Often, homeowners come into our Marion's Carpet Warehouse showroom in Portland, OR, and ask our on-site experts about eliminating scratches and damage on their wood flooring. Typically, these are individuals who just moved into a new home and have no prior experience with hardwood flooring in Portland. Now, while there isn't a magic spell or special covering to ensure your surfacing is indestructible, there are ways you can make sure that any new hardwood flooring installation from now on will last for generations.
Try Decorative Rugs, Runners or Mats
For homeowners that already see several scratches in their new house's surfacing, the best advice to hide those unsightly gashes is to use decorative rugs, runners or mats. Assess which areas of your home have the most noticeable damage, and place these items throughout the residence to mask the scratches underneath them. As a preventative measure, any carpet is a sure-fire way to keep high traffic areas of your home from getting scratched.?
Furthermore, this is an excellent choice if you want to minimize debris and dirt from getting tracked around, especially if you have young children and pets. Choose Lighter Stains If you're about to choose new hardwood flooring in Portland, opt for a lighter stain color, to reduce the likelihood of visible scratches. Basically, light stains don't allow markings to stand out, even if direct sunlight or a bright light is shining on the area. Protect Your Furniture and Surfacing Another smart way to protect hard surfacing is to use felt padding on the legs and underside of furniture and bulky items. However, even if you install these on pretty much every single thing in your home, you must remember felt padding helps to avoid damage, but doesn't eliminate it entirely.?
Thus, homeowners need to ensure furniture and heavy items, when moved, are lifted and carried over to their new location, never dragged. Sure, it may sound like an obvious pointer, but you'd be surprised how many people don't consider the ramifications of sliding around furniture! Opt for a Grain(y) Appearance Aside from selecting a lighter colored stain, you may wish to consider a hard surfacing with a strong appearance of grain. These grain lines are another great way to hide anything come what may in the scratch department. Opt for a material that can be wire-brushed for a very textured appearance, one that has the ability to mask nearly any scratch, stain or speck of dust.
