What is Wide Plank Flooring and Why Should You Choose It?

Wide board flooring has an appeal of its own when it comes to putting in new floors in your home. The method derives from olden days where it was a great deal easier for the carpenter to put in said floors if the planks were wider, simply because the boards covered more space. Back then they also didn't have the advantage of putting plywood underneath and, therefore, used two layers of broad floorboards to keep the cold and moisture out of the floor. Another reason for wide plank flooring historically is that they tended to use larger trees to create boards.  Wide plank flooring is thus often used as a way to achieve a more rustic look in your home, as it is an older method of flooring. Depending on what type of wood you prefer you can achieve many looks with this particular type of flooring.

Aesthetics

To be considered a wide plank, the plank has to be wider than 3", however, many widths are available depending on which wood you prefer, what type of space the floor is to be used in and which contractor you hire. The planks also tend to be longer as well as wider than strip board flooring, mainly because the source material of the wood is longer but also because the width of the planks has to be compensated with being longer, purely because of aesthetic reasons. It would look unappealing with very wide, very short planks.

Wide plank flooring may also be used as a way to create an illusion of a wider space. A few broader planks compared to many narrow planks can make a small room seem substantially larger. Narrow boards in a narrow space can create a busy look.

Benefits

There are few limitations when it comes to choosing which type of wood you prefer when choosing wide plank flooring. Wide plank flooring can be achieved with almost any type of wood. It does not automatically mean pine floors fit for very old houses; as many types of wood that are available for narrow plank flooring, nearly as many are suitable for wide plank flooring. It all depends on what look you wish to create for your own home.

A final advantage to consider when looking at the option of wide plank flooring is the cleanliness. It's a very simple formula. Since there are fewer creases in wide plank flooring, because there are fewer planks to have creases between them, not as much dirt will gather in between the planks.