Prime Grade Engineered Oak Flooring
Our Prime Grade Engineered Oak offers
- A select grade board with no sapwood
- No knots (Pin knots upto 5mm)
- Limited colour variations
- Long lengths - always 2200mm or 2400mm
- 6mm wear layer of solid oak - Not a veneer
A quick guide to choosing, fitting and looking after prime grade Engineered Oak flooring.
What is 'prime grade' engineered Oak flooring.
The first thing to be aware of is that the term 'prime grade' refers to the Oak wear layer and is not a reference to the general quality of the boards.
You might expect a prime grade engineered floor to in some way be superior to its rustic equivalent. Certainly the look is more sophisticated and the price of prime engineered boards is greater but remember the best quality flooring is available in both prime and rustic grades. The manufacturing process is the same, the ‘quality‘ of the product is the same.
So what’s special about a prime grade engineered Oak floor?
Well, it’s a matter of the selection of the timber. Prime grade Oak flooring is more expensive because there is less of it! The reverse is true of the more rustic grades. 'Grading' is one of the main factors affecting the price of prime engineered Oak flooring- the more rustic the grade, the cheaper it is. Combine this with short length boards and narrow planks and this is the cheapest engineered Oak floor for the manufacturers to produce.
You want a wide plank, prime grade engineered Oak floor with long planks only? well... its going to cost a little more!
How can I tell if I’m buying genuine prime grade engineered Oak?
You should always order a sample, but note this will not help you establish if the wood is prime grade engineered as a small sample may have no knots in the same way as a small section of a rustic plank may have no knots.
When buying prime engineered oak flooring it’s a case of carefully checking the specification provided by the supplier.
Stone and Woodshop's Prime engineered Oak is described as having only occasional pin knots- nothing over 5mm, the colour of the boards varies little and the grain structure is relatively straight and consistent. Importantly any pictures provided should be of a high enough quality to distinguish a prime engineered Oak board from something more rustic.
Buying prime grade engineered Oak flooring
At Stone and Woodshop we generally keeps stocks of prime engineered Oak flooring but you will find it is less readily available than other more popular grades so it pays to plan ahead and order your prime engineered Oak flooring in plenty of time.
Always order 10% extra wood for cuts and waste.
Only buy prime engineered oak from a reputable source.
Fitting prime engineered Oak
Installation of this product is no different from other engineered oak flooring. For a comprehensive discussion please read our installation page or watch our video
Care and maintenance of prime engineered Oak flooring
We have comprehensive instructions for looking after Oak flooring including prime engineered boards elsewhere on the site, see our Engineered Oak page.
