It’s Hard to Beat Oak Floors for Durability, Beauty, and Affordability
We love oak flooring at Empire Today®, and there are many good reasons why it’s the most common hardwood flooring material in use today. It offers a natural beauty and impressive durability while being one of the more affordable solid hardwood materials on the market. You can’t go wrong by telling your flooring professional that you’d like oak floors. But when shopping for a wood flooring selection, you’ll probably find yourself needing to make one more decision. Should you opt for red oak or white oak flooring?
Red oak and white oak are the two main species of oak flooring. While they both offer all of the aforementioned qualities, they do differ in enough ways that it’s worth knowing the difference and considering both red and white oak flooring while in your home renovation journey. Here are some important facts about white oak floors.
How is White Oak Flooring Different from Red Oak Flooring?
While red oak flooring is known for the distinct red and pink elements to its coloring, white oak’s name can’t be taken as literally. In general, natural white oak will have a somewhat darker overall tone than the name would suggest, with mostly a light tan or yellow coloring to the wood. White oak’s dark brown grain is tight and uniform. This neutral tone and calm grain pattern make white oak flooring something of an aesthetic all-arounder—it accepts a wide range of stains well and can mesh with many different interior design schemes. Oak hardwood flooring can last many decades with proper maintenance, and white oak’s agreeable appearance means that future total-room makeovers are less likely to require a new floor to look their best.
White oak flooring also scores a bit higher on the Janka scale, meaning it’s a more durable material. The difference is slight, but if toughness is a high priority for your project, it’s worth considering white oak floors over red oak.
