Engineered vs. Real Hardwood Floors: Which Sells More, And Why?!

What is the difference between real hardwood flooring and engineered hardwood flooring?
In this video we look to address why engineered flooring was created, what its pros and cons are vs real hardwood floor, what install options are available, and which of the two is more popular.
Video Contents:
0:00 Introduction
0:17 Solid vs Engineered Hardwood Definitions / Examples
1:32 Problems with Solid Hardwood
2:28 How Does Engineered Hardwood Solve These Problems?
3:07 Which Do Product Sells More and Why?
4:26 Best DIY Options
5:46 Installing Floating Click Hardwoods Over Existing Floor.
6:39 Summary / Introduction to Our Segment!
SUBSCRIBE to ‪@BuildLessons‬
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Thanks so much to Jeff and the crew at Floortrends for your expertise and willingness to help create these videos.
Floortrends operates in several Ontario cities! Find them at:
Website: www.floortrends.ca
Facebook: / floortrends
Instagram: / floortrendsltd

[@BuildLessons]

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[@jasonkritz3055]

If you install the solid hardwood properly, it will not buckle. People are just afraid for some reason, but I think solid is superior. My house has original hardwood floors from 1901, even in the kitchen, and they are perfect. Get the right species, leave a bit of space around perimeter, prefer to install in spring, summer or fall, use nail/staple, if the boards are 5" or wider, use glue with nails/staples (unless your install requires a vap barrier) --- you will have no problem. I've installed many floors in my day and still notice a difference in the way a nailed/stapled solid feels under your feet vs a stapled engineered, even the thick engineered. You won't regret paying the extra $ and getting what they have used in homes for hundreds of years. Pro tip - if you want a hand scraped finish, avoid engineered. You are extremely limited when it comes to sanding/refinishing.

[@kirahagan270]

The background music is so distracting sorry. Had to stop the video although the content was good.

[@faenasabado]

Too loud

[@darlenasturgis9575]

I agree but I'm going to push through cause it sounds like good content.

[@johnchang774]

Very informative video, short and sweet without sacrificing content. Thank you so much.

[@maxa3221]

Man a lot of sound and editing experts in here. Thank you for the free information

[@BuildLessons]

Hahah you are very welcome Max!

[@Discovery123.]

The only thing that you keep in mind is the solid hardwood you can sand it down as much as you can and refinish to make it branch new again.

[@ByronCbyzi4]

Usually you can get two sandings out of quality engineered planks.

[@cameronharris2862]

Thats not actually true. you'll hit the tongue after a bit on wood. usually have 6mm. some engineered floors have 6mm

[@fatimab121]

Brilliant thank you.

[@BuildLessons]

You're very welcome!

[@lorib2347]

Informative video but I agree with other comments on the music- it’s just too loud and makes it hard to follow discussion

[@BuildLessons]

Thanks Lori, I agree the music is too loud I wish I had corrected it before upload. Glad you found it useful nonetheless!

[@davisjugroop3782]

The total thickness of solid wood floor is around 6cm, and if u have to transition to floor tiles, which is around 3cm, there is a 3 cm height difference.

[@patriciacarnie3959]

I enjoyed the information in your video, however the music in the background was a bit of a distraction for me as far as hearing goes.

[@BuildLessons]

Hi everyone, did this video answer your questions? I've got more videos like this coming on various flooring topics if you’re interested!

[@urbanzengirl]

this is helpful as a person looking for flooring right now but I am not in Peterborough otherwise I would come see you

[@daphneteno]

So helpful.👍 I just got an order but was confused because it said engineered hardwood and they didn’t mention it in the store where it was purchased.

[@edenpagani1243]

Thank you so much. I live in Atlanta and you really helped me make a decision,,,,,what about Basements? Hardwood or ??? Thank you for posting

[@spekovic1]

Thanks love this video I’m thinking of going over my tile but I was told because of the larger spacer grout that the flooring might not work since I’m trying to use seven or 9 inch wide planks floating engineer wood what are your thoughts on that ???

[@balintveto2708]

thanks a lot. after looking for the answer, i finally found it here. very informative and clear explanation. in the future, please show a close-op of the cross section.

