing layer
Good growing and shrinking properties

The hardness, elasticity, and moisture resistance determine whether a type of wood is robust or sensitive. Hardness ensures a very durable surface that is more likely to withstand stress. On the other hand, a high level of elasticity is particularly advantageous during installation, as the wood is usually easier to work with.

To find out how hard a type of wood is, it is worth taking a look at the density of the wood. The denser the wood, the more steadfast it is. The fiber density also determines the hardness.

The thickness of the hardwood flooring (or its top layer) also influences the robustness. Thick layers of wood are more robust and can be sanded down more frequently and thus “renewed” or “refreshed”. Parquets with a thick top layer are therefore more durable.

The top layer is the “heart” of a hardwood floor - the carrier layer is the backbone.

Many other factors influence the resistance and durability of hardwood flooring. For example, the right care and veneer can make a wooden floor even less sensitive.

How Do You Increase the Robustness of a Parquet?

Once the floor has been installed, it helps to ensure that it is properly cared for. You should distinguish between the maintenance of an oiled floor and a varnished (sealed/lacquered) parquet.

Oil veneer let’s wood breath and keep its natural qualities.

Contrary to popular belief, an oiled floor does not need more care than a floor that is sealed with a lacquer - but rather different care. Since oiled floors let air and moisture in and out, they are much more similar to raw wood. A sealed hardwood floor has a very impermeable veneer applied, which shields from moisture and dirt particles. Sadly, it also inhibits air exchange. This can be a good and a bad thing.

However, if moisture does get into a sealed parquet when it gets too wet, damage can sometimes be irreparable. This is one reason why nowadays, we at Ryser Böden recommend using high-quality parquet oil instead of a varnish. You can find out more about parquet oil in our german article on the topic.

Which Veneer Best Increases Durability?

Lacquered parquets have to be completely sanded down more often than oiled floors. This shortens the service life of the floor covering because, at some point, the top layer is sanded away too much. Oiled floors, especially those oiled with hard wax, can sometimes only be sanded down and refreshed locally by hand.

Since varnishes are scratched more quickly than surfaces oiled with hard wax and standing moisture can damage sealed wood floors much more, the winner in terms of durability is hard wax oil.

The best option is a parquet oil that has a high proportion of wax and is (or can be) refined with a hardener of sorts.

A high-quality hard wax oil protects wood from stains, moisture, scratches, excessive abrasion, and fiber tears. In addition, it can be refreshed and cleaned all in one step. Nowadays, this is made possible by using certain cleaning products that have added wood care components in them.

When cleaning, you should ensure that you use mild detergents and only wipe with a damp/wet cotton cloth (not a dripping wet one). This is important, so the wood retains sufficient moisture to stay “healthy” but also does not swell due to excessive moisture.

Which Robust Types of (Parquet-)Wood Are There?

The type of wood used for flooring has a lot of influence on how durable the floor is. All woods have different elasticity and hardness. Oak, Ash, or Red Beech from the northern hemisphere are among the most robust flooring woods, but so are more exotic woods such as Doussié, Teak, Ebony, and Wenge.

These woods are particularly suitable for rooms such as hallways, kitchens, or children's rooms. Due to their natural robustness, they can withstand greater stresses and strains like moving furniture, pet claws, and heavy usage. In addition, scratches and the like are usually less noticeable than on softer woods.

Oak parquet is one of today's favorites, partly due to its diversity in appearance and high value for money.

Less durable types of wood are, for example, spruce, fir, or larch. These are more suitable for bedrooms or living rooms.

Which Type of Wood is The Least Sensitive?

Contrary to popular belief, the most durable wood for interior hardwood flooring isn't Brazilian Walnut (Ipé) but rather another tropical wood: Wenge.

Wenge is the most insensitive wood that is used for the interior. This is mainly due to its density. The density is very high, making the wood extremely hard and heavy (similar to Brazilian Walnut).

Wenge is dark and absolutely beautiful. | Source: 3ab

But, Wenge shrinks and grows less under the influence of temperature and moisture compared to Brazilian Walnut. This makes it much more resistant to seasonality, daily temperature changes, and suboptimal care, making it much more durable in the long run.

Wenge is also much easier to apply veneer to since it reacts slightly better to it.

