decorational

Wood floors: existing types

2011-09-11T11:52:00.000+02:00

VERSION EN ESPAÑOL

As a preliminary step to start talking soon about wood floors in decorational, we are going to explain the different types available and what are their characteristics and differences.

Wood has several features that make it very useful for construction, and thus the man used regularly:

Present throughout the world, is very easy to obtain and is regenerable.
It is not a dense material, so transportation is not complicated.
It is very tough as a structural element (eg beams).
It can be easily manipulated, allowing to get items in various ways (eg tables).

Because of the development of new materials and building systems, the use of wood as a structural element has decreased, but it is still widely used in decorative elements, including floor and wall coverings, which as you know are the type of products on which we speak in decorational.

However, one feature of the timber must bear in mind when using it: it is a highly hygroscopic material, ie has a great capacity to absorb and give up moisture from/to the environment. And with changes in its humidity, wood undergoes a remarkable dimensional variation: when the humidity is high the wood swells, and when humidity is low it shrinks. This happens just with the moisture, it is not necessary that liquid water is present, and this process happens continuously, no matter how many years have passed since the wood was obtained.

If we take a wood board, this variation happens mainly in the width and height, and in a much smaller proportion happens in the length of the table. As a guide, a table of 10 cm in width can grow or shrink several milimeters with changes in humidity, although the value depends on the type of wood.

This characteristic has forced the evolvution of wood floors, from traditional solid to modern floating floors. Below we explain the different types, their characteristics and differences.

Solid floor

The boards used are made of solid wood, obtained directly from the sawing of the log.

To ensure the stability of floor with moisture variations, the planks shall always be fixed to the sub-floor. Therefore, these floors can only be installed glued to de sub-floor or nailed to lower battens.

Traditionally, since the 17th century in French palaces, this kind of floor has been used in small format boards glued to the substrate. From about 1880, larger boards with perimetral tongue and groove to ensure the joins between boards, and to avoid level differences in their surfaces when the changes in their humidity (and therefore size) happen over the years.

If the boards do not incorporate a protective treatment before installation -see Wood Floors: types of treatments- usually treatment is applied over the installed floor. A previous sanding to the entire surface is needed to eliminate any level difference between boards.

Over the years, the continuous movement of the boards by changes in humidity can favor the appearance of gaps between them. This is a normal proccess that cannot be easily avoided.

When, due to use of the floor, the surface treatment gets in bad condition, a repair treatment can be done. Sanding the entire surface to remove all existing treatment and can be applied a new treatment. As the sanding process retires less than 1mm of the wood floor's surface, it can be repeated several times until the sanding reaches the tongue of the boards (if available) or 50% of the thickness of the board. If we suppose the renovation procces is needed after 15 years of use, and it can be done at least 4 times, the wood floor will last 60 years.

Multilayer Parquet
Since solid wood floors are difficult to install because it's necessary to fix them to the support, in 1941 a new wooden floor was developed, composed several layers arranged in an angle of 90 degrees to get the dilatation of wood contained so the boards together are much more stable than a solid wood floor.

As we see in the picture, the middle layer is the thickest of all, about 10mm, and is made up of narrow slats positioned transversely to the board and spaced to allow the continuous expansion and contraction of their width due to moisture changes inside the floor without being noticed.

Over the middle layer is fixed the wear layer, which is the visible layer of floor and usually has 3 or more millimeters. How it is thin compared to the middle layer, when the wood in the surface layer tries to expand or contract due to humidity changes, the middle layer as it is "attached" to it, being placed at 90 degrees. Over this layer is the protective surface treatment, usually applied in the production proccess. This type of wood floor also allows various floor sandings to renew the surface until the wear layer is removed completely.

The back layer is necessary to get the whole board is stable. The wood in this layer also has a 90° to the middle layer. With this construction of the boards, they get to be much more stable, so there is no need to fix them to de subfloor and can be placed in a floating installation -see Wood Floors: installation systems [soon]- so today this the most widely used type of wood floor.

Veneer Parquet
As an evolution of multilayer parquet, in 1995 appeared the first veneer floor.

