Hardwood flooring quality from China?

[stealth]

Saw some good deals at HD foir the Chinese stuff. I'm not too worried about the wood itself (ya I know theres environmental and economical consequences for buying abroad too), but has anyone noticed a big difference in finish quality?

[lapopal]

If you know the environmental consequences of buying wood from China then why even bother? Every person counts! You live here, there's many brands featuring made in Canada with good quality Canadian woods. Spend the extra buck and feel confident on a superior product that doesn't destroy the environment to save a few cents.

[patrob]

Saw some good deals at HD foir the Chinese stuff. I'm not too worried about the wood itself (ya I know theres environmental and economical consequences for buying abroad too), but has anyone noticed a big difference in finish quality?

There is a very big difference in the quality of finish. Most of Chinese wood products are easy to scratch & they scratch 'white' even with a fingernail. The finish is softer & it has less coats of varnish than what is advertised.

Make sure if you buy, get enough for your full need, because if you need more in a month, more likely it's going to be a diff. colour if stained. It's not 3/4" as advertised if you measure & the milling of the wood sucks. Higher/lower boards, tapered edges & s****y to work with lengths of the boards.

Overall, it's not worth the money...so spend a little more & buy Canadian made product.

[stealth]

If you know the environmental consequences of buying wood from China then why even bother? Every person counts! You live here, there's many brands featuring made in Canada with good quality Canadian woods. Spend the extra buck and feel confident on a superior product that doesn't destroy the environment to save a few cents.

Mostly because there have been reports at times where the Canadian industries have been less than ethical in terms of logging and forestry practices as well, so I dont think the issue only applies to the Chinese. And yes even though I live here and so do many canadian manufacturers anbd retailers, we all know it hasnt stopped them for gouging the canadian consumers on many occasions as well.
But thanks for your opinion even though it has little to do with what I am asking :)

Patrob, did you buy MIC (Made in china) hardwood, or are your observations based on opening up some boxes, can you elaborate? Just wondering how you discovered the things you did about the flooring, and how long ago that was?

[patrob]

Patrob, did you buy MIC (Made in china) hardwood, or are your observations based on opening up some boxes, can you elaborate? Just wondering how you discovered the things you did about the flooring, and how long ago that was?

My observations are based on my husband's personal experience with installing this crap - he is a hardwood floor installer & he refuses to install this crap:!:

Usually you pay more for installation than the wood is worth, because good installers don't want to touch it. BTW, what kind of 'flooring' is it?

[patrob]

Sorry to hijack the thread but I'll have some hardwood installed in my house really soon and was wondering if the quote I got was fair:

~7900$ for labour
~9500$ for wood (Sears Integrity Red Oak Prestige Natural)

1230 sq. feet

The quote is from Sears. Will they do a good job ? Any comment is appreciated.

:eek: :eek:

In the GTA area, for top grade material & installation you shouldn't pay more than $11 sq. ft. installed.

You are getting 'hosed' on the installation...what are they actually doing:?: Just installing floors or everything else like stairs, baseboards, railings, quarteround, new sub-floors:confused: :rolleyes:

I suggest you get another quote or 2 from a professional flooring shop & compare...:!:

For that price you can get the best installer from Toronto to come & install your floors :D

[Jucius Maximus]

With Chinese flooring, I would be worried about importing some kind of chinese insects or termites or similar along with the wood. I definitely don't want to be responsible for some kind of foreign insect infestation, especially if the kind of insect bores through wood and could damage my home!

[jnmontario]

My $0.02.

I asked the guy who runs the H.H. near here about the Chinese hardwood they sell (I'm just building an addition). It's his experience that most Chinese cheap wood (e.g. birch, cherry, oak etc...) is pretty crappy. The finish is rarely any good, and furthermore, there's 1 sand (as opposed to most decent hardwood which has 2+), if you're lucky, before you have to replace the wood. He wasn't just saying that, they sell the stuff by the boxload because it's cheap, but he really didn't recommend it (maybe because I was asking intelligent questions? - or maybe he was just a damn good guy!)

I have to echo the environmental concerns that others raised. While 1 person doesn't seem like they can make a difference, imagine if NOBODY bought the stuff brought across at great environmental cost (sustainable forestry in China? - not likely). Maybe the Chinese would get the point and change their practices.

That said, I wound up buying bamboo flooring, it's harder than oak, grows like a weed (grass to be exact) and despite the fuel needed to bring it over by the boat, it's a sustainable forestry in China and marketed by Canadian companies.

*climbs off of the soapbox* Do yourself a favour, go to Rona and check out the price of the bamboo. I wound up paying only $1.81 /sq for the stuff which, for my ~600 sq that I was laying for, wound up setting me back a little over $1000.

[CharmyPoo]

I started off looking at the cheaper priced hardwood imported from China but went with Mercier hardwood instead. For me, the China wood didn't have the right stain I wanted and their engineered wood selection was very limited.

I have a friend who went with the hardwood from China. They ended up with some pretty short pieces and the quality of the wood varied a lot. The stain almost looked completely different. When I walk on their floors, it definetly doesn't feel as good as mine. I had a super thick underpad which may also be contributing to the difference when I walk on the floor.

Pricing - I paid $6.99 per square foot for red oak. The install was around $4 per square foot for full glue down (almost like tiling).

[patrob]

Pricing - I paid $6.99 per square foot for red oak. The install was around $4 per square foot for full glue down (almost like tiling).

I assume this was done in the basement - right? Do you remember what glue the installer used, white glue or brown urethane adhesive?

