Antique Hardwood Heart-Pine Floors: Hickory Reflects Quiescent Grandeur

Heart Pine floors have been used in Northern America since the last two centuries. Interior designers and architects are fond of heart pine because of its tight vertical grain configuration that could be compared with the oak family for strength and durability.

Heart pine has been historically used in period and heritage buildings. It has an amber glaze that adorns the most beautiful historic ballrooms, bedrooms, kitchen and drawing rooms. Custom knots at the heart or center of the timber characterize heart-pines. These high heart content planks are (75-90% heart content) called Premium Grade Heart Pine. The Country Grade (50% heart content) exhibits softer and finer grain structure as the same logs are sawed beyond the center.

Premium Grade Heart-Pine is more expensive and more used in heritage buildings and constructions that involve higher cost. Country Grade Heart pine bears fewer grains and imparts a softer look to your floor. This represents traditional hardwood for custom flooring at affordable prices.

Hickory just like Heart pine captures the quiescent grandeur of the heritage properties. Just like Heart –pine, the spectacular grain configuration in Hickory is equally appealing to the aficionados of antique floors. Hickory floors are similar to heart pine floors in a way that both are obtained from timber sawed at the centre for obtaining the best grain structure.

Hickory dominates in light brown shades and other richer shades of brown. Hockey floors are preferred for their striking finish and unique patina. Hickory is one of those hardwoods that last for centuries if maintained with care. It possesses extreme durable qualities and resilience. Hickory is also a common choice for log homes and mountain homes that are newly constructed.

Select Grade and Country Grade are the two types of hardwood varieties in Hickory. The former has fewer knots and used for contemporary homes. The later is exotic in appearance and better for antique homes due to light and dark contrasts in the shade of the planks and knots that shows the life cycle of the timber.

See Also

Old Wood Gets New Life as Reclaimed Antique Flooring Where some might see a crumbling old barn or a dilapidated factory, Don Carlisle sees an opportunity to preserve history and beautify a home at the same time. Carlisle’s Stoddard, N.H. based company has been reclaiming antique wood and turning it into new floors for nearly 40 years.