Parquet Flooring Vs Timber Flooring

[edenstrauss 3]

Hi folks,

Can anybody enlighten me if there is a difference between parquet flooring and timber flooring?

If there is a difference, which is better?

And r they prone to scratches? Or damages? Or wearing off?

Do they normally get installed with warranty?

[watchthewaves 0]

A parquet floor is a wooden floor made of small pieces of wood put together.

In Singapore, when the term "parquet" is used, it is normally understood to mean small solid wood pieces. Above a certain size of the pieces, it is then referred to as timber or timber strip. So in terms of durability and wear, parquet and timber flooring would be the same, assuming same wood used.

In terms of cost, parquet is cheaper. In terms of looks, that's personal. The usual thought though is that larger timber strips look nicer. Now, people may think that parquet flooring looks dated, but look at mosaic tiles for bathrooms -- you wait long enough, from dated, it then comes back into fashion as retro!

[edenstrauss 3]

How about laminates?

[morganwu 0]

laminates vs solid timber

for laminates vs timber please check out this thread.

parquet is used to refer to wooden floors pieced together with timber blocks shorter than 200mm.

the wooden floors usually come with limited warranty for 1 year. please do not compare this with laminate's lifetime warranty. in most cases laminate's lifetime warranty are limited too, and would only compensate the damaged pieces, and not compensate the reparation cost.

wooden floors will never wear off. they could be scratched, but this factor is more dependent on the coating used than the floor itself.

Edited November 22, 2010 by morganwu

[morganwu 0]

btw, here are some pictures of timber strip flooring done by the company i work at.

Edited November 22, 2010 by morganwu

[bepgof 20]

Parquet - pcs of short woods formed to make a square < 200mm x 200mm, can be in any king of woods. Mostly seen in Singapore is teak.

Timber is also wood, but in "stripe" form, can be any type of wood.

The most common "pitfalls" of woods are:

- Strink over time, especially when humility is low, or the wood itself are not "dried" properly before laying. Will see gaps getting wider. Need to fill up with putty, to prevent dust get traped.

- Pretty easy to get scratches

- Rot (near tiolet)if frequebtly get wet and not let dry fast enough.

Laminate is just a thin lay glue onto wood.

Edited November 22, 2010 by bepgof

[edenstrauss 3]

Hi guys, thanks for all the valuable inputs & suggestions.

morgan - if the solid wood flooring is being scratched, then, can it be removed? As in touch ups to be done?

My furnitures for that room intended for such flooring is extremely heavy. The Super King sized bed is extremely heavy. It definitely has to be dismantled, and parts have to carried in to the room & reassembled. Which in other means that there will be scratches on the flooring even before we clean up & use the bedroom for sleeping. Just the bed post alone requires 4 men to carry it into the bedroom.

Made of solid Indonesian teakwood. Quite a killer for those who have to relocate their homes.

bepgof - I'll be reinstating my MBR and common room so that it's in the original layout as how HDB constructed it, so the tiles will crack where they knock out to create another door (for the common room). I do not want to have those cracked tiles replaced with similar looking tiles becox they will look terrible. Hence, I'm exploring alternatives like laminates or timber flooring - I'm new to this area.

But thanks for highlighting on the disadvantages. It did occur to me where the rotting is concerned. And since natural wood is a production of mother nature, it does age e.g. contract, expand, cracks or whatever that comes along the way. Which is why I'm really concerned & had been asking around on RT.

So do u have any better suggestions? My sister used laminate flooring & she told me to avoid. Hers is just 5 years old & most of the time, there's nobody at home. And her laminate tiles can still deteoriate!

Edited November 23, 2010 by edenstrauss

[morganwu 0]

hi edenstrauss,

whether scratches can be touched up via DIY mostly depend on the type of floor coating you chose when you install the floor.

1. Melamine/Polyurethane coatings > can be touched up, but most of the time left till too late. hence classified as a cannot be touched up coating.

2. Water-based > cannot be touched up, dried repair shows. new coat would not blend into old coat and repairs will be visible.

3. Oil-base > can be touched up. new coat will blend into old coat and repairs will not be visible.

i believe OSMO Coatings is the only oil-based wooden floor coating that allows user to DIY repairs, yet with durability on par with PUs.

Disclaimer: i am the distributor for OSMO Coatings in SG.

Edited November 23, 2010 by morganwu

[bepgof 20]

Hi guys, thanks for all the valuable inputs & suggestions.

morgan - if the solid wood flooring is being scratched, then, can it be removed? As in touch ups to be done?

My furnitures for that room intended for such flooring is extremely heavy. The Super King sized bed is extremely heavy. It definitely has to be dismantled, and parts have to carried in to the room & reassembled. Which in other means that there will be scratches on the flooring even before we clean up & use the bedroom for sleeping. Just the bed post alone requires 4 men to carry it into the bedroom.

Made of solid Indonesian teakwood. Quite a killer for those who have to relocate their homes.

bepgof - I'll be reinstating my MBR and common room so that it's in the original layout as how HDB constructed it, so the tiles will crack where they knock out to create another door (for the common room). I do not want to have those cracked tiles replaced with similar looking tiles becox they will look terrible. Hence, I'm exploring alternatives like laminates or timber flooring - I'm new to this area.

