[Rosiegirl]

My hubby had his own hardwood install business. Our one room of carpet lasted one year and that room was also made to be hardwood. To maintain hardwood, you should clean it with vinegar water. It is WAY easier to keep clean, I wouldn't worry about scratches unless you have large dogs too and then I would trim nails regularly. New hardwood will allow you to re-finish the floors 3 or 4 times before there isn't much left to sand on, which should last 30-50 or more years if done right. There are 2 finishes you can use, Glitza or polyeurathane, (poly is less strong) There is also pre-finished, which is hard or near impossible to re-sand, raw wood is better, but messier to install. I would highly recommend hardwood, i LOVE mine, we have two boys and dogs and that is the only floor that will outlast our crazy family. I would think hard about installing it in the kitchen or bathroom though in case your dishwasher breaks while you are on vacation or something and water left for long periods on wood floors will cause it to cup up and need to be re-done, not fun! If you have any other questions about hardwood, P.M. me and i have much more info to share with you guys.


P.S. I trained several puppies and they all pee-ed on my hardwood and there is absolutely no smell or remains of these trainings on my hardwood, It is the best! Just always use vinegar/water to clean.

We have Brazillian Cherry 5' thick peices, it is beautiful, and we also have one room of distressed Oak-prefinished. (stained dark)