What Direction Should I Install My Hardwood Flooring?

The answer to that question may seem simple - any way you want, but it’s not.  There are a couple of things to consider when you decide what direction to install your hardwood flooring.  We will discuss them here.

The first thing to consider is where the light is coming from.  The usual method is to lay the planks parallel to where the light is coming in to the room, this tends to make the joins look less obvious, but this is not always the best way.  Before you do the actual install, lay some of the planks down in batches, some parallel and some at a 45 or 90 degree angle.  What looks the best to you?  When we did our own floors we found that the 45 degree angle looked the best, made the area look bigger and made the rooms flow together better.  We have some rounded walls and with the planks parallel to the walls the rooms looked long and narrow and with a 90 degree layout the corridors looks very closed in.

Don’t be in a rush to install your hardwood flooring.  Give the direction a bit of thought, after all you are going to be looking at your beautiful floors for a long time.