Wood floors are warm and environmentally friendly, so many people choose wood for flooring. But the dilemma often arises: which is better - a parquet board or a massive board, because both coatings are made of wood. To find out, consider the distinguishing features of each of these wooden floor materials.
Massive board versus parquet - comparison of characteristics
Wooden plank
This type of flooring is made from a single piece of wood, without the use of glue and synthetic materials.
The thickness of the board from the array is at least 1.5 centimeters.
+ Advantages of such a board:
- It is environmentally friendly - except for wood, it contains nothing more.
- It has served for quite a long time - under normal conditions for at least 70 years.
- It can be repaired many times - in particular, looped at least 5 or 6 times.
- It holds heat well, so the wooden floor will not be cold. You can run along it and barefoot without freezing.
- Each board has its own unique pattern, which looks very attractive.
- Minuses:
- With fluctuations in temperature and moisture content in the air, the board can dry out and deform. Therefore, in winter, it is imperative to moisten the air in a room with wooden floors.
- To lay floors from wooden boards can not be said that it is cheap. Both work and additional building materials cost a pretty penny.
Way of laying:
First make a screed. Then a layer of waterproof plywood with a thickness of at least 1.2 centimeters is attached to it with screws. This will be the basis. For reliability, plywood is also glued to the screed. Then the solid wood boards are glued to the base (special glue is taken for this), additionally twisting the screws at an angle.
Parquet board
The board of this flooring consists of three different layers glued together. The total thickness of the floorboard is about 1.5 centimeters.
The top layer, made of precious wood, is usually 3 or 4 millimeters. Cheaper wood is used for the inner layers, which make the flooring strong enough and stable, as well as resistant to temperature and humidity fluctuations.
+ Pluses of a parquet board:
- Due to the internal compensation layer, parquet is not so afraid of changing humidity and temperature.
- This board is cheaper than massive.
- Laying a parquet board is easier than wood floors. To do this, it is not even necessary to attract a specialist - you can handle it yourself.
- Minuses:
- Parquet life is shorter than solid wood. After all, the working layer is quite thin, and can only withstand two or three sandings. And if a crack or deep scratch appears, then the parquet (or even a few pieces) will have to be changed.
- Since there is glue in the composition of the parquet board, there is no need to talk about one hundred percent naturalness and harmlessness.
Parquet laying:
Like a laminate, a parquet board is laid on a substrate. Most often use a floating way of laying. In some cases, parquet floors are glued to the base of plywood, concrete or chipboard.
Compare prices
Here it should be noted that the cost depends on the particular brand of material. There is on sale both an expensive parquet board and a cheap massive board, and everything is exactly the opposite. Therefore, the price differences of a parquet board and a massive board of various grades have a wide range. So, for example, you can find parquet for both $ 25 and $ 135. And an array - at 40 or at $ 180.It depends on the type of wood, variety and brand of the manufacturer. The better the material is, the more expensive it will be.
But to buy the necessary amount of material is not all the costs. Will have to purchase some more materials. These additional expenses determine the difference in the total cost.
So, for the floorboard the following costs are provided:
- Buying a substrate.
- Payment for the work of the master-stacker at the rate of about $ 4 per 1 meter.
- If the floor is uneven, we buy materials for pouring or plywood for leveling.
Costs for a massive board (except for a click system stacked similarly to parquet):
- Purchase sheets of plywood for the entire area of the room, screws and glue for its installation.
- Payment for the installation of plywood base.
- Purchase of special glue and a new batch of screws for mounting a massive board.
- Remuneration of a professional craftsman. Here the work is delicate, it requires experience, otherwise the floorboards will creak, swing and fall off. In order for the floor to serve for many years, entrust the work to a trusted person.
Eventually: When choosing a parquet or massive board, remember that floors from an array will cost a lot of money. Specialist work alone will cost from $ 25 to $ 50 per square meter. But you also need to add on the cost of the wooden boards themselves, which should be of proper quality.
Which floor is better in operation
Thick wood floorboards can be sanded many times - about twice as much as parquet. After all, here is the working layer, which continues to the groove and tenon, as much as 7 or 8 millimeters. And on a parquet board, the top layer is most often 4 millimeters, no more. Therefore, wooden floors can be used twice as long as parquet. There are, however, some nuances. In particular, humidity and temperature should not fluctuate too sharply. And the work of the master is also very important - make sure that everything is done correctly and accurately.
About material stability
This characteristic depends on the type of wood. For example, valuable species of especially hard wood can lie a hundred years without any change. But they are very expensive - not everyone can afford it.
If you try to compare a solid wooden board with a parquet made from the same wood species, you can see that the stability of the latter with respect to atmospheric fluctuations is much higher. This is exactly what Gustav Chers sought, inventing in 1941 a three-layer parquet structure. It allows you to minimize stress inside such a board. But the array due to this voltage may well delaminate or crack.
As for the gaps between the boards, then they are more often manifested in the array than in the parquet. To reduce them, floor boards are made with chamfers at the edges. However, this is the case with a single-lane type parquet board.
conclusions
Today, solid wood planks are an indicator of luxury and prestige. But it is such a pleasure of a lot of money. Therefore, choosing what is best - a parquet board or an array, focus on the amount of available funds, as well as on the lifestyle and environment. Some people like to have chic floors, not paying attention to costs. And for someone in the first place - savings and practicality. Or maybe you prefer a reasonable combination of both. Choose - you already have an idea about the main advantages and disadvantages of these floor coverings.
Video: What to choose - solid or parquet