[@jgreeter]

This video seems to contain disinformation. The idea that a wood fiber sandwich with a thin, stained veneer is more resistant to moisture than real hardwood is ridiculous. Several years ago, I ran an errand in a building in the southeastern US that turned out to have original wood floors which had been in continuous use since before George Washington slept there during the Revolutionary War. I'm pretty sure that the pre-Revolutionary War hardwood floor has seen more humidity and spills in its over 250 years of use than your lakehouse will in your lifetime. Also, they act like the ability to install engineered hardwood over well-laid tile is a special feature. Honestly, you can install just about any floor over well-laid tile, including real hardwood. Sometimes even directly to the tile; you can use this exotic substance called "glue." My neighbor had an oak floor that lasted through decades of renter abuse; meanwhile, my girlfriend's engineered hardwood floor (stained like the "hand scraped" engineered product he's showing off) didn't even survive her roommate's dog without getting huge visible scratches.

[@Martin944turbo]

Yes, this video is definitely promoting engineered products over hardwood. Biased opinions and misinformation with moisture and maintenance.

[@musicman102357]

I have the original 2 1/4 width oak-hard wood floors in my house that are 55 years old. I live in New England and it does get humid in the summer. Not once have I ever had any issues or needed any maintenance other than a to refinish one time and normal cleaning. Engineered is nice as long as you get a high-quality product with a decent wear layer.

[@davidp6839]

Agreed. This wasn't real informative. They keep mentioning "maintenance" but it's unclear what they're referring to, unless I missed it. Engineering hardwood has the same hardwood top layer, it's just extremely thin and can be refinished only once or twice. Seems it would need to be cared for just the same, more or less. I've got both in my house (1950s solid oak and a quality 4-yr-old engineered hardwood) and refinished the solid hardwood when i moved in 15 years ago and still looks fine (no "maintenance", unless you count cleaning that you'd do for any floor). The engineered hardwood is young, but also looks fine. However, it's in a bedroom so sees minimal tough traffic, but is definitely easier to damage and can poke through the thin veneer. Maybe it's a bit better with moisture, but I'm not real sure how significant that is to be honest. They both have to be treated the same when it comes to spills: cleaned up immediately or risk damage. If engineered was better when it came to that, then it'd have a real edge. We're selling and moving to another home where we want to replace carpet, so thought I'd check around. Going with solid hardwood for the refinish potential down the line, rather than someone needing to replace engineered 20 years from now. Price is about the same as far as I can tell. That said, if it were a basement I'd do engineered, or laminate if real moisture issues.

[@paulrooster2108]

@@davidp6839 , I love how they keep calling these Fake Boards " Hardwood Floors " they are only a lil better than the Cheap laminate junk . An penny for penny The Real Hardwood Floor is not that much more in cost , I've even found a few that were cheaper than the "Fake Hardwood " But hey if you can convince ppl that the " Fake " stuff is better Ching Ching rolls in the bucks

[@mediacity3863]

Agreed. Unless there is a chance of flooding on the floor, go for the solid wood. Use a strong moisture barrier. I have installed Acacia solid wood over old vinyl sheet flooring (glue with screw down) and it's safe for maybe 50 or more years.

[@kayfiset854]

We have hardwood floors everywhere but the bathroom, and they require only minimal maintenance. A European hard oil finish makes it even easier.

[@vickiemazzawi]

Hello Jeff, I have carpet all over except the kitchen which is vinyl planks and bathrooms. I wanted to change it to either hardwood flooring or engineered one but not sure which one to choose we live in London Ontario and I think we have similar weather. Is the engineered little bit cheaper and definitely would need a provincial installer to do it. Thank you

[@ethersecure2432]

I believe you forgot to mention that in some applications you NEED engineered wood, like condos, where the floor can't be stapled needs to float over the concrete.

[@Martin944turbo]

I just installed real hardwood for the first time on the entire top level of my condo and the main level in the living room. It's very easy and you can rent or buy the nail gun. I used Canadian Maple Hardwood (Canadian Solid Flooring Natural Maple .75-inch T x 4.25 W x Varying Lengths). Very easy to install. My 2017 home I sold had hardwood on the entire main floor and there are no maintenance issues over 5 years, easy to clean toddler/kid food spills - no idea what this guy is talking about maintenance and moisture issues. Most homes have central air and newer homes have moisture control built into the furnace. If you have the money, always go hardwood. If you have pets then look into scratch resistant engineered products for sure.

[@MadLadsAnonymous]

Can we seal the hardwood flooring with a few coats of a product like Bona Traffic HD?

