Antique Flooring: Better with Age?

While the idea of reclaiming and reusing salvage wood might be a new concept for some, it is a fact that antique flooring is becoming big business. Maybe it is the one of a kind look that makes antique flooring so popular; perhaps it is the environmentally friendly aspect of reusing wood rather than cutting down living trees. Whatever the reason, reclaimed wood is growing in popularity, and anyone thinking of remodeling should certainly consider antique flooring as a viable option.

The Look of Antique Flooring
New lumber can be treated, stained, and finished to have a variety of different looks. One thing that new wood cannot do, however, is make itself old. Antique flooring has a rustic, weathered look that is difficult to impossible to mimic. Depending on how and where this wood was aged, the look of it can be dramatically different from both new lumber and other reclaimed lumber, as well.

Where Lumber is Salvaged
Antique wood comes from a wide variety of different places. The easiest way to salvage old lumber is to take it from a building that is set for demolition. Many times, condemned houses, sheds, or barns contain useable wood that has been worn and weathered. Before a structure is demolished, the wood that is fit to be saved can be taken. If it meets the standards of those who reclaimed it, the lumber can then be sanded and refurbished to be used in a new structure.

Some antique flooring actually comes from trees that were meant to be turned into boards many years ago, but never made it to the mill. Logs were often sent from the woods to the mill by putting them into a river and letting them float down stream. Logs that were lost on this journey many years ago are recovered today by pulling them up from under the water. River reclaimed wood is exceptionally unique in appearance, and its rarity makes it a very valuable commodity.

Antique Flooring Facts
Though the most prized wood in modern times generally comes from hardwood trees, antique flooring is usually a variety of pine. Many of these pine species were so heavily harvested in the past that they are not readily available anymore.

The different grades of antique flooring are much the same as any other lumber. Boards that are knot free (and, because of this, stronger) are the highest quality and the most expensive. In some cases, boards that are especially long or wide are also more expensive because they are harder to find and more difficult to mill.

Antique flooring is available finished or unfinished. It can be stained or clear coated to let the natural beauty of its weathering shine through.

Prices of Reclaimed Wood
Antique wood can get very expensive due to its rarity and the time it takes to make it usable again. Redoing multiple floors with reclaimed wood will be a considerable investment, but it will also raise the value of the house it is installed in.