difference between solid wood floor and engineered?

[happyhero]

We are thinking of doing our ground floor, ie kitchen, lounge, dinning room and hall in solid wood and I am assuming solid wood is the best but I am wondering about the engineered stuff as you do get a few mm on top of solid wood and it is cheaper.

I can't see us wearing away through the top layer of the engineered unless you can tell me different, so I am assuming it will look and perform identically on top to solid wood. I sort of fancy the solid wood but not sure if its wasting money when engineered would do possibly?

I looked at the B&Q solid wood which looked really nice to me (I'm no expert) but some reviews said that people had gaps appearing after a while, trouble is, is this because they laid it incorrectly or didn't climatise it first or something else like that or is it a problem with the actual floor?

Looking at the B&Q stuff you can get it for about an average of £50/m but I looked in a proper flooring shop and the average seemed to jump to £100/m, so don't know what to make of the differences here and the quality. Is the B&Q stuff ok?

Would it be so much better stuff from a proper floor shop?

Are the problems people had with the B&Q stuff likely to be the materials or the installers fault?

I have heard that the engineered will not create gaps as easily as solid wood, is this true?

What are the pros and cons comparing the solid wood against the engineered?

Is solid the best or are there benefits getting the engineered?

What about installing, anything to consider between the two?

Any help/advice appreciated.

 

[AronSearle]

Just a few questions then?

Engineered is more stable, most boards have a wear layer, so won't "wear out" in a domestic situation.

More expensive boards will likely have better quality wear layers, often doesnt matter for typical domestic use.

Gaps appearing between boards is a laying or moisture content issue (either the shop provides them to "wet" or they are not acclimatized).

 

[happyhero]

Just a few questions then?

Engineered is more stable, most boards have a wear layer, so won't "wear out" in a domestic situation.

More expensive boards will likely have better quality wear layers, often doesnt matter for typical domestic use.

Gaps appearing between boards is a laying or moisture content issue (either the shop provides them to "wet" or they are not acclimatized).

Cheers AronSearle for that, so which is better and why would you choose it?

So reading between the lines you think the B&Q stuff is fine if acclimatized and laid correctly?

 

[AronSearle]

Cheers AronSearle for that, so which is better and why would you choose it?

Engineered is more idiot proof in terms of laying (as it's more stable).

Otherwise choosing solid over engineered is like choosing canvas over prints, both do the job, one is seen as more premium.

So reading between the lines you think the B&Q stuff is fine if acclimatized and laid correctly?

For most domestic uses yes.