Pine flooring isn’t as popular today as it was in past centuries, but it is gaining in popularity quickly due to the gorgeous, shabby-chic, and natural look. If you’ve fallen in love with the look of pine flooring, but are afraid of the care involved, rest assured that pine flooring can be a good option for you. Pine is a softer wood than the popular hardwoods used on most floors today (like oak), meaning it shows wear and tear sooner and more readily than some of the other wood flooring options. But that distressed look is increasingly fashionable and, with the right sealer, you can control the level of distress your floor gets.
Get Lowest Price on Quality Pine Flooring
Buying pine flooring can be difficult especially when you are trying to determine the best price.
However, over the past few years there have been a number of companies that have really disrupted the flooring space and now will ship direct to consumers
If you are looking to get Pine Flooring than I suggest checking out Lumber Liquidators and testing their Unbeatable Price Guarantee!
If you are dreaming of installing wood flooring but are afraid of the price, take heed! There is a wood flooring option for you that is not as expensive as the other hardwood flooring choices but that still looks great. The beauty of pine flooring only increases with the added wear and tear of real life use. Pine flooring is an inexpensive softwood that has a classic beauty and appeal. It is not as often the first choice that people consider when choosing wood flooring for their homes, but the rapid increase in popularity recently is due in large part to advancements made in sealant and protection options for this gorgeous flooring. If you’re still in love with the look of pine flooring, but afraid that your lifestyle could cause too much damage to this soft wood, you can investigate laminate options like these at Lumber Liquidators that can have the look of more exotic wood floors with a higher level of scratch and wear resistance.
Comparing Hardwood and Softwood Flooring
Most people only consider hardwood flooring like oak for their home, rather than the softwoods, because of the hardness factor. Softwoods are not generally as well thought of for flooring, even though they are less expensive, because people assume that they are not as sturdy and durable. The usability of pine flooring may surprise you, however.
Hardwood Flooring:
- The most popular hardwood species used for flooring include oak, maple and hickory.
- These hardwoods tend to be on the more expensive end (averages $8-$12 per square foot).
- Holds up over time and can be refinished easily.
- While harvesting hardwoods is not an especially sustainable practice since it takes a long time for the wood to grow to the point of being ready for harvesting, since the hardwoods are built to last, they will not need to be replaced, discarded or even recycled.
- Radiates warmth and comfort in comparison to other flooring options.
- Beautiful and classic choice.
Softwood Flooring:
- Softwood flooring choices include spruce, fir, and pine flooring.
- Softwoods are just as beautiful as the hardwoods for flooring and, in most cases, costs much less (pine flooring averages $5 per square foot.)
- Pine flooring will continue to harden over the years with additional use and the refinishing process is as easy as refining hardwoods floors.
- An ecological choice! Pine grows much faster and takes less space to grow, though with proper maintenance it will last long as the hardwood options.
- Also holds onto warmth and is at least as comfortable as the other wood flooring options.
- On trend but yet still a classic choice-some may even argue it is more of a vintage option.
Living With Pine Flooring
Pine flooring is a great choice for almost any home. Saving money on your wood floors can help you to save money to be spent more important things. These wide pine wood floor planks, like those shown in the video below, have a unique and homey look characteristic of the southeastern United States at a significantly lower budget than other wood flooring options. As they age, they take on additional character, and from the start have more knots and natural blemishes than many hardwoods. If you are looking for fewer knots, a higher grade pine flooring will be less gnarly, though because of the nature of the wood it will always have these beauty marks. If you love the look of wood flooring, but not the price of hardwoods, then this may be just the flooring choice for you.
Selecting Pine Flooring
There are some things that you need to keep in mind before purchasing these softwoods, however.
- When looking for softwood flooring, you will need to learn the names of the wood varieties that you are interested in. The reason is that softwoods are not normally marketed for flooring use and most stores will not offer them as a choice unless you specifically request them. By doing your research beforehand, you will be able to walk into the store with the knowledge that you need to get what you want and desire for your home.
- You need to keep in mind that softwoods are categorized as “soft” for a reason. They are softer than the hardwoods, which means that they are more easily dented and pitted. If pine is the look you are going for, you typically realize that this only helps to make the floors more beautiful and enhances the character of the flooring. But, if you do not think that the look of worn floors is what you are going for, you will probably not want to choose pine flooring.
- To minimize the appearance of dents, you will want to refrain from using a dark stain, because this stain makes them more noticeable. You may enjoy the beauty of the wood so much that you just want to leave it basically the natural color by applying polyurethane to it. It will look beautiful no matter which stain you choose.
