Tips & Advice

1. Tips On Choosing A Supplier
2. Tips On Choosing Solid Oak Flooring
3. Tips On Choosing Engineered Oak Flooring
4. Tips On Choosing Your Fitter

• If a Free Sample is available, always take advantage of this service so you can actually touch and feel what you’re about to spend your hard earned money on. A picture on a website really isn’t enough because that picture could be of someone else’s product. 
• Ask them what Guarantees they give? When you speak to them, try to get a feeling for how much confidence they have in their product. How forthcoming are they with information – this will usually tell you if they’re hiding something or not telling you something they should. 
• Always remember that oak is a natural product and that it will show some marks and scratches, so don’t discount a supplier just because the sample they’ve sent has a little scratch on it. Your floor will become scratched when it’s installed anyway. 
• Ask the supplier for a photo of the product when installed to see what it looks like when fitted because this will enable you to get an idea of what it will look like when installed in your own room. If they don’t have one available online, ask them to post you one.  
• Ask the supplier for a full SPEC SHEET for the product and if they don’t have one, beware. If they do have one, MAKE SURE YOU TAKE NOTE OF THE DIMENSION TOLERANCE allowed. This is vital because the small sample that you’re holding may look and feel beautiful but if when it arrives the planks are varying in width by 2 or 3mm or tapering at the ends by sometimes as much as 4mm, your floor will not only end up looking second rate but it will also end up costing you a lot more to put it right. 
• All in all, you can usually tell what the company is like by the way they start dealing with you. If they make it difficult for you to get information from them before you’ve ordered, what will they be like if something goes wrong after they have your money in their bank? 
• Oak is a beautiful natural product and ideally you really want to be dealing with people who have a passion for it. If someone has a passion for their product or service, they’ll usually do everything they can to make sure that it’s of good quality and the finished appearance is something that both buyer and seller can be proud of.

Re: Engineered Oak Flooring

Always make sure you know what construction the Engineered board is and what thickness the wear layer of oak is on any board you enquire about. Some companies will keep emphasising that their 14mm board is cheaper than another company’s 15mm board and yet “both have the same grade of oak on the face”.

Well yes, both boards may well have the same grade of oak on the face but the oak is most likely to be 3mm instead of 4mm! If you can afford it ‘budget-wise’, try to buy nothing less than a 4mm wear layer of Oak on any Engineered board.

Please try to understand that the thinner the Engineered Oak is, the thinner the wear layer of oak is too. Having said that, if a company is trying to compete on price alone, they may well be offering you a similar thickness product but with a thinner wear layer of oak.

EG: 21mm Engineered Oak can have a 6mm wear layer on 15mm backing, or it can have a 2mm wear layer on a 19mm backing. ALWAYS CHECK THE THICKNESS OF THE WEAR LAYER WHEN COMPARING PRODUCTS AND PRICES.

Another important point to be aware of about the engineered construction is the softwood backed board shown below. Again, if your budget allows you to do so, avoid this and always go for the plywood backed product, which provides much greater strength and stability after installation.

 Try to avoid the softwood core version

The softwood core board is not as strong as the plywood backed version, and is certainly not of structural grade, so even the 21mm is not suitable for spanning and fixing directly to floor joists. Nor is it suitable for secret nailing because the core simply isn’t strong enough.
Some companies will try to impress upon you that this construction is every bit as good as the plywood version, but let’s face it... it’s not and it’s pretty obvious that it’s not.

And always remember... biggest is not always best...

Many of the big named companies increase their prices simply because they’re well known. Some like to think they have a captive market of customers, so they ‘up’ their prices by massive margins, just because they can get away with it. In our opinion this is nothing less than taking advantage of their loyal customers.

For an example, a similar 18 x 120 Solid Lacquered product that we sell for under £25.00 per M2, sells for £48.00 per M2 in a well known DIY store.

Most of the major retailers do not supply flooring that’s any better quality than the smaller company that imports far less flooring every year. In fact in most cases, it’s the other way around. Don’t be fooled by these big names and end up paying more for exactly the same product as you could buy down the road from a smaller company, and with the same or better guarantee. Buy from us and you get a Lifetime Quality Guarantee! Ask your current supplier or the local DIY store what guarantee they offer on the quality of their products, and see what answer you get.

Remember, just because it costs more doesn’t always mean it’s better quality.

Tips On Choosing Solid Oak Flooring

• How can I tell which company to buy from with a small sample only?
• What makes one solid oak better than another?

