ᐅ Which type of wood flooring should I choose?

In the living room, there is a plastic floor covering (oak parquet imitation) from the 1960s installed over concrete. We want to install an affordable wooden floor covering that should not be too thick (around 2 cm (0.8 inches)) because of the transition to the adjacent room. It should be suitable for small children and preferably light rather than dark.

I believe softwood is the cheapest option. I have also read about leftover stock of raw oak. What does “raw” mean exactly? Do I have to sand everything down?

How are adhesives in this context? Are they problematic?



Oak solid wood parquet, distinctive

Structure: solid, surface raw,

Wood moisture content 7-11%,

Wood thickness 22 mm (0.9 inches), 4-sided tongue and groove,

Sharp edges, 70 mm (2.8 inches) cover width,

Lengths vary from 350-700 mm (14-28 inches),

Leftover stock about 30 m² (320 ft²),

Price 19 €/m² (per square meter) ex-works including VAT.



Who can advise me?

Many questions at once!

1. Oak is not a softwood; softwoods (e.g., beech) are very sensitive and I would not recommend them for children ==> Oak is definitely a good choice.
2. Do you have underfloor heating? If so, it’s better to glue down the floor. Otherwise, simply choose a floating installation.
3. Parquet adhesives are generally unproblematic if you make sure to use high-quality (flexible) adhesive. For example, today I used Bona R845 (R848). It is solvent-free and easy to apply.
4. Raw parquet is truly raw. It still needs to be sanded and oiled or lacquered after installation. I wouldn’t recommend this for amateurs. Better to choose prefinished parquet. It cannot be sanded and refinished as often but that is not a big disadvantage (as long as you take reasonable care of the floor).
5. Light-colored wood: for example, ash or Canadian maple are light and fairly hard. Oak is not quite as light but also well suited. Alternatively, there are also floors that are painted or oiled white.