Out of all the variations of engineered floors, Oak is the most popular choice for homeowners who want the best possible value for their money. There are many reasons why homeowners are flocking to this type of flooring more and more instead of the more traditional choice, Red Oak flooring. It is not difficult to see why though, white oak has an incredibly unique looking palette of colors that give off an aesthetic to the home that other woods simply cannot imitate. It is also incredibly durable and water-resistant as well as affordable and accessible. Let’s dig deeper into all of these reasons and find out why white oak flooring may be right for you.
Illuminate the Home
For homeowners who are concerned about making the flooring of the home as gorgeous looking as possible, white oak is a popular choice because it has brighter colors with a more light personality. The advantage of having this type of color palette is that when compared to Red Oak floors for example, they are less austere and far more unassuming and subtle. Being brighter also means that they look absolutely stunning when hit with natural light.
Very Distinctive Grain
When you take a look at the grain of white oak floors and compare it to other wood variations, you will notice that the rings are more compact and closer together. This provides the benefit of making the floors have the smooth and uniform feel of having tiles while keeping the rustic nature of using wood. When put into tighter spaces like bedrooms they can give off the impression that the room is actually larger and more spacious than it actually is. This is one of the few grains of wood flooring that goes really well with more modern home interiors.
Durable and Resistant
The hardness of wood is typically measured by something called a Janka test. When a small steel ball is embedded into a piece of wood, a Janka test would measure the force required to get the ball into the wood by half its diameter. When compared to other hardwoods such as red oak, white oak has an impressively higher Janka score, making it truly one of the most durable materials used for flooring in the market. Because it is close-grained as we mentioned earlier, it is also very resistant to water damage.
Cost-Effective
Despite the fact that it looks and feels like it is an exotic hardwood, white oak is not. It is actually fairly ubiquitous and does not present any issues with the supply chain, making it more widely available and affordable.
Unique Aesthetic
Finally, white oak floors are very popular for homeowners that want to go for a more modern and contemporary feel in interiors that feature a lot of silver, gray and white surfaces. Part of the reason why it is so popular among contemporary style homes is that these types of homes usually feature an abundant amount of glass and windows, allowing natural light to permeate the house more freely. When you compare the effect that natural light has on white oak compared to the more traditional red oak, white oak stands out significantly. Whereas red oak would look better on a more classic looking and darker room, rooms such as offices and workspaces would want to have a more sleek and smooth aesthetic which white oak is usually perfect for.
A wise and value-conscious homeowner would want to have the best possible value for the price of the flooring. Not only does white oak check all of the boxes for affordability, durability, and elegance, it is also the ultimate testament to the fact that flooring does not have to be exotic and expensive for it to look gorgeous inside of the house. Even though white oak is not exactly luxurious and exotic when used correctly and in the right settings, it will make the inside of a house truly stand out.