Buying after seeing a 100mm sample is difficult…

We’re very aware of how difficult it is to decide which company to order with when you receive lots of samples, all about 100mm long and appearing much the same, so we try to give you access to as much information about that product as possible right from the start.

The sample you receive should be used for assessing the machining quality and the finish, along with the overall presentation and speed of response from the company it came from. You can usually tell what sort of service you’ll experience straight away, depending on how that company handles your initial enquiry.

The sample must not be used for assessing the colour of your floor after installation. One of the many beauties of oak is that no 2 planks are the same, not in grain pattern or colour, so it would be a mistake to think that your whole floor will be the same as your sample.

Why do some companies charge for a ‘FREE’ sample?

It’s worth noting at this point that many companies charge for their samples to be sent to you, but what confidence does that show in their product? Why are they charging you for a sample if what they’re sending you is high quality and value for money? Surely they expect you to order from them yes?

Some charge as much as £5.00 per sample, “which will be refunded when you order from us” is what they say.
We’re thinking of starting a business of just sending samples out at £4.95 each, because we’re sure there’s good profit to be made there! Only joking by the way, this is just a bit of a gripe we have with this sort of rip-off that tars us all with the same brush.

So you have your sample, what next?

Having assessed the machining and finish quality, you now need to assure yourself of the consistency of the flooring you’re interested in buying. In other words, how much dimensional variation will the re be in the flooring when it arrives with you?

You’re studying a sample that’s 100mm long and maybe considering placing an order for 50 or 60m2, maybe more, so you want to know that there won’t be huge variations in the width or thickness of the product. If there are big dimensional differences, 2 costly problems will occur for you;

1. The fitter will have to start ‘selecting’ through the flooring in an effort to find boards of similar width, which is very time-consuming
2. After the flooring is installed, all those gaps and spaces between the boards need to be filled and finished

So how do you make sure that the flooring you’re about to order is going to arrive with consistent dimensions?

You ask for a full Specification Sheet from the company, making sure that the dimensional tolerances are within. The 2 most important tolerances are the width and thickness, and neither should be more than 0.25mm for a well-produced and close fitting product.

Remember, the easier and closer your flooring fits together, the easier and more simple the installation process and remedial work will be for everyone, which will save you time and money.

What grade should I order?

There should also be a detailed description of the grade mix of the flooring you’re interested in, within the Spec Sheet and this should explain what you could expect regarding grain variance, knots, and overall appearance.

Don’t let anyone tell you that their product is ‘Rustic’ or ‘Character’ grade because that’s usually just a name they’ve made up to cover a multitude of sins. It will usually be a mixture of grades that they have agreed with their supplier, so that no-one really knows what’s in it, which avoids any price comparison being made.

Primarily there are 4 grades of Oak available (unless you want a really rustic finish with open knots etc) and they’re Grade A, Grade B, grade C, and Grade D… end of story.
Some may refer to Grades A and B as Prime Grade or Select Grade but all in all it means that the boards will have very little variation in grain pattern and very few small knots (if any). Some sapwood is allowed but only to cover a maximum of 5% within Grade A and 15% within Grade B.
Grade C allows knots up to 25mm and sapwood to cover no more than 30% of the face, whilst Grade D allows more obvious grain and colour variation, with larger knots (some filled and sanded).

We believe a 25% mix of each provides the most authentic appearance of natural oak, without being either too clear and ‘laminate-looking’ or too knotty and ‘rustic’ looking.

Our 25% mix will ensure that 50% of your floor will be quite clear with straight grain pattern, and 50% will have good oak features like knots and colour variation, as well as good grain pattern.
We’re never quite sure why people want an oak floor that all looks the same when installed because;

1. It usually costs much more per M2 for Prime Grade A Oak, and…
2.  It ends up looking like a laminate because it’s all the same, with no 'oak-like' features!

OK, I know a bit about the grades now but what will it look like on my floor?

You’re right, even though the grade mix will explain a lot about what features will be included within your finished floor, it’s still difficult to visualise what it will look like as a complete floor when installed for you.

Here’s where photos are very useful. With the Internet readily available (and you obviously have access because you’re reading this) it’s very easy to see photos of just about anything, making a picture of a floor easy to send via email or to include within a website.

Now don’t get us wrong here, it’s best to see a floor in-situ yourself but that’s not always possible, so this element of the buying process should go hand in hand with studying your sample and checking the Spec Sheet, all together.

With the Hi-Resolution images available these days (even some from mobile phones are excellent), you’ll be able to see what you floor is likely to look like when fitted, easily.

Phew! Do you think that’s a lot to go through just to buy an oak floor?

