Dreaming of hardwood?

(NC)—Homeowners love hardwood floors. And why not? Hardwood is beautiful and natural, with a warmth, richness, and elegance that enhances any living space.

Unfortunately, with thick-plank conventional hardwood, all that beauty comes at a price – literally - because solid hardwood flooring can be expensive to buy, messy and dusty to install, and also difficult to repair. These concerns cause homeowners to rule out hardwood, even when they prefer it as their “dream” floor.

Times are changing. Dreams can come true.

Welcome to the new world of engineered hardwood, where stunning wood surfaces are layered on reclaimed, high-density wood cores to create hardwood floors that are not only beautiful, but durable and highly resistant to dents and gaps.

In the past, hardwood floors required glue and nails for installation. Today, with modern “interlocking joint” technology between planks, flawless floors can be laid in less time, at reduced cost, without lingering odour or dust.

Some engineered hardwood floors come with a base layer of cork, a natural insulator that adds comfort underfoot and has surprising microbe-resistant qualities as well. This application of cork acts as a perfect underlay in most situations.

A world-class leader in these innovative hardwood floors is Canada's own TORLYS Smart Floors (torlys.com), based in Mississauga. TORLYS Hardwood comes in a wide selection of styles, colours and widths, with beveling, deep graining to “hand-scraped” finishes, all covered by a 25-year warranty.

Imagine: hardwood with all the beauty and none of the worries. It's finally here.

TIP: Engineered hardwood with advanced click-joint systems are an ideal choice for “difficult to install” spaces with concrete sub-floors – such as basements or new condominiums.