Hello! After perusing this site for a few hours, I am not sure I should still consider wood as it sounds like a lot of nightmares if you don't have a great installer! Assuming I can get that part taken care of, I need some advice on brand.

I have a concrete slab and so it seems like I will need to go with engineered hardwood. I am in South Florida, but my husband will assure you that we can usually about hang meet in the house because I like the temperature to be very cool inside! Parts of the house do, however, get pretty warm with sunlight mid day most of the year.

I will be doing about 1,000 square feet, including stairs. I have two younger children and a 40 pound dog who doesn't have too sharp of nails. What I would like is something in a medium brown, with some gloss to reflect light but not shiny shiny, and something in a wider plank. I prefer the rustic look, but want a more smooth plank - none of the ripples or too much distressing. I also prefer a more even tone throughout.

My questions are these:

1. What type of finish should I be looking for that will hold up the best to scratches and dents?

2. Does the type of wood make a difference in terms of how it will hold up to scratches and dents if it is engineered hardwood and not solid hardwood?

3. Does the type of bevel make a difference in terms of how the wood holds up?

4. Are there any brands or series within a brand that you would recommend avoiding? If you cannot recommend "avoiding" a specific brand, could you tell me which brands/series of engineered wood you tend to see the most of in repair jobs?

5. Does the wider the plank is make cupping and the like more possible, particularly in stairs? If so, is it over a certain width that has a problem? Would 5" be safer than 6" - or is that not much of a difference?

5. I am in love with the look of different woods made by Provenza. A couple in the Plance series and another in the Palazzo series. Does anyone have experience with this brand/series in terms of how it holds up? I have read online in one complaint forum a few people saying the wood was extremely soft and dented and scratched way too easily. Supposedly the Palazzo is accacia and the Plance is walnut. But again, not sure if that makes a difference in engineered wood or not. Any advice/opinions/experience with this brand would be appreciated.

6. Is there a brand/series that you would recommend for producing a consistent product in terms of even tone throughout, quality, etc.?

Thank you so much for any help or insight you can offer!

Tracy

edited to add - I'm confused on the handscraping. Some posts seem to indicate it hides scratches/dents better, while others say it is worse. What is your opinion?

1) Most engineered woods have an aluminum oxide finish, which is a very tough finish.

2) The brand will make a difference. Basically you get what you pay for.

3) Most bevels are the same. I would go with as small as a bevel as possible, but that is just what I prefer.

4) I would avoid any brands with a really thin wear layer. Some good brands are; mirage, BR-111, Homerwood, Armstrong, & Lauzon

5) Width does not cause cupping. Moisture or humidity issues do.

5 #2) Not familiar with this product. Sorry.

6) I would recommend the brands listed above. With an engineered floor you want as thick of a wear layer as you ca get. Thicker wear layer means more refinishes in the future. I would avoid woods that are sensitive to light, since you mentioned their is a lot of light. Some of these are; brazilian cherry maple, cherry etc.

I have heard of Provenza. They make some awesome hardwood floors.

First off I'd suggest an engineered, glued down and with a sawn face, not rotary peeled. Many manufacturers make sawn face. I would also suggest an oiled finish that makes touch ups easy.

Here's some iinteresting ones for ya. On the finishes drop down menu click on Natural Oil or UV cured Oil Then click browse http://www.provenzafloors.com/products/ ... ector.aspx

Thank you gentleman! You would not suggest the poly coating then, Stephen? I think the line we were considering in Provenza is poly, but honestly I am having a hard time finding somewhere with enough samples for me to look at in that brand!

What do you think of Award's Terra Bella line? Its a rotary peeled and the veneer is, I believe, only 2 mm, but it is supposed to have some special coating that wears well.

I wouldn't have a poly coating if you gave it to me for free. I like the natural oil finishes over plastic finishes, but thats just me. That olied finish floors I told you about is 3/4 engineered with a 6mm top. Hard to beat that. Plus it looks distressed already like all those kids and dogs will do to it anyway. ha ha kidding.

I used to know more about Award but not so much these days.

Whats your zip code? http://www.provenzafloors.com/support/Dealers.aspx

Hi,
I have observed that a Flooring brand is more and more identified with durability. While this is helpful in narrowing down your choices, specially when there are so many to choose from, keep in mind that there are a lot of other things that you would need to consider. Don't limit yourself to thinking that the brand is all there is to it in a flooring. While it can get tricky in choosing the best flooring brand, this will also work to your advantage as there are now a greater competition which forces every flooring manufacturer to keep up with the industry demands, this only means that the price stays low, while the quality keeps getting better and better.
Keep in mind that a real hardwood floor is a natural product, they will get scratched and dented down the road, all natural wood floor will, eventually. The finish that is applied to the floors however determines the overall wear. It is important to use a branded version, Terrific aluminum oxide from Germany is a very good example.