In this case, the intermediate layer is formed by a board of pressed wood fibers, which has a higher impact resistance than conventional lumber.

Over it lies the top layer of venner, which is the visible one. This layer is less than 1mm thick, with two objectives: reducing the cost and improving impact resistance. When an object hits the surface of the floor, the wood in the top layer tends to warp, but it is a thin layer and under it there is a much more hard material, the fiber board, that significantly improves the impact resistance of the floor.

As in the case of multilayer parquet, the back layer is necessary to give stability to the board.

This type of wood floor does not allow for subsequent sanding because of the very small thickness of the surface veneer, so once the surface treatment is damaged -it can easily last for 20 years in a home- is necessary to replace the floor. As the surface treatments are increasingly resistant, they allow the use of this type of floor even in public places.

Laminate Floor
While generally this floor is regarded as wood floor, mainly because its appearance mimics it and the form of installation is similar, we can not formally consider a laminate floor as a wood floor because the visible image of the surface consists of a decorative paper impregnated with resins (layer called overlay) that provide surface resistance. Its manufacturing process has evolved over the years. Currently there are mainly two different processes that lead to the Direct Pressure Laminate (DPL) and High Pressure Laminates (HPL). As this type of floor is enterely manufactured, a classification for resistance can be established. Coming soon we will post an entry in decorational explaining the different existing laminate floors and their classifications.

The main difference between HPL and DPL is that HPL is manufactured in advance and separate the surface layer (decorated paper + overlay), which is then fixed to the board giving it greater resistance to wear and impact.

We hope these brief descriptions have served you to have clearer ideas about different types of wood floors, and we wait for you in the next entry of decoracional.

Related posts:
Wood floors: Surface treatment
Wood floors: Supreme Kährs series

Ceramics: industrial decoration systems

2011-08-19T19:12:00.003+02:00

VERSION EN ESPAÑOL

As we have said in previous entries of decorational, we will try to have a deeper approach to the materials we write about, showing not only their decoration possibilities, but also other characteristics that help you to make an appropiate selection when choosing a material to be used in your project.

That's why we will write numerous entries with technical information about materials, trying to know them better.

In our last entry we introduced a ceramic material with inkjet surface decoration, and that's why we think it's interesting to explain the different methods used in ceramics industry to decore tiles, that let de producers the development of new models and ceramic solutions:

Curtain application
Ceramic glaze falls from the top of a metalic bell to form a continious curtain, and the tiles pass through it show ther are fully covered by a layer of glaze which thickness depends on the speed of the tiles in the production line. This method is used to obtain tiles with solid colors.

Serigraphy

This system has been used for ceramic decoration since about 1960. It consists of a framework that fixes a perforated fabric (silk-screen display) for color to pass through these holes.

The ceramic glaze is extended on the screen by a mechanical element, so it passes through the holes leaving the color over the tile only where the holes are. Different colors can be applicated using successive screens with different decorations. All tiles produced by this system have the same decor.

Rotogravure

This decoration system uses a roller in whose surface has been made small holes that define the pattern to be transferred to the tile. These holes are created by lasers, which are small and allow for greater definition than serigraphy.

The pigment is deposited on top of the roll and extended through a dispenser that fills all the holes and clean the surface. When the roll comes into contact with the tile, the pigment passes from the holes to the surface of the piece, forming the desired decoration.

Tiles obtained by this method may have different decorations depending on the roller size -usually 1.30 m2- and the position of contact contact between the roller and each tile.

Inkjet printing

The development of new printing systems and ceramic glazes has let ceramic producers to include in their production chains electronic decoration machines which can print photografic pictures on the ceramic tiles, as it is done on other different materials.

As in a domestic inkjet printer, microscopic drops of different colors are sprayed to the tile's surface, conforming the final picture. Pigments used are similar to traditional ceramic glazes, so the ceramic tiles obtained whith this decoration technology keep all their technical characteristics without change, so they can be used in domestic or commercial areas, even as a floor, without trouble.