Well we don't, because we think when you’re spending £25-40.00 per M2 on new flooring, which will be on your floor for the next 40-50 years, don’t you want to make sure you’re getting a good product and a good deal from a reliable company?

Key Phrase Here: When you install an oak floor, you want to do it once not twice!

Yes, to buy this quality costs us a little more, but we’re proud to offer and stand by our Lifetime Quality Guarantee, which puts us in a league of our own within the UK.

We firmly believe that we offer the best value for money available, when buying Solid Oak Flooring in the UK.


Tips On Choosing Engineered Oak Flooring

• Which is best? – Plywood backed or Softwood backed?
• What thickness wear layer is best?

Which of the boards below do you think provides more stability after installation?

A Softwood Backed Board...




Or A Plywood Backed Board...




When studying the construction of the 2 different types (our plywood backed and the other softwood core version), which do you think will be stronger and less susceptible to dimensional changes after installation?

Ours, with multiple layers of ply, each running in the opposite direction to the next and heat bonded together with boil-proof glue, thus creating a cross-grain structure where, when the wood fibres within want to either ‘take on’ or ‘give off’ moisture and expand or contract, each layer is restrained by the other so providing incredibly strong dimensional stability?

Or the other with 1 single core of softwood, which has all its grain running in one direction?

We think the answer is obvious, and that’s why all our Engineered Oak is plywood backed. It provides excellent stability and strength, and our 21mm board is actually structurally graded, so can be fixed directly to floor joists at 400 c/s with no need for a supporting subfloor.

So, because it makes obvious sense that a multiply backed engineered board is stronger than softwood or blockboard backed board, does that not emphasise the fact that it’s false economy to buy a cheaper board like the softwood core version?

Armed with that information, which type are you going to choose for your floor?

Key Phrase Here: When you install an oak floor, you want to do it once not twice!

Yes, to buy this quality costs us a little more, but we’re proud to offer and stand by our Lifetime Quality Guarantee, which puts us in a league of our own within the UK.
We firmly believe that we offer the best value for money available, when buying Engineered Oak Flooring in the UK. The only better product, in our opinion, is the Birch ply backed product, but that costs much more per M2.

The multiply back construction of our Engineered Oak flooring provides much greater stability than Solid Oak when subjected to varying levels of heat, humidity, and moisture. This also enable the boards to be manufactured a lot wider than solid without risk of cupping, which is associated with the wide solid oak boards available.

This stability allows the floor to be installed as a floating floor where conditions permit, directly onto concrete or timber subfloors, and is ideal for floating floor installation over an underlay that can provide your floor with extra protection from possible moisture attack from beneath. Click on this blue link for more information on the different Underlay we have available.

Engineered Oak can also be fitted above underfloor heating when the correct installation guidelines are followed and the necessary levels of heat, humidity and moisture are maintained by the owner after installation.

We can supply a suitable UFH System to go with our Oak Flooring that's Self-Regulating, so never overheats and never wastes energy, making it super efficient.

What thickness wear layer should I go for?

There are many different thicknesses Engineered Oak boards available but be very careful that you’re not misled by anyone you’re buying from about what you’re getting for your money.

The most important structural parts of an engineered board (other than the actual quality) are obviously the wear layer of oak that’s on the surface and the backing that it’s bonded to, be it plywood or softwood.

When you’re doing your research as you should before buying, you may find that someone is offering you a 14mm engineered oak for what seems like a great deal compared with someone else’s 15mm. After all, the difference in thickness is only 1 mm isn’t it?

Yes it is, but that 1mm difference will have come from the thickness of the oak in 99% of situations, especially when the company is trying to seem more ‘competitive’ for a similar product being offered elsewhere.

To take things to the extreme, we’re aware of a 21mm thickness engineered oak that has a 2mm wear layer! The company offering this is simply trying to pull the wool over their customer’s eyes by calling it a ‘21mm Engineered Oak’ and comparing it to other 21mm boards, but it has 4mm less oak within the wear layer!

There is also engineered oak available that has a 1mm wear layer of oak, and this is targeted at developers and builders who can install it into their houses, just to be able to say that they have oak floors. The fact that it’s hardly worth having is another matter.

So, what we’re trying to emphasise here is that you should always be aware of the thickness of the wear layer on any engineered oak you’re considering buying.

If your budget allows, always try to go for nothing less than a 4mm wear layer of oak. Under normal domestic use and maintained properly, this thickness will outlive most of us reading this!

We know there are people out there that want the cheapest product possible (like the 21mm example above), so that they can ‘do up’ a property and claim to have oak floors throughout as a selling point, and we also know there is a market for such a product.

