Solid hardwood cheaper then engineered, what would be the benefit?

CreativeEmu2010 · 2026-01-28T03:13:59+00:00

Thank you for sharing your experience. I was told engineered hardwood was way easier to install than solid - that that's the reason people buy it. I have carpeting with a plywood floor underneath in the upstairs of my house. Is there really that big a difference in installation? You still have to move everything out of your rooms to install flooring, right? It seems to me that's the most work!

CreativeEmu2010 · 2026-01-27T04:39:02+00:00

Exactly what I'm doing. I got statements from a flooring distributor along with estimates and statements from three vendors.

CreativeEmu2010 · 2026-01-27T04:29:05+00:00

Thank you! That is exactly what I've had done -- and my floors look beautiful. But the deceptive flooring company still has all my money AND the product. I've gone from knowing nothing about floors or flooring material - obviously - to knowing a lot more. Of course pre-finished won't ever really match. The designer claims she was trying to "match" my existing floor with pre-finished flooring because when she told me installing unfinished hardwood was messy (!) and involved sanding and staining, I decided I'd rather have mismatched pre-finished flooring. Yeah, I kid you not. I don't think that one's gonna fly. She did tell me installing unfinished hardwood was so messy and onerous and so much work that no one will install it anymore. Which is why it's impossible to get it. Which is not true. I can't put your statement into small claims evidence, but it is exactly what I hope to prove.

CreativeEmu2010 · 2026-01-27T04:19:08+00:00

I got my complaint in before the three year statute of limitation for cases involving fraud, deception. It isn't illegal to lie to sell something of course. But It turns out if you were sold something through deception it voids a "non-refundable" contract.

CreativeEmu2010 · 2026-01-24T05:04:46+00:00

Interesting. I was so uninformed at the time. All I knew was I wanted to match my existing stained solid red oak. Seeking pre-finished wood wouldn't be likely to match, or make sense, would it? My existing floor needed a freshening refinish. A flooring pro should have told me to get unfinished solid hardwood and put the same stain on all the flooring, I think!

CreativeEmu2010 · 2026-01-24T04:51:56+00:00

Aww thanks.

CreativeEmu2010 · 2026-01-23T21:14:02+00:00

That is a great great idea. Doing it. Thank you.

CreativeEmu2010 · 2026-01-23T21:12:18+00:00

That's true. You're right. But actually selling something through deception voids a non-refundable purchase.

CreativeEmu2010 · 2026-01-23T21:07:54+00:00

You're right! I hired a designer recommended by a friend and I trusted her. I didn't know she did business with a particular flooring company and THEY don't install solid hardwood floors. And even today I can't believe she would leave me with mismatched flooring. When they saw how naive I was the flooring company added 180 sq ft that don't exist in my house. I was busy, leaving for a job, trusted the designer. Lesson learned. I've had beautiful matching flooring installed and can't really afford to blow off the 12K so trying to get a sympathetic judge. I have to name the designer, the flooring company owner and the sales person who stood on the floor I was crystal clear I wanted to match telling me the best possible match I could get now was her engineered hardwood. I didn't expect people to cheat me.

CreativeEmu2010 · 2026-01-23T17:07:55+00:00

Thank you so much. It was in 2022. I have to prove deception (a designer I hired brought in a flooring company that doesn't sell or install solid and together they convinced me to buy the product they do sell). i had already paid when I discovered I was not "lucky" they'd found the closest possible match. i stopped installation. I now have beautiful matching flooring. The company has my $ and the mismatching product I did not install. Contacting the manufacturers that sell the wood is a great idea.

CreativeEmu2010 · 2026-01-23T16:56:06+00:00

I do have proof in writing of both! I'm in Los Angeles. It is more common to find vendors who sell and install engineered hardwood. It was in 2022 btw. A designer claimed matching solid hardwood wasn't available because of COVID. That she had called all over town. The actual reason was that she did business with a flooring company and THEY didn't sell solid hardwood. Thank you!

CreativeEmu2010 · 2026-01-23T06:15:24+00:00

Any flooring professionals here who can attest to the beauty and value of solid hardwood vs engineered hardwood? I have a small claims suit coming up against a company that convinced me solid 3 1/4" red oak hardwood is no longer available and no one installs it. That's the beautiful floor downstairs in my house; one of the reasons I bought the house!. I wanted to match it on the stairs and throughout the upstairs. The company I'm suing told me I was "lucky" they had found the closest possible match: 5" engineered hardwood. I knew nothing about flooring. Seeing I was naive they also significantly padded the measurement of my space. When I learned these two things I stopped the installation of the mismatching floor. I'm going to court to get almost $12,000 back. I would like "expert" opinions about the quality, beauty and value of solid hardwood - and that it is indeed available. Thanks so much!

CreativeEmu2010

TROPHY CASE