High Gloss Or Matte Hardwood Floors

Both can be a maintenance issue or worry with most new floor buyers because many set expectations far too high and compare hardwood floors almost to that of a fine piece of furniture today.

High gloss or matte hardwood floors.

Gloss high gloss polyurethane. The main purpose of a matte finish is to make hardwood floors appear more natural. A high gloss finish is more likely to be seen on specialty hardwood species like exotic hardwoods so that the natural beautiful graining is not only seen but emphasized. The more sheen in your hardwood floor finish the greater level of detail and drama displayed.

High glass can bounce around 75 of a room s light making it appear brighter but it can also make the wood look less natural or as real. If you want to hide imperfections a matte finish does the best job of all the finishes which makes it perfect for high traffic areas or children s bedrooms. Then comes semi gloss which is a step down from the ultra shiny sheen of gloss floors. Low matte often refers to gloss levels in the ten percent range.

It offers a very dull look. It provides only about 10 25 luster meaning that it s much more flat and clean looking. They will not bounce back a lot of light. A matte finish gives the protection your floors need from daily wear and tear while also providing the most natural feel possible by showing the beauty of the raw wood.

And then at the very opposite end of the spectrum from the gloss finish is the matte finish which is fairly flat and non reflective as finishes go. For dining rooms sunrooms libraries studies and bedrooms a high gloss wood floor finish. The satin finish comes next with a kind of glow about it but not that light reflective high gloss look. Sheen is the amount of reflection that is produced from a finish.

In actuality you won t find 100 gloss floors but if you did it would be such a high gloss that it would be like a mirror. A high gloss tends to be more formal. When installing hardwood floors homeowners have a lot of choices to decide between including the type of wood and stain. It actually hides dirt and scuffs better for this reason and requires very little maintenance.

When you rank the different types of wood floor finishes from the least amount of sheen to the most matte comes in first place. Matte versus high gloss. Unlike high gloss wood finishes. Gloss levels from 50 to 100 have very pronounced sheen and create a sleek modern result.

Matte wood floor finish. Semi gloss aka medium gloss comes in near the middle satin finish is gaining in popularity falling between matte and semi gloss for sheen. Notably a shiny finish will reflect light substantially and this will impact the ambiance in the space. Hardwood is available in both high gloss and matte finishes so both of these laminate finishes can create an authentic look.

This is not often used for high traffic hardwood floors. 50 gloss a high sheen. 100 gloss the highest level of shine possible.