But, we’re not interested in supplying this sort of product because we believe in (and we’re constantly striving to build our good name on) supplying a high quality product at realistic rates. That’s why we don’t sell any engineered product with less than 4mm wear layer.

After all, the wear layer is what ultimately will decide how long your floor will last.


Tips On Choosing Your Fitter/Installer

How To Choose The Right Fitter (or at least a good one!)

There is a difference between a carpenter and a floor fitter but having said that, many carpenters make excellent wood floor fitters because they know how the product should be treated and they know the potential problems that may arise in the future unless they take the necessary precautions at time of installation.

When you’ve just paid a large amount of your hard-earned cash on a beautiful new Oak Floor, you don’t want some ‘cowboy’ coming in and ruining it for you, so there are some simple routine tasks to ‘sift’ through your potential ‘partners’ for creating your finished floor.

Always Get More Than 1 Quote

This may seem obvious but it’s amazing how many people ask 1 fitter for a price and accept it there and then, without ever having met them before or seen any of their previous work. Always ask at least 3 and preferably 4 or 5 (unless someone has been recommended obviously).

The reason we suggest this is because fitters will ‘price up’ the work differently. You may get 1 that simply prices the job per m2 but you may get another who wants to give you a lump sum calculated from the amount of time it’s going to take to complete. The difference can be incredible when you work it out.

Never Accept The Price Over The Phone.

How some fitters can expect work when they simply respond to enquiries with something like; “I charge £25.00 per M2, plus Vat” beats me.

How the hell can they assess the amount of work required over the telephone? The vast majority of work is in the preparation of the subfloor (so firstly they need to confirm that either it’s been completed satisfactorily or are they expected to do it), and in finishing off around the perimeter of the room. Installing wood flooring throughout a standard ‘box’ shaped room is very simple, it’s around the perimeter where the majority of the work is involved.

The room could be completely square with one doorway, or multi-angled with 27 doorways!

So always ask your ‘potential floor partner’ (because that’s what he or she actually is going to be if you choose them) to visit your property and confirm the details then and there.

When You Have Your Potential Fitter ‘On Site’…

When you are together with your potential fitter ‘on site’, ask his advice and what he recommends for the best result. Ask him how he would fit the flooring (remember there are 4 different methods) and which way he prefers to fit, and why?

If there are any awkward parts that you’re not sure about, ask the fitter how they will go about solving what you see as a challenge. You’ll be surprised at how much you learn about the person you’re negotiating with by the way they answer your questions.
Remember, you’re entering into a ‘contract partnership’ where both parties should be able to visualise and agree what the finished floor will look like.

Can You Visit One Of Their Previous Jobs?

This is ideal if you can but not all fitters like to refer people to their past jobs, not because they’re of poor quality but because it’s abusing the privacy of their past customers. We at Oak Floors Online are forever being asked for contact details of previous customers but ask yourself if you would like 20 people a week phoning you to ask how your new floor is doing!

Sometimes you’ll find a fitter that’s installed a floor within a commercial premises like a shop or office, so it’s easy to just go along and take a look but that’s not always the case.
If you can, speak with someone that’s dealt with the fitter previously. It’s amazing how many finished floors are better when the owner ‘gets on’ with the fitter, rather than when they don’t.

When Can They Fit Your Floor?

Make sure you ask their availability. If they say something like; “Now”, beware because if they haven’t got much work on their books there’s usually a reason. That’s not always the case and maybe they’ve just completed a job earlier than expected but it’s worth considering.

The ‘when’ questions is important because there’s no point being completely thorough and agreeing everything, and then discovering that your floor can’t be fitted for another 6 months (unless that happens to fit your schedule obviously), so it’s better to ask this early on in your negotiations with something like; “If I awarded you the job, when could you do it? What notice do you need to start and would you start and work through to completion without any breaks?”

And Finally – The Price

Never accept an hourly rate or day rate. NEVER!
Always make sure that you either agree a M2 rate or an overall total for everything required before the job starts. It will prevent any issues arising afterwards if everything is agreed regarding cost and charges before the installation starts rather than afterwards.

Make sure you know what’s included in the price, what happens if something else is required during the installation, and who pays for any breakages, leaks, or mishaps (they can happen, so best to cover that now).

Then ultimately, it’s all up to you. On your experiences of speaking to your potential fitters and asking them various questions, you now must decide which is the best for your particular situation.
You have to assess their personality, their skill level, their quotation, their availability, and most importantly of all… what your finished floor will look like.

Usually, not an easy decision at all, but we hope this helps you make up your mind without too much stress?