Sanding Kahrs & Boen Engineered Wood Floors

Hardwood flooring remains a top choice for property renovations, thanks to its timeless appeal and durability. However, solid wood floors demand expert installation due to their sensitivity to environmental factors like moisture and temperature changes. While laminate flooring can mimic the look of wood, it's important to note that it’s not real wood and lacks the long-lasting benefits of authentic hardwood.

Benefits of Engineered Wood Flooring

Engineered wood flooring offers a perfect middle ground between solid wood and laminate floors. It combines the best qualities of both:

• Easy installation, often installed as a floating floor, allowing for simpler fitting.
• Moisture and temperature resistance, make it ideal for spaces prone to fluctuations in these conditions.
• Authentic wood beauty, providing the look and feel of real wood at a more affordable price.

However, the wear layer—the top layer of real wood—determines the lifespan of the floor and how many times it can be sanded and restored.

Thickness Matters

• 14 mm to 15 mm thick engineered wood usually has a 3 to 4 mm hardwood layer that allows for fewer sandings.
• 18 mm thick boards typically offer a 6 mm top layer, increasing the number of sanding cycles and ensuring more extended durability.
• 20 mm+ thick engineered floors have the longest lifespan, rivaling the durability of solid wood floors, with a sanding depth of up to 7 mm from the tongue and groove.

This makes thicker engineered wood floors a great long-term investment, as they can be restored multiple times, just like domestic-grade solid wood flooring.

Why Choose Kahrs and Boen Engineered Flooring?

Kahrs and Boen engineered flooring are popular choices in the UK due to their excellent quality, variety of finishes, and durability, making them ideal for restoration and long-term use.

Kahrs Engineered Flooring

• Comes with a 15 mm thickness and a 3.5 mm top layer made from high-quality woods like maple, beech, ash, walnut, and oak.
• Offers a wide variety of colour-finished options, which is one of the key reasons for its growing popularity.

Boen Engineered Flooring

• Features 15 mm thickness with a 3 mm top layer.
• Boen also offers a broad range of products, catering to different styles and preferences.

While Kahrs and Boen differ slightly in top layer thickness and available finishes, their restoration process is often similar.

Restoration Considerations

• If physical damage (e.g., high heel marks) isn't an issue and only the sealant wear is visible, it's possible to refinish the floor on more than one occasion.
• It’s crucial to use the same trusted professional floor sanding service for every restoration. Some companies may even keep a record of your sanding service or issue a certificate for future reference.

Colour Restoration Challenges

• When dealing with colour-stained oak or other pre-finished floors, note that the colour may differ slightly after restoration. The original products used by Boen or Kahrs to stain and finish the wood may not be identical to those used by your local floor sanding company, potentially leading to minor variations in appearance.

By choosing Kahrs or Boen engineered wood flooring and following careful restoration practices, you ensure your floors maintain their beauty and durability for years.

Professional Sanding Services for Kahrs and Boen Engineered Wood Floors

When it comes to restoring engineered wood flooring, it’s essential to rely on a professional floor sanding company. Experienced professionals know how to achieve the best colour match after sanding, ensuring that your floor retains its beauty even if it was originally finished in a specific colour.

Advantages of Engineered Wood Over Laminate

• Engineered wood can be sanded and restored after developing scratches and dings, whereas laminate flooring cannot.

However, there are two critical considerations when sanding engineered wood:

Limited Sanding Potential

• Engineered wood can only be sanded a limited number of times, typically no more than 2 times, depending on the thickness of the top hardwood layer. For example:
  • Kahrs and Boen engineered flooring has a 3–3.5 mm top layer, limiting the number of sanding sessions.

Risk of Damage

• Due to the thin top layer, there's a high risk of gouging the surface and exposing the plywood underneath if sanding isn't done carefully. This is why professional sanding services are strongly recommended.

Trusting professionals will protect your investment and extend the life of your floors, ensuring they look their best for many years to come.

Our flooring service comes with obligation-free site visit, quick quotations and free advice. Give us a call on 020 88309782 to speak to a member of our staff, who can arrange for a free assessment of your floor sanding or wood floor fitting service at a convenient for you time.