[@ImaniMichele]

Does the thord option mentioned "click system wood flooring" have a different name when looking it up online? Unfortunately everything say click system nowadays. I have open concept so this floor would be in the kitchen as well. Which of the three are more waterproof than the others? I loved the video but i would suggest adding pricing information and durability testing (general or specific)

[@comewithmetoghana4969]

Which one is the best in a sunny or hot country with a weather condition of 30 degrees

[@stewartbonner]

Engineered plank is great for building specialty cabinetry , boxes. the hand scraped make great toy boxes treasure chests, glue blocks back to plank back for very good hardware mounting .

[@michellemooresings]

I'm looking at a 6mm top to an engineered hardwood floor. It's going to be in the kitchen and dining areas to replace the maple. Can the installers get away with simply sanding down our current maple floors, making sure everything is level and then put the new floors on top? I think that's what I heard them saying. Also, the mill I bought samples from says it can be glued or nailed. ???

[@zhli4238]

I have engineered hardwood floor since upgraded from carpet 4 years ago, and I like it. I don't think you can tell the difference between engineered hardwood vs solid hardwood unless you break it to look at its profile. No, I don't think engineered hardwood is more durable, however floor should be replaced once in 20 years. I had seen some really old townhouses with century old solid hardwood floor -- this really shouldn't be, floor should be replaced more often, who knows what's in the wood cracks. Another thing is, I like the new type Acacia hardwood than other woods, engineered or not, but solid is too costly that I don't want to pay. I don't really need it solid all the way, I just want that wood grain pattern and color and its hardness.

[@stpierreorama]

A well installed and maintained hardwood will last many times more than 20 years. I had a 1945 original floor refinished and the results were incredible. A very stunning and beautiful floor even though it had some imperfections due to abuse and lack of maintenance.

[@arlenesusanarivera7809]

What do you think of optiwood brand?

[@katyyip7747]

Recently, I search an engineered hardwood there the Top hardwood and total of thick plank for 6 mm /21 mm or 4 mm / 18 mm which one is better?

[@comewithmetoghana4969]

Which one is the best under a climate of 30 degrees

[@DWESENTERPRISE]

So the tell tell sign is width?

[@Onkarr]

Top review 👌

[@RayPaganJr]

I have engineered hardwood flooring on steps and second floor of my home. It was beautiful when we had it installed. In retrospect I regret spending all that money on this upgrade. We have no children and there are a lot of dents, dings, scratches, and indentations from office chairs and when we move furniture around to clean. If it weren’t so expensive and inconvenient, I’d redo the flooring again, but I’m not gonna spend the money.

[@thinkingaboutit9826]

What would you do differently?

[@RayPaganJr]

@@thinkingaboutit9826 I would get something more sturdy, not quite so easily damaged.

[@Martin944turbo]

@@RayPaganJr I just installed Canadian maple hardwood in my 2 storey condo. Have 2 kids 4 and 6, office chairs. Very tough.

[@bdm1000]

But how many times can you refinish engineered hardwood floors?

[@TrackerRoo]

A few, and that's it.

[@cliffordmarc4392]

it would have been nice to cover the wear layer.. i was considering Engineered but the wear layer on most brands is really thin, that its comparable to laminate flooring. Not all Engineered wood is equal, buyers have to be really careful about the quality.

[@BuildLessons]

It's a good point to bring to the table. It seems that even the thickest wear layers don't truly allow of the refinishing potential of a true hardwood, but it still helps hold up to wear and tare over the years. I've heard even with the best engineered products you might be able to get one refinish but its not common. Do you think you have a minimum wear layer thickness you would go with, or do you prefer the real hardwood products?

[@cliffordmarc4392]

Mitch Cleary from my understanding you can get 0-3 refinishes with engineered. Not sure that would hold up long with an active family with pets.... with real hardwood you can refinish 5-7 times and change the color..... the biggest negative to real hardwood is water.... I have a real hardwood in my house, the dog had a couple pee accidents that stood for a few hours, floor still looks OK with no swelling... I did a light sand and some polyurethane, looks brand new...

[@BuildLessons]

@@cliffordmarc4392 Yes I think another one of the biggest issues with a true hardwood vs. and engineered product is locations with high swings in moisture content between seasons. The real wood is prone to cupping, expansion, and shrinking with large fluctuations in moisture content due to large changes in relative humidity levels. It's funny more people don't bring soft woods into the equation of wood options, specifically pine. I saw an old home recently where they sanded and stained full thickness pine planks to match the original floors. It cost less than hardwood, and still looks great once it faces some wear and tear! I installed a glue down vinyl application in my own home and we love it so far. The greatest upside is the ease of replacing a board, which can also be true for pine if it is screwed from the top and plugged.

[@aveno66]

What kind material its the one in front of you the dark plywood do you have a name for it. Please I need to know...Thank you.

[@BuildLessons]

Do you mean the sample closest to the camera or to the left of the table?

[@aveno66]

@@BuildLessons Its the one your are holding at 1:19

[@BuildLessons]

@@aveno66 So we tracked it back and the product I believe that product was from the "Eagle Run" line by Melmart. There is a chance it is discontinued but they have another line call "Oakhaven" that is the same construction.

[@aveno66]

@@BuildLessons Thank you Do you Recommend the Oak-haven its a Hard wood or Vinyl??

[@bgBlea]

Can't you use floating installation for all 3 types? Thanks

[@BuildLessons]

To the best of my knowledge, the only floating options are in the engineered products. I have never seen a real solid hardwood option that does not need to be stapled or nailed down if this is what you mean?

[@bgBlea]

@@BuildLessons that makes sense considering the thickness of solid flooring. Thanks

[@BuildLessons]

bgBlea No problem. Are you about to tackle a flooring project?

[@bgBlea]

@@BuildLessons at some point

[@platomojo]

Steller Innovations produces water resistant, floating solid wood floors. Amazing stuff

[@arjunyeleshwarapu]

a moment apart by odesza is a W song

[@amattson6578]

Can you glue down 3/4" thick solid hardwood with the kerfed out backing/underside to a concrete slab? Someone wants me to install 200 sq ft in their living room and I have concerns

[@centerpoint643]

The discussion was informative but the background music was very annoying and distracting.

[@BuildLessons]

Thanks, and yes these were some of the earliest videos I hired out to get edited and did not realize at the time how overpowering the music was. I am not using much music anymore on my videos!

[@katiepare9685]

Can you refinish engineered hardwood? Does it wear like traditional hard wood?

[@BuildLessons]

Engineered hardwood has a veneer that is real hardwood, with a backer that is made of plywood or other engineered wood products. That being said, the ability to refinish an engineered hardwood totally depends on the thickness of the veneer, or the thickness of the real hardwood on the top layer in other words. General speaking, it does wear the same as hardwood in terms of how it handles traffic and dings/ scratches, because the top layer you see is actually hardwood. Hopefully this helps!

[@katiepare9685]

It does, and I'm considering coating it with polyurethane or shellac *before* wear and tear so that with the second refinish, I won't have to sand into the veneer. It's for an entry hallway

[@BuildLessons]

Katie Pare You are leaning towards engineered vs real hardwood I take it? Some woods are more durable than others as well, and in my experience you can use touch up markers to cover some surprisingly large scratches and dings. Flooring styles that naturally look a bit worn are better for hiding blemishes in the future, and I have found that light coloured floors are the hardest to hide blemishes with touch up markers, mid to dark floors do very well with the touch up markers or “stain pens”.

[@katiepare9685]

@@BuildLessons thank you! Was also considering vinyl laminate but the stairs it's next to is beautiful, medium color hardwood. Thanks for your advice!

[@BuildLessons]

@@katiepare9685 I used vinyl in my own house with really nice hardwood stairs and it looks great! I'm going to do a video on year in review of how the laminate has held up in the next week or so!

[@OutThere5]

I’ll never use engineered hardwood again. It is basically glorified cheap laminate. Mine brazilian cherry is only 15 years old and I want to remove it because all the edges are blistering. I’ve also seen birch Eng hardwood and within a year it was scratched to pieces, it’s so soft.

[@BuildLessons]

It’s not like a laminate in the sense that the core material is plywood rather than particularly board but be aware that blistering can happen with true hardwood too! What kind of climate do you live in? I agree with the softness, engineered or real hardwood the scratching issue is real!

[@comewithmetoghana4969]

@@BuildLessons if you live in a climate of 30 degrees which one do you think is best to use

[@LT4Nova]

I'm going to guess flooring technology has grown leaps and bounds since 2005, EVERYTHING else has..

[@drewnation9905]

This dude sounds like Joe Robinet

[@gurudeclan]

Tough crowd

[@BuildLessons]

Big time lol not catching many breaks!

[@KRISTIANFIGUEROA123]

Canadian ari shaffir floor salesman

[@CareyGrayson]

Came to watch the video, left because of the annoying music

[@BuildLessons]

Couldn’t agree more actually lol. This was one of the first videos I subbed out the editing on and I wish I had paid more attention to how distracting it was before I posted it! I’m hoping to continue improving the video qaulity in the future.

