Walk into a showroom and solid and engineered oak look identical. The real difference is what sits under the top few millimetres, and how that behaves in a damp Pacific Northwest winter.

Solid oak

One piece of timber, top to bottom. It can be sanded and refinished five or six times, so a good solid floor can outlive the people who chose it.

It moves more with humidity, so we only lay it above grade and acclimatise every delivery for at least a week.

Engineered oak

A real oak wear layer bonded to a stable plywood core. It barely moves, works over concrete and radiant heat, and comes in wide planks that would cup in solid wood.

Look for a wear layer of 4 mm or more if you want the option to refinish it later.

Our usual advice

Upstairs and in older homes with wooden subfloors, solid. Basements, concrete slabs and underfloor heating, engineered. If in doubt, we bring both to your house and test the subfloor first.