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Flooring Glossary






Laminate Flooring -Is a manufactured product that simulates the look of hardwood, ceramic tile, natural stone and many other types of flooring.  Laminate flooring is usually installed as a floating floor and requires no glue or nails.  The planks simply lock together then rest on top of a moisture barrier and pad.

Solid Hardwood Floorings - come in a wide range of dimensions and styles, with each plank made of solid wood and milled from a single piece of timber. Solid hardwood floors were originally used for structural purposes, being installed perpendicular to the wooden support beams of a building. Modern construction techniques now rarely use wood building frames and solid hardwood floors are used almost exclusively for their appearance.  Solid hardwood flooring is usually nailed to the sub floor.


Engineered Wood Flooring - is comprised of two or more layers of wood in the form of a plank. The top layer (lamella) is the wood that is visible when the flooring is installed, and is adhered to the core (or substrate) which provides the stability.

  •     Click Lock Engineered Flooring -is usually installed as a floating floor and requires no glue or nails.  The planks simply lock together then rest on top of a moisture barrier and pad.
  •     Tongue & Groove Engineered Flooring - is usually nailed or glued to the subtler.  It cannot be installed as a floating floor system.



Tile - is commonly found in two varieties:

  • “Ceramic” or non porcelain tiles are generally made from red or white clay fired in a kiln. They are almost always finished with a durable glaze which carries the color and pattern. These tiles are used in both wall tile and floor tile applications, are softer and easier to cut than porcelain, and usually carry a PEI 0 to 3 rating. Non-porcelain ceramic tiles are usually suitable for very light to moderate traffic and generally have a relatively high water absorption rating making them less frost resistant and they are more prone to wear and chipping than porcelain tiles.

  • Porcelain tile is a tile that is generally made by the dust pressed method from porcelain clays which result in a tile that is dense, impervious, fine grained and smooth, with a sharply formed face. Porcelain tiles usually have a much lower water absorption rate (less than 0.5%) than non-porcelain tiles making them frost resistant or frost-proof. Glazed porcelain tiles are much harder and more wear and damage resistant than non-porcelain ceramic tiles, making them suitable for any application from light traffic to the heaviest residential and light commercial traffic. Full body porcelain tiles carry the color and pattern through the entire thickness of the tile making them virtually impervious to wear and are suitable for any application from residential to the highest traffic commercial or industrial applications. Porcelain tiles are available in matte, unglazed or a high polished finish.







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