[@smokeythebirdbrain]

@@BuildLessons Additional feedback would be close up B-roll shots of the specific flooring samples as you mention them. Hard to get a sense of what exactly you're talking about from 6ft away.

[@urbanzengirl]

@@BuildLessons I like the music

[@heinrichpelser]

The music is familiar. I think it’s the same sound that is used in Forza Horizon 4.

[@maxa3221]

@@BuildLessons don't worry too much about stupid people commenting, wasn't that bad at all

[@cic-400]

Good info in the video, but why did you put in this horrible background music? It's so negatively distracting

[@c3po631]

i can't hear anything

[@jayvidhun6988]

Couldn’t watch through the background music.

[@terabyte6166]

I couldn’t finish watching this video. The background music is too loud and competing with your voices. Too bad, seems like great information.

[@mz8755]

music too loud hard to hear

[@stevenj9970]

Do you really need to have the background music playing the entire time you’re having a conversation? Is it necessary?

[@pammy35]

Engineered scratches and can’t be sanded

[@whitehotkp]

It can be sanded….just not as many times as hardwood

[@chrisjohnson5765]

Please kill the music! I can’t hear you guys and the music adds nothing.

[@eslossful]

why the music? it is so distracting

[@richardpayne6941]

I Agree , awful distracting music

[@stuart4570]

Why is there annoying music playing 🤔I can't watch this ☹️☹️

[@Marysiewert]

This is a push for cheap floors and fast profits.... all I'm hearing! I have hired someone pushing this...wanting me to like his mismatching of my real oak hardwood flooring to his mismatching of maple he used to patch my damaged floor...so awful and he will not agree that it is off. Stay knowledgeable in the real wood realm...pushing cheap for fast profits is not a good idea.

[@Martin944turbo]

100% - spot on. Biased opinions to sell more affordable products. A lot of misinformation.

[@hanaspa]

music too loud, not needed, distracting

[@ooohrob]

a good installer would never lay hardwood over tile... thats just lazy

[@wjjz8902]

Whats with the annoying background music drowning out the narration ?

[@grinder187]

that song is distracting

[@jcarden6615]

Remove music

[@parisjaye4159]

Well that sucked. Sorry guys but that music needs to be edited out. DISTRACTION!!! I was looking for a less than 10 minute side by side comparison. Got less than a minute in and- nope.

[@jonathanlindsey858]

Solid hardwood or nothing.

[@Martin944turbo]

Yes, any good real estate agent will say the same thing. Increases value of home.

[@samanthakitch4736]

There's a lot of BS in this video and a lot of missing information.

[@trex1448]

What is with the annoying music????

[@BuildLessons]

These are some of my first videos, and I hired out the editing, using a freelancer overseas hired through Upwork. Lessons learned, I now edit my own stuff and select the audio tracks if any, and the volume is way down!

[@johnwhite2576]

so much nonsense being posted here. cant comment meaningfully unless you know climate and how well house is conditioned and width nd length of bipod.if im ok with strip widths, fine, do natural. if you are ok with prefinishsed, nothing tops the factory alum oxide finishes for durability

[@tj7870]

get rid of the music!

[@deanjohnson5365]

Get rid of the fricking music! Sheesh!!

[@szargos]

All I hear is music, I'm out!

[@asoukl]

Very bad choice of music. Distracting and annoying.

[@davidblah-7215]

Music is too loud. And for that reason only I give this a thumbs down

[@miked9986]

Couldn't get past 3 minutes of this video because of the editing. You don't need to pop zoom in and out 40 times. Odessa sound track doesn't match the video either.

[@BuildLessons]

Hi Mike, yes I have to agree the editing unfortunately makes this video difficult to watch. We put a good amount of time into prepping the content, I wish I new better before I uploaded this video. I still have the raw content and may release a simpler version of the same video in the near future. Thanks for the feedback.

[@antoniogarcia2774]

come on! Don’t compare the stupid engineered hard wood with real hard wood… never

[@hikerinpam33]

Great video, only critic is stop shaking your head. Be more professional

[@BuildLessons]

Yes my interview skills could certainly use some work lol. Thanks for watching!

[@tanishazoa138]

Engineered hardwood sucks

[@mp-sv2cp]

Engineered feels cheap, can’t be real wood