Choosing where to buy any of your flooring needs is crucial when building a house or an office. The cost you incur when purchasing flooring materials is a significant investment. This means that deciding on what flooring materials to use and where to buy these materials should undergo a comprehensive process of research and study. Throughout the years, there has been an increase in the different types of flooring materials.

In turn, the number of manufacturers and retailers in Ontario has considerably increased as well. Some suppliers are focused on selling a specific type of flooring materials, while others tend to offer a wider range of products that may include multiple types. This article will share with you information on the types of flooring materials that you can choose from while also giving you a list of factors that you should consider when choosing your preferred flooring supplier.

Things to Remember About the Different Types of Flooring Materials

Knowing the type of flooring material you would like to use on your property is one of the early steps of the designing stage of your property. You need to make sure that the material will go well with the overall look and feel that would suit your design. Before choosing the type of flooring for your property, you must first consider different factors like how much foot traffic would constantly pressure the flooring, the location of your property, extreme changes in climate, or the availability of your budget.

As the need for cheaper flooring alternatives increased, there became developments within the industry that eventually produced flooring materials that were made from synthetic materials. Even though these new flooring materials have their benefits, they still fail in some characteristics when compared to the conventional types of flooring materials. These positive and negative characteristics should be carefully studied to see which would eventually fit your needs. Below are some of the most common types of flooring materials that people choose to use:

Hardwood flooring

• This type of flooring materials is known for its durability that makes it possible for the material to last for more than 10 years before needing to undergo maintenance.
• The base material used for this comes from hardwood trees, which are known to grow at a slow rate. However, this also helps the tree to become naturally stronger.
• When it comes to aesthetics, this type of flooring has one of the most beautiful appearances due to its authentic look and feel. Depending on the type of hardwood used, the flooring may exude elegance, sophistication, or simplicity.
• Hardwood flooring may come in different forms. These depend on how the flooring materials were manufactured. The different forms of hardwood flooring include solid unfinished, solid pