Oak flooring offers a super hard wood of fabulously tight grain and texture which enlivens any room or hallway.  Durable and pretty, oak wood is pretty much the North American standard for wood flooring. Oak is considered the locally superior wood product in the US owing partly to it’s prevalence as a native tree in the US’s bountiful natural forests.  It’s other excellent qualities, however, are simply legion.  Durable and extremely hard, oak flooring lasts longer, simply put.
It’s hardness is directly related to the tighter grained look which also gives oak is fascinating beauty.  Long admired for this durability, oak is also the primary choice of many cabinetry solutions, as well as being used in furniture, wall panelling,  and even cutting boards and counter tops.
Oak, naturally, like any hardwood, grows and matures slowly.  It is a renewable resource by virtue of its naturalness, but ever more rare in Nature owing to its predominant position as North America and Europe’s most excellent wood choice for construction and for general usage. Harvesting oak is more of a selective process than is the case with, say Douglas Fir.  Where Douglas Firs grow tightly enmeshed in huge and abundant Northwest forests, oak tends to grow in concert with very many other species of trees, necessitating a more expensive logging process.  Selective cutting is time consuming and expensive, resulting in a growing upward movement in pricing.
Permalink