[nepean19]

Sorry to hijack the thread but I'll have some hardwood installed in my house really soon and was wondering if the quote I got was fair:

~7900$ for labour
~9500$ for wood (Sears Integrity Red Oak Prestige Natural)

1230 sq. feet

The quote is from Sears. Will they do a good job ? Any comment is appreciated.

Keep shopping. I am in real estate and I know of several places that will install good quality floors for less than or around $6/square foot. Keep looking, call around.

[patriot]

FYI, the hardwood you can buy in COSTCO is from China !

[stealth]

So the price for the wood is fair ? It's "only" the price of the installation that seems really steep to you ?

They are pulling the carpet out and installing new quarteround. There are no stairs involved. They'll have to nail it (not glue it) and it's 3/4" thick (don't know if any of these details have an impact on the price).

What would a typical price per sq. feet be to install a pre-manufactured (no sanding, etc.) hardwood floor (excluding the price of the wood as it seems to vary greatly depending on the type, essence, thickness, etc.) ?

Thanks a lot Patrob for your comments. I really appreciate it ! :)

You seem like a respectful person, so can you please start your own thread and delete your previous posts? Your posts are completely unrelated to the topic and are derailing it. Remember, on RFD, threads are free, so start as many as you like! :) Or may I suggest you PM Patrob with your questions? Thanks for understanding.

[patrob]

So the price for the wood is fair ? It's "only" the price of the installation that seems really steep to you ?

They are pulling the carpet out and installing new quarteround. There are no stairs involved. They'll have to nail it (not glue it) and it's 3/4" thick (don't know if any of these details have an impact on the price).

What would a typical price per sq. feet be to install a pre-manufactured (no sanding, etc.) hardwood floor (excluding the price of the wood as it seems to vary greatly depending on the type, essence, thickness, etc.) ?

Thanks a lot Patrob for your comments. I really appreciate it ! :)

I assume the wood price is including the tax?? I personally would got get 1 or 2 more quotes form a professional hardwood shop & if you are willing to pay $7.72 per sq. ft. for wood, take a look at Vintage or Mirage...much better quality than any Sears stuff:!: ...

Even with taking out the carpet off & installing the quarteround, price is still very high. Not sure how handy you are, but taking off the carpet is not that hard & might save you some money...

In the GTA, price to install (for a very good installer) is around $2 or less, depending on wood type, if straight installation, etc.

[patrob]

You seem like a respectful person, so can you please start your own thread and delete your previous posts? Your posts are completely unrelated to the topic and are derailing it. Remember, on RFD, threads are free, so start as many as you like! :) Or may I suggest you PM Patrob with your questions? Thanks for understanding.

I have a much better idea...I think I will just start an official hardwood flooring thread :D Since there are so many people asking questions...:)

[kaos25000]

You seem like a respectful person, so can you please start your own thread and delete your previous posts? Your posts are completely unrelated to the topic and are derailing it. Remember, on RFD, threads are free, so start as many as you like! :) Or may I suggest you PM Patrob with your questions? Thanks for understanding.

Sorry :o All fixed and back to your original thread.

You can rename your thread back to its original name if you want to; I won't post another word in it, promise :)

[stealth]

My observations are based on my husband's personal experience with installing this crap - he is a hardwood floor installer & he refuses to install this crap:!:

Usually you pay more for installation than the wood is worth, because good installers don't want to touch it. BTW, what kind of 'flooring' is it?

Thanks, the stuff I'm looking at is a dark stained oak, 3/4" x 3 1/2". From what I can tell, the pieces tend to be smaller and more uniform than the Dubeau (Canadian) oak I bought a few years ago (there was a greater range in lengths in the Dubeau). The actual dimensions of the pieces seem pretty consistent, as does there stain, with very little variation (the Dubeau was a golden oak colour and had a fair amount of variation). But the finish on the Dubeau looked much more substantial than the Chinese stuff, which has very little depth or gloss which is what concerns me...Maybe I should see if I can take a piece home to abuse and compare?
I have a friend who went with the hardwood from China. They ended up with some pretty short pieces and the quality of the wood varied a lot. The stain almost looked completely different. When I walk on their floors, it definetly doesn't feel as good as mine. I had a super thick underpad which may also be contributing to the difference when I walk on the floor.
I have to belive the spongier feel of your floor is due to the underpad, prob a wise investment. I'm going to be nailing this stuff down, so wont be a factor.

Do yourself a favour, go to Rona and check out the price of the bamboo. I wound up paying only $1.81 /sq for the stuff which, for my ~600 sq that I was laying for, wound up setting me back a little over $1000.
Wow, thats a crazy good deal! Competitive with the Pergo stuff and I'm sure much nicer. If I was doing a flip I would totally go for bamboo based on what you're saying. Unfortunately I dont think it would really suit our house, or at least I'm not crazy about the way I think it would look here. I bet it looks great in a loft or condo though. Our house is tricky because the previous owners used 2 different types of hardwood in different areas...golden oak in 1 part and clear maple in the rest :( I think I'll have to sand and restain these areas to get everythign to match whatever we get next.>:(

Man, its a shame the poor reputation that China has earned for manufacturing quality. I have a feeling its going to haunt them well into the future.

[CharmyPoo]

I assume this was done in the basement - right? Do you remember what glue the installer used, white glue or brown urethane adhesive?

The glue was brown ... is that a good or bad thing?

[patrob]

The glue was brown ... is that a good or bad thing?

It's a good thing, since it's a better kind of glue.