A solution that uses this technology is emotile by Ceracasa, which we have written about in the previous entry of decorational (link: Custimozed ceramics: emotile by Ceracasa).

We hope this information, as that we can write in the future, will help you to understand how materials are made, so you can make a better selection of them for your projects.

We will be waiting for you in the next entry of decorational.

Pictures used in this entry have been obtained from "La Guía de la Baldosa Cerámica"

Cusmotized ceramics: emotile by Ceracasa

2011-08-12T16:22:00.004+02:00

VERSIÓN ESPAÑOLA

In decorational we introduce today one of the most versatile solutions for the decoration with coverings, because its a ceramic material that can be used in walls or floors, for commercial or residential use, and can be fully customized with an image given by customer. We are talking about emotile by Ceracasa.

Ceracasa is a spanish firm that has been leading the innovation in ceramic sector for several years, and promoting the development of new uses and applications of ceramics. One of their solutions, obtained making use of the new technology of digital decoration in the ceramics production than many ceramics producers are now using to make ceramics very similar to other materials (wood, stone...). Ceracasa uses this technology, not only in the decoration of standard tiles, but also as a tool of everyone that want to create customized areas with a durable material.

Other materials can be customized with image but don't have good thechnical characteristics. Emotile by Ceracasa is a porcelain tile than can be fully customized in its suface with the desired image, while it mantains all tha characteristics of porcelain tile: it can be used outdoors, or in heavy traffic areas without problem.

In decorational we think that emotile by Ceracasa is a very useful tool for everyone interested in the creation of singular areas, without being afraid of the appearance of future problems because of use or manteinance.

Here we include a several images so you can imagine all the posibilities of emotile by Ceracasa:

Wall - Residential building entrance

Floor - Architecture studio

Floor - Porcelanic tile representing Hidraulic tile

Floor - Game in public sqare, by the sea

Floor - Bar at Pamplona (Spain)

High gloss wall covering - Waves created usig a graphic design software

Come on! Use your imagination to decorate any place with emotile by Ceracasa.

More information:

www.emotilebyceracasa.com

www.ceracasa.com

Traditional materials

2011-08-11T17:35:00.005+02:00

VERSION ESPAÑOLA

As we said in the first entry of decorational, our intention is to speak on the blog mostly about decoration with floors and walls, deepening their characteristics in order to select the appropriate material in every situation, and seeking those who respect the environment.

Although we could find numerous materials and solutions matching these criteria, many of the entries in decorational will refer to various materials that people have used always in the construction and decoration of their homes:

Both wood and stone are available directly from nature, and ceramics is achieved essentially of clay. And despite that throughout industrial history there have been enormous technological advances, some of which have been applied in the collection, handling and production of these materials, they are still commonly used in construction and decoration mantaining their initial uses.

And because these materials have been "always here", and we can find on the market many alternatives that in most cases even look alike, we do not stop to consider whether the product we are choosing to decorate our home, office, local ... is suitable for our needs.

From decorational we will show new products, but also will include clear information that will help you to make the right decision according to your needs.

We will wait for you in our next entry, in which we will begin to talk about specific products that we have found interesting.

Welcome to decorational

2011-08-10T23:27:00.002+02:00

VERSION ESPAÑOLA

Today we start decorational, a blog that pretends to inform and recommend about different existing materials used for decoration as floorings and coverings.

The name decorational contains 3 words, referring to the point of view we will give to the information included in this blog:

decoration - we will write about materials and solutions used in decoration. That means they are important in the final decoration of the place they are used, so we will talk about colours, different combinations, trends...
rational - decoration is a very subjective thing but we think that, when choosing a material, it's very important to consider not only its appearance. Its technical characteristics must make it the ideal option for the desired use, in order to avoid an unnecessary spending in a wrong selected material. So we will write about the characteristics of the material, its costs of manteinance...
eco - we will look for environmental friendly materials, in their production proccess and/or after installation.

With these premises, we expect that the information included in decorational will be useful to you, our reader, in order to know and select the right material or solution for your project.

We hope you like it. Let's start decorational!