Hardwood Flooring That Will Not Scratch: Everything You Need to Know

When selecting the right floor for your home, you want to ensure at least one thing – it will endure whatever life (and your family) throws at it.

Little feet and paws can patter on by. Guests can visit, leaving behind only “Ooohs” and Aaahs”. And your day-to-day life can continue on with minimal worry of scratching your hardwood flooring.

So, to help you find the most durable hardwood floor for your home, we created this quick and easy guide with everything you need to know

1. Consider a Stronger Hardwood Species

While any material can be scratched (yes, even diamonds), some materials are more resistant than others. The same can be said for hardwood flooring.

To determine a hardwood’s strength, a measurement tool known as the Janka Hardness Scale is used. The resulting score, termed the Janka Rating, then determines how hard a hardwood truly is. The larger the number, the harder the wood.

For example, Brazilian Cherry ranks at nearly 3,000 on the Janka Hardness Scale. Meanwhile, Yellow Pine scores well under 1,000. This means that Brazilian Cherry is very strong, while Yellow Pine is less so.

Less strong woods are still just as suitable for flooring. However, selecting a hardwood floor with a higher Janka Rating is one way to ensure your floors can endure almost whatever your life may bring.

2. Look at Hardwood Floors with Thicker Top Layers

With any engineered hardwood, a top layer is featured in the floor’s composition. What even is a top layer you may be asking? Well, the top layer is a piece of solid wood in the species of the chosen flooring and it sits atop the multi-ply birch substrate. The top layer is also what you will see when your floor is installed.

This top layer is also what is sanded down during refinishing, a process that removes any wear and tear a hardwood floor may encounter during its decades of use.

By selecting a floor with a thicker top layer, you are more likely to be able to remove deeply penetrating scratches during refinishing, rather than having to reinstall a new plank. A thicker wear layer also allows for a number of refinishing processes (depending on the depth of the overall damage).

3. Textured Hardwood Flooring for the Win!

Much like a chameleon blending into its surroundings, textured hardwood flooring does the same for scuffs and scratches. One moment they are there and the next they are completely camouflaged.

Hardwood flooring frequently comes in three textures – Distressed, Wire-Brushed, and Smooth. Furthermore, some textured floors are more or less textured than others, ensuring there is a floor for everyone’s preference.

So, if the visibility of scratches and scrapes is a concern, consider a floor with a distressed or wire-brushed finish.

4. Finish off with Your Floor’s Finish

Hardwood flooring is most commonly coated, otherwise known as a finish, with two primary materials – Oil or Urethane. Oil finishes encompass UV Oil, Hard Wax Oil, and more, while Urethane is commonly paired with Aluminum Oxide.

Both Oil and Urethane have individual benefits when providing floors with a protective coating against scratches. Urethane with Aluminum Oxide is traditionally considered the more protective of the finishes, acting as a thick barrier against scrapes.

However, oil leaves the flooring “raw” and doesn’t have a sealant on the flooring which equally hides scratches. You can read more about the pros, cons, and overall differences between the finishes here.

A Final Word on Hardwood Flooring That Will Not Scratch

While no hardwood floor can be completely resistant to scratches, certain choices in a hardwood flooring’s composition and appearance can result in everyday wear and tear creating fewer blemishes.

We hope this guide helped you in your quest of finding a hardwood floor that will not scratch (or at least will hide any scratches that do occur).

If you are still unsure or have any questions, we are always available to help at Info@GarrisonCollection.com. Our goal is for you to be as satisfied with your flooring purchase as we are with the products we produce.