However, Wenge is rather expensive, which makes perfect sense when you look at a Wenge floor. In a modern home, a wenge parquet can give any room a seriously classy look. The wood is almost black and always looks elegant.

Unfortunately, it is a tropical wood, which (in the northern hemisphere) is not ideal from an ecological perspective. The installation of Wenge into homes should, therefore, only be carried out with certified wood.

The tropical wood Doussié also has a similar density but is not quite as hard and durable as wenge. Like Wenge, Doussié is usually of very high quality, albeit less expensive on average.

An even less expensive alternative for flooring purposes is Oak. Although it is not as hard as Wenge or Doussié, it still convinces with its above-average robustness. In addition, Oak can easily be designed in different ways - in other words: it can take on many shapes, colors, and styles.

Oak wood can be modified to fit any style and preference.

The Build of a Durable Hardwood Floor

As we've already described in a few of our articles, parquet is of higher quality if it has a solid, well-glued backing layer.

In addition to being easy and uncomplicated to lay, this makes it particularly resistant to fluctuations in temperature and humidity. Thus, a high-quality engineered multi-layer wood floor has much less swelling and shrinking properties than, for example, a solid wood floor. This is due to the plywood backing layer of an engineered parquet.

The in turn reduced movement between the boards increases the durability and service life of the floor.

The top layer should be at least 3-4 millimeters (3/16 inch) thick with a high-quality hardwood floor. For more expensive types of wood, we even recommend opting for thicker top layer variants (4-6 mm).

In short: the thicker and stronger said layer, the more durable the parquet. However, at a certain point, a multi-layer parquet with a top layer that is too thick resembles solid parquet too strongly. And, as we already know, this has its disadvantages.

The Winner of Our Analysis

In short, Wenge is the most robust wood for a parquet floor. The tropical wood is hefty and hard and is better protected against stains from moisture and pigmented substances. The very above-average hardness also ensures increased damage resistance.

The wood's ideal shrinking and growing properties make it very resistant to fluctuations in temperature and moisture, making a Wenge floor as carefree as wooden floors can get.

The right surface treatment - we recommend a strong hard wax oil - gives a Wenge parquet even more durability. Ideally cared for and regularly cleaned, such a floor covering will surely last for three generations.

Wenge just looks classy and sophisticated. | Source: Schubert Stone

Such an investment is particularly worthwhile in family properties; for example: Towards the end of the lifespan of a Wenge parquet (> 50 years), the floor already has the status of antique wood, which in turn even increases its value.

Wenge is a very dark type of wood, so you can quickly spot dust and similar light particles. This is simply a part of having dark floors, and because of this, you may have to vacuum the floor more often than, for example, a Doussié floor, which is lighter.

In our eyes, Doussié is the second most durable wooden floor. A parquet made from Doussié is almost as robust as Wenge but has the advantage of a lighter look, which is why it is less easy to see dust, dirt, and scratches. It even has better shrinking and growing properties than Wenge.

The third-place alternative for us, and much more ecological, is the popular Oak. Although it is not quite as robust as the tropical woods we mentioned, it is very hardy compared to other native species.

The environmental footprint of oak is undoubtedly better than that of tropical woods, as it is grown locally in Europe and the US. The transport routes are significantly shorter, and sustainable reforestation is more likely to be secured.

However, if you prefer dark and elegant floor coverings, value maximum durability and ease of use, and can afford it financially, you should have Wenge installed.

It is essential to pay attention to certifications for sustainable cultivation, though. We cannot approve of anything else.

For more environmentally conscious people, we recommend an oak floor. The options for hardwood floors made of oak are almost limitless.

Our Ranking for the Most Durable Hardwood Floors:

Wenge (Wengé)
Doussié (Afzelia)
Oak

In all cases, the most durable wooden floor is an engineered parquet with a hard wax oil veneer. The top layer should be around 4 to 5 millimeters thick, and the build should be of high quality.

We usually recommend opting for oak parquet, though. With oak, the value for money is usually best, and the sustainability of production is most likely to be ensured.

Our Newest Articles in English:

Top 10 Hardwood Flooring Trends 2022

Top 10 Hardwood Flooring Trends 2021