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Engineered vs. Solid Hardwood: Which Is Better for New Jersey and New York Homes?
Humid summers, dry heated winters, concrete slabs and radiant heat all affect which hardwood is right for an East Coast home. Here is how to choose.
Quick answers
Is engineered or solid hardwood better?
Neither is better everywhere. Solid hardwood is one piece of wood and can be sanded and refinished many times. Engineered hardwood has a real wood wear layer bonded to a stable multi-layer core, so it moves less with changes in humidity.
Which is better for New Jersey and New York homes?
For wood subfloors above grade, both work well. Over concrete slabs, in basements, over radiant heat, or for very wide planks, engineered is usually the safer choice because it is more dimensionally stable.
Can engineered hardwood be refinished?
Yes, if the wear layer is thick enough. A thicker wear layer allows more sandings over the life of the floor, so ask about wear layer thickness before you buy.
Can you put hardwood over radiant heat?
Engineered hardwood is generally the better match for radiant heat. Follow the flooring and heating manufacturers' instructions for surface temperature and installation method.
The short answer
Solid hardwood is a single piece of wood from top to bottom. Engineered hardwood is a real wood surface layer bonded to a layered core. Both are real wood floors. The right choice depends less on quality and more on where the floor is going and what is underneath it.
Why climate matters on the East Coast
Wood takes on and gives off moisture with the air around it. In New Jersey, New York and much of the East Coast, humid summers swell boards and dry, heated winters shrink them. That seasonal movement is normal, but it shows up as gaps in winter and, in bad cases, as cupping in summer. Keeping indoor relative humidity steady, within the range the flooring manufacturer specifies (often about 35 to 55 percent), is the single best thing you can do for any wood floor. Our guide to preventing water damage covers the warning signs.
When solid hardwood makes sense
Above-grade rooms with a wood subfloor, such as most living rooms and bedrooms.
Homes where you want the option to sand and refinish many times over the decades.
Traditional narrow and medium widths in species like white oak and red oak.
Our 4 inch rift and quartered white oak is a good example: 3/4 inch solid, tongue and groove, Select and Better grade, with every plank back-channeled and moisture content held between 6.5 and 8.5 percent, never more than 9 percent in any single board.
When engineered hardwood is the better choice
Over concrete slabs, which are common in New York City apartments and condos.
Below grade, such as finished basements.
Over radiant heat. See our post on heated floors and energy savings.
Wide planks and pattern floors, where stability keeps the pattern tight. More in our wide plank buying guide.
Our American walnut double herringbone is offered as 2-layer engineered in 3/4 inch or 5/8 inch thickness, and our white oak chevron is available as solid, 2-layer engineered or 3-layer balanced construction.
Engineered vs. solid at a glance
Solid hardwood | Engineered hardwood | |
Construction | One piece of wood | Wood wear layer on a layered core |
Movement with humidity | More | Less |
Over concrete or radiant heat | Usually not recommended | Usually the better choice |
Refinishing | Many times | Depends on wear layer thickness |
Wide planks | Higher risk of cupping | More stable |
Questions to ask before you buy
What is the subfloor: wood, concrete, or an existing floor?
Is the room above grade, on grade or below grade?
Is there radiant heat?
How wide will the boards be?
Has the subfloor been moisture tested? An NWFA-certified inspector can tell you what the readings mean before the floor goes in.
Once you know the construction, choose your species with our white oak vs. red oak vs. walnut comparison.
Talk to a wood flooring specialist
Not sure which option fits your project? Call 908-232-6600 (9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Eastern), visit our showroom at 406B West Broad Street in Westfield, New Jersey, or book a virtual consultation. We work with homeowners, architects and designers across New Jersey, New York City and the East Coast, and serve clients nationwide.
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About the author
Joe Avila has 26 years in the wood flooring trade. He is an NWFA-certified wood flooring inspector, installer and sander, and for more than a decade he has taught accredited continuing-education programs for AIA, ASID and IDCEC audiences, training thousands of architects and design professionals in how to specify wood flooring correctly.
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