- Pine flooring can be found in most stores, but it is usually found unfinished. You can find tongue and groove varieties, which it great for the do-it-yourselfer. By being able to finish it yourself, you are in control of how light or dark you stain it. Sawmills are your best source for the least expensive price, but lumberyards may be another source as well.
Installing Pine Flooring
Installing and finishing unfinished wood flooring takes longer, but the added beauty and value is well worth the additional time and effort. If you choose unfinished pine for your flooring, after installing the unfinished pine flooring, you need to sand the boards to ensure they level and mars are removed. After sanding, vacuum the dust from the floors using a shop-vac, getting them ready for finish. Your finish options are the same as with other hardwood floors, include polyurethane, stain, tung oil, or varnish, to name a few. You may want to really consider staining and sealing the wood yourself in order to get the look you seek.
A good DIY tip if you choose to finish pine flooring yourself, consider using a floodlight to make sure that you get the finish evenly on the floors. It’s also important that you lightly sand the floors between each layer of finish. The last layer of finish does not need to be sanded, but it must be completely dry before allowing people to walk on it. Then all you need to do is enjoy your floors.
Maintaining Pine Flooring
Like with the other hardwood floors, pine flooring is very easy to maintain. Keep the floors free of dust and debris to minimize scratches, use products that are compatible with the wood and are non-abrasive, and do not let spills or liquid of any kind sit on the floors, as water can cause staining. You should consider using rugs at entrance ways or in any especially busy areas of the home since the softer wood is more prone to damage. Every five years or so, you will want to apply another layer of finish to maintain the layer of protection between the floors and all the things that come across them, though five years may even be too frequent if the floors are not in a highly trafficked area of the home. Of course, if damage does occur the floors can be refinished, but you should not need to refinish the floors as any kind of regular maintenance.
Pine flooring is a gorgeous option that you should seriously consider. In comparison to other woods, pine trees are much more plentiful and sustainable than others and if ecological sustainability is an important factor in your flooring consideration, pine can check this off the list for you. Don’t let naysayers discourage you or scare you away from this flooring choice only because pine is on the softer end of hardwoods or may have a MOH that is on the low end. Other floors with a higher MOH, such as bamboo, may actually scratch just as easily as pine. Do your research before committing to any retailer for wood floors, as finding a reputable supplier and installer can make all the difference in your overall happiness with your floors in the long run. Consider reaching out for quotes from multiple agencies and get some professional opinions. Most, like Lumber Liquidators, will provide quotes and in home consultations with no up-front commitments required.
Get Lowest Price on Quality Pine Flooring
Buying pine flooring can be difficult especially when you are trying to determine the best price.
However, over the past few years there have been a number of companies that have really disrupted the flooring space and now will ship direct to consumers
If you are looking to get Pine Flooring than I suggest checking out Lumber Liquidators and testing their Unbeatable Price Guarantee!
I bought a house with tongue and groove pine flooring undernieth the carpets, it’s unfinished wood, do I have to rent a big sander to sand it or could I do it by hand and then stain? I heard the big floor sanders are very hard to use, I am a woman so I need to find a way to finish these floors that I can physically handle.
courtney at August 6, 2007 04:13 PM
To have a great looking floor, hire a professional do the sanding and finishing.
If you want to do it yourself and are handy at that kind of work, rent a large rotary sander and use it. Sanding the floors by hand may give you an uneven result, not to mention tired back and sore knees.
The Flooring Lady at August 7, 2007 02:58 PM
We bought a house that was built in 1890. It had carpet in every room. We ripped up the carpet and found beautiful oak hardwood floors downstairs and pine upstairs. One room upstairs needed to be sanded so we sanded it and now need to know what look would be best. Stain or polyurethane?
scotty at October 26, 2007 12:57 AM
I’m partial to natural woods so I’d only polyurethane. But if the natural color of the wood doesn’t match your decor, by all means stain it to get the look you want. Then apply a water-based polyurethane.
Help! We purchased a beach house and my husband wants the cottage look. He is planning to purchased random unfinished pine. Finish with tung oil.
I fear the dog, kids and other sandy friends will do more than just give the floor the nice worn look.
Sand does give us challanges and we have been struggling for 6 months about what to do
The cottage look is good. Unfinished pine is good. The worn/rustic look is good. But you want that look to be a look, not a reality.
