• The parquet is a type of flooring made of natural material – wood. It therefore has the characteristics of wood. Flooring is considered to be the most heavily used construction element, so it must be carefully selected.
  • Parquet is the only floor covering that may truly+2 be renovated to such extent, that it can be compared to new flooring.
  • The parquet characteristics are different – they largely depend on the tree species they are made of.

 

Hardness – the wood belongs to the group of softer construction materials. For heavily used areas, we suggest you use tougher tree species. The higher numerical value refers to greater hardness of the parquet and increased resistance against indentations and damage.

Colour – the wood may vary extensively in colours, which can be seen within one tree species. Choose the colour by considering a sufficiently large parquet pattern. The wood gradually changes colour, the most notably in the initial period immediately after the installation. As wood is a natural material, we can not ensure that the colour hue of the delivered parquet will be completely the same to that of the pattern. Consult the experts about the intensity and change of the colour hue for the selected parquet.

Parquet quality range – the parquet is assessed by the manufacturers regarding its external (aesthetic) characteristics such as knots, texture, presence of resin canals, colour variations, adhering bark etc. Based on internal or public standards the parquet is then classified into different classes:

Ο, Δ, , I, II, III, A, B, C, D, extra, standard, rustic, VS, exquisite, select, natur, design, struktur… These designations only refer to the outlook of the surface and have nothing to do with the manufacturing quality of the parquet.  

Dimensional stability – wood is a hygroscopic material, which means that in terms of dimension it adjusts to relative air humidity in a construction. Along with humidity changes the wood will be dimensionally affected and it will change and reshape. The tree species that are more or less stable in terms of dimension, are generally known. The least stable are beech, cherry and Canadian maple – these tree species are therefore not recommended to be used in extreme conditions – underfloor heating.  

In comparison to solid hardwood flooring the multi-layered parquets are more stable in terms of dimension. We recommend the parquet for the areas and rooms that are hydroinsulated and ensure a relatively stable climate.

Thermal resistance – it is a very important characteristic for the parquet placed onto the floor base with underfloor heating. The lower the value of the factor, the more appropriate it is for the installation on the screed with underfloor heating.

We recommend the parquets that are as thin as possible (2-layered). Most of the parquet and other floor coverings are not suitable to be installed on the electric underfloor heating and underfloor cooling. Unless the installation is specifically allowed, we advise against it.

Surface protection – the parquet can be rough, varnished or oiled. Oiled parquet usually has a more natural appearance than the varnished one. Colour differences between the varnished and oiled surface can be seen on the patterns in the exhibition saloon. Oiled surface must be maintained more regularly, whereas the entire renovation of properly maintained oiled parquet is usually not required. Maintenance oiling might change the appearance and the sheen of the surface.