Surface Blog

Conflicting information about Hardwood floors… HELP!

• Posted by
• Don Carlisle

A few weeks ago while browsing the Garden Web forums, I came across a concern we hear from time to time regarding durability.

Posted by mamadadapaige

Hi,

Please help me get to the bottom of this…

We are renovating our house and putting in hardwood floors which will run continuously through several rooms, including the kitchen and butt up against some existing vertical grain fir floors.

I want something that will work harmoniously with the fir but be much more durable since this will be in the kitchen and since we have young kids in the house.

I would like to go with old growth Cherry from Carlisle (http://www.wideplankflooring.com/). They have assured me that because the cherry is old growth it will be hard enough to be durable in a kitchen. The architect (albeit a young architect) also assured me of the same thing (said that if it were cherry from anyone else he would say no, but that the Carlisle cherry is denser). The contractors are saying there is no way this is hard enough to be durable in a kitchen and are STRONGLY advising me against it.

I love the look of it and really want to go with it but I also trust the contractors and am afraid.

If we don’t do this, we will go with quartersawn white oak and deal with the fact that where the oak meets up with the fir the contrast is great (and probably not very pleasing to the eye). Unfortunately where they meet is very visible as you enter the house so not an ideal situation.

Anyone with specific experience with Carlisle Cherry floors?? or even if not, any advise for me?

thanks!!!

I’ve grown up with traditional wood floors as my parents loved them and made this there passion to bring to others to enjoy. Now I am carrying on the tradition and would love to help share some thoughts on your decision.

Its very interesting to me to see what others have said about your desire for Cherry flooring, good quality cherry will last for generations and there definitely are not any durability concerns. Pine flooring still remains in good condition in many of the Early American architecture and is a highly sought after and beautiful floor. Cherry is much harder and every bit as durable. If you aesthetically love the look of Cherry you shouldn’t change this direction. Cherry has been used in homes all over the country for a long time with fantastic results. Your children will add character to the cherry, the extent to which this happens will directly correlate to the finish that is used. I am a proponent for a softer finish that allows the normal aging process and doesn’t look like plastic plus maintains the beauty of the Cherry. There is no issue regarding the floors durability, yes you can use Ash or Oak but make your decision based on the look you want. The difference in the wear and durability will be negligible to you and both floors will be there for another generation to enjoy!

Don

Posted on Apr 07, 2008 AT 05:13 AM in Hardwood Flooring • (0) Comments

Reclaimed vs. Antique Wood

• Posted by
• Lindsay Barczuk

You may have noticed in our green literature that we refer to our products as "Antique Reclaimed", as opposed to using the words "antique" or "reclaimed" separately.  While many of us think the terms can be used interchangeably, there is actually a distinct difference between the two. 

Dictionary.com defines each word as:

Antique - any work of art, piece of furniture, decorative object, or the like, created or produced in a former period, or, according to U.S. customs laws, 100 years before date of purchase.

Reclaimed - Something brought into or returned to a suitable condition for use, as cultivation or habitation.

Just because something is reclaimed does not mean that it is antique

Think of a 20 year old basketball court: someone could salvage those boards and sell them as reclaimed but they are not considered antique.  This 20 year old floor could be FSC certified as "Post-Consumer Reclaimed" but it does not have nearly the charm of our Antique Reclaimed floors.

If you are shopping other "reclaimed" products, make sure to ask if they are also Antique - as it will add patina and allure to your home.

Posted on Apr 03, 2008 AT 04:14 AM in Hardwood Flooring • (0) Comments

Our True Colors are Shades of Green

• Posted by
• Lindsay Barczuk

I just wanted to take a moment during our transition into a new Operating System to note some internal changes I’ve seen.  This new system is going to reduce our need for paper copies more than I could have expected.  Our old systems got the job done, but required hard copies for checks and balances.  With our new system and digital reporting, we will be more accurate and depend less on paper!

Posted on Apr 02, 2008 AT 07:02 AM in Green Building • (0) Comments

Spring is finally here. Well, almost.

• Posted by
• Rick Menard

Driving to work this morning, I had an almost un-controlable urge to turn around and head back home to play hookie. Almost! Why today? To answer that question, let us go back to the last time we saw bare ground and 60 degree weather here in New Hampshire. It was late October, and I was deep in the woods scouring for deer sign, taking a vacation day with my wife while the kids were in school. We hiked areas that she had never been to, bringing a picnic lunch and a couple of cameras in case we saw anything worth shooting. The deep ravine, with the roaring brook running through it, was more spectacular to her then I described. Other then being spooked by a beautiful Great Horned Owl leaving a tree directly in front of us, it was a quiet hike.

Seeing ten deer grazing in a bare spot of an otherwise snow covered field this morning is what triggered these thoughts of delinquincy. This winter has been one of the longest in New Hampshire’s history, topping over 100 inches of snow. It started in late October, and today being April 1st, it is a little discouraging to still have two feet of snow in most parts of the woods. Normally this wouldnt slow our family down, but the kids are at that age where they can’t quite keep up with us snowshoeing, and late March sickness has taking over our household.

The good news is the ponds are opening up from being covered in ice, so we will be dropping the 1933 Old Town Canoe into the water very soon. And I can’t wait to try out my new kayak. My wife is itching to get her hands deep into the soil, and the kids have already dusted their bikes off. Goodbye snow, hello green grass.

Posted on Mar 31, 2008 AT 09:18 PM in (3) Comments

How important is customer service?

• Posted by
• Rick Menard

How important is customer service? Not improtant at all…until you need it. If you are buying a commodity item and it always works, like maybe a pillow, you may never need to ask anyone how to fluff it.

I was working on my 31’ Model A Streetrod over the weekend, and I needed to find some information related to a special technique in the painting of "ghost flames."

After searching the internet without success, I decided to call the company I bought the paint from. Please keep in mind this paint is far from a commodity shelf item, and is very expensive, ($225.00 a quart). So I figured if anyone could answer my questions, they would be able to. They are involved with some of the nicest rods built today.

Calling on a saturday morning, I was a little nervous about not being able to reach anyone. To my pleasant surprise, I was able to connect to their "technical department" immediately. To my dismay, it was obvious that the person I spoke with could barely understand what I was speaking about, and knew nothing about my subject.

When clients are running into problems, or just have simple questions, customer service is the link between them and our product. One of the reasons we here at Carlisle Wide Plank Floors are so successfull is we don’t have a "technical department." From the first day you call in, till the day you move your furniture on to your beautiful floors, you are always speaking with the same person. We have installed and finished our floors, we understand slabs, crawl spaces, sub-floors, acclimation, and just about anything else you may have questions on regarding flooring. If one of us is away, or busy, and you need to speak with someone immediately, one of my many co-workers will pick up the phone and help you. We also have someone on-call over the weekends, and I have been known to give my clients my home phone number in case they may need me in the evening. If you leave a message for me, I won’t go home before calling you back.

How important is customer service? VERY IMPORTANT! There is nothing worse then not getting the answers, when really needed. Does anyone know anything about ghost flames?

Posted on Mar 31, 2008 AT 03:13 AM in (4) Comments