I have used tung oil on a book case and it looked great. It took several days to air enough to bring it into the house though. And we had to re-oil it every few months to keep the bookcase looking good. Even without the challenges of kids, pets and sand I’d personally shy away from it as a floor finish for that reason. But with those challenges, I personally would go with a durable, easy-care finish. I have loved the Diamond Coat Varathane Polyurethane on my cabinets, and door and window trim. There is a floor product I hear great things about. It’s easy to apply, dries quickly, and is hard as nails when cured. If you go with the satin finish (I don’t think they have a matte finish) you’ll get as natural a look as possible while protecting the pine flooring from the daily wear and tear a beach house can get.
How many coats of polyeurathane should you use on pine flooring? many thanks for your help
There are several variables that go into that decision. These variables include which polyurethane’s, the amount and type of traffic, and whether it’s a shoe-free environment or not. I’d go with at least two coats, and add a third or fourth depending on my situation. The manufacturer should also make recommendations that are worth heeding.
we are wanting to put down approx. 2000 sq. ft. of tongue and groove pine flooring. we considered doing this ourselves. How hard would this be? also how much does a professional charge to stain and poly that flooring if we laid it ourselves? Thanks
Hello!
I really don’t know if you can lay the floor yourself as I have no idea how ‘handy’ you are. I would suggest finding do-it-yourself articles/websites to visit as much as possible and learn all you can so that you will be as prepared as possible.
I don’t know what professionals would charge in your area because I don’t know where you are located. The amount can vary quite a bit, if you’re in a large metropolitan area it’s going to cost more. I would think that if you can tackle laying the flooring yourself then staining & applying polyurethane should be a breeze. :~) Remember too, that wood flooring doesn’t have to be stained if you’d rather go with the lighter, natural color.
we just ripped up the carpet in our “new” home. it has pine floors. we like a pretty modern decor, so we want the floors to reflect that. if we have them sanded and finished will the look new again or will it give off more of a rustic type feel? also will the wood dent easily, like from high heels?
thanks for your help.
If a good sanding job is done, there’s no reason why the floors shouldn’t look good as new – or at least almost!
I’m not sure about dents from high heels, I don’t see why they would leave dents so long as the wearers aren’t jumping up and down. ;o)
Pine floors can be pretty soft so without the proper finish high heels — especially stiletto heels — can ding the floor. But with several coats of a hard polyurethane you might reduce the number of dents and dings.
But as a wood floor “user” for many years I can tell you dents and dings happen. Just like with your car, get ready for the first one cuz it’ll make you unhappy. Since it’s natural it’s not perfect, which is what makes it perfect.
Thank you. I wasn’t thinking about stilettos, and you’re absolutely correct about the hard polyurethane.
thanks for the advice. i think were going to go ahead and cover it with a hardwood.
You’re very welcome, glad to try to help!
Hi there,
Could you critique & comment on this plan:
2×3 floor joists on top of existing pressboard flooring with radiant heat pipes woven through notches in the studs with strips of metal flashing to hold them down- reflective foam and sand between the studs and around the PEX pipes, and (here’s where i need the big help:) tounge and groove pine nailed into the studs, or plywood with cork tiles……
planning simple stain & polyurethane for color and durability on the pine….
does anyone have experience with pine floor and radiant heat?
does anyone have a cork floor critique?
We have 3 big dogs, and welcome the groovy grooves from their nails- we like to feel Home, yet we dont want it destroyed. we also want something easy to clean.
THANK YOU!
I think it sounds ok so long as your original floor joists can handle the extra weight – you may need to beef them up a bit.
I would prefer pine flooring, but that’s just a personal opinion only, after a bad experience with a cork flooring company. You can use the search engine (top right-hand corner of every page) and type in cork flooring or natural cork and you’ll see what I’m talking about.
Carlyn,
I’m confused. Why are you putting joists on top of your existing floor? And are you saying the PEX, reflective foam and sand are in place in the existing floor? Or are you just saying that’s what your existing floor is and you want to install pine or cork flooring on top of the pressboard?
Are you sure it’s pressboard? That’s not an ideal subfloor for nailing things to.
I have wood floors above radiant heat and had cork floors. I think the cork would have been fine, other than we had a defective batch (seems to have been a bit of that going around). When the wood floors went down we had to be careful to not nail too deep so we wouldn’t damage our PEX — short staples were the way we went.
With big dogs I wouldn’t go with cork unless you could by unfinished cork and finish it in place with many coats of water-based sealer. I’d go with the pine, even though I loved my cork floors.
Carlyn, I forgot to also mention that with radiant heat you should strongly consider an engineered pine flooring. I learned when I was shopping that engineered flooring is more dimensionally stable than solid wood so won’t be effected by the heat, or humidity for that matter, as much as solid wood will be.