But thanks for highlighting on the disadvantages. It did occur to me where the rotting is concerned. And since natural wood is a production of mother nature, it does age e.g. contract, expand, cracks or whatever that comes along the way. Which is why I'm really concerned & had been asking around on RT.

So do u have any better suggestions? My sister used laminate flooring & she told me to avoid. Hers is just 5 years old & most of the time, there's nobody at home. And her laminate tiles can still deteoriate!

It's quite a personal taste. I love wood which gave a natural touch.

When young stayed in kampong where there were many wood factories nearby,...loved wood so much, worked part time in wood factory before. Knew different grade of sand paper, coating...

1992 - built raised platform in MBR with Nyatoh wood strips with my brother. Wood selection, carrying, laying, sawing, blowing hot air, nail, glue, aligning, sanding, applying coatings. DIY with brother. He was a professional carpenter. He had advised me not to use wood as flooring but I insisted.

Abt 2 year, wood started to "strink" and gaps became visible, used wood putty to patch up, mixed the color....another 2 year or so, again "strink"....

2006- First time deal with p flooring, to my horror, found scratches here & there less than 6 month. Went Ikea bought big transparent rubber mat, lay on floor. After abt 1 month, wife mop floor, wanted to mop underneath of the mat, slowly lift up, you know what happened? The coating "eat" with the rubber, some coat tear and lifted up, she quick put the mat down. Abt 2 years, observed wood strink and gaps became viisble, putty again, sigh.

Edited November 23, 2010 by bepgof

[neubie 2]

It's quite a personal taste. I love wood which gave a natural touch.

When young stayed in kampong where there were many wood factories nearby,...loved wood so much, worked part time in wood factory before. Knew different grade of sand paper, coating...

1992 - built raised platform in MBR with Nyatoh wood strips with my brother. Wood selection, carrying, laying, sawing, blowing hot air, nail, glue, aligning, sanding, applying coatings. DIY with brother. He was a professional carpenter. He had advised me not to use wood as flooring but I insisted.

Abt 2 year, wood started to "strink" and gaps became visible, used wood putty to patch up, mixed the color....another 2 year or so, again "strink"....

2006- First time deal with p flooring, to my horror, found scratches here & there less than 6 month. Went Ikea bought big transparent rubber mat, lay on floor. After abt 1 month, wife mop floor, wanted to mop underneath of the mat, slowly lift up, you know what happened? The coating "eat" with the rubber, some coat tear and lifted up, she quick put the mat down. Abt 2 years, observed wood strink and gaps became viisble, putty again, sigh.

then u never go bang table at ikea and showed them their stuff messed up ur floor?

[bepgof 20]

then u never go bang table at ikea and showed them their stuff messed up ur floor?

wife

I

Edited November 24, 2010 by bepgof

[edenstrauss 3]

P floor means parquet right?

My aunt's parquet aged really fast within years... After 15 years, now... like rotten flooring. Looks really horrid!

so what's ur suggestion for my flooring problems after my ceramic tiles cracked?

do u know anything abt homogenous tiles?

was ur 2006 reno done by ID Baroque?

Edited November 24, 2010 by edenstrauss

[bepgof 20]

P floor means parquet right?

My aunt's parquet aged really fast within years... After 15 years, now... like rotten flooring. Looks really horrid!

so what's ur suggestion for my flooring problems after my ceramic tiles cracked?

do u know anything abt homogenous tiles?

was ur 2006 reno done by ID Baroque?

After 2 encounters, I guess my brother is correct enough, avoid indoor "wood" flooring - shink, scratches, rot (if wet constantly).

Hacking/replacement whole room(2) of flooring - big operation, messy - if is it a MUST, might as well do the whole house's flooring. Permit, accomendation, safeguard of assets while work....all need to consider.

If the broken area is/are not so unsight, just cover it with "somethings" - carpet, basket, book rack(behind door?). Reserve the resources for the timebeing, till a time comes, replace those major one at one go.

I personally prefer "natural stones" like marble & granite then other "artificial" tiles. Bopain, subjected to others' pressure, I do the kitchen flooring with homo tiles and kitchen/tiolets walls with ceramic tiles. 1st 5rm also homo cum ceramic. Now granite flooring, except kitchen & tiolets.

Hunted a few IDs in 2006 and "attracted" by Baroque's John's hand writing and signature. Since then, engaged Baroque twice. John has left Baroque, Miko is the "old bird". Jason is the boss, however, his wife is "in control" of the company.

2006 June - condo,1270sqft, $24.4k

2009 Dec - hdb resale, 119sq m, 32 year old, $90k

[Dong Wenhao 0]

Wooden Flooring is still the best. Check out the benefits of wooden flooring here and how they can provide flooring service to your office and house. 

http://www.flooring.sg/blog/benefits-of-wooden-flooring

[jerjerjer 0]

Anyone tried before this anti-termite treatment for wood? I think wood flooring has its benefits - more warmth, and creates a homely cosy feel. I personally like timber flooring especially those rustic looking, worn out kind of wood that gives the space a sense of history and an aged look. If done nicely, it really adds personality to the space.

But wood is a natural material so the number #1 priority is to treat it properly before installation. Anti-termite protection is a must since we're living in a tropical climate native to subterranean termites which one of the most destructive pests around if you have a lot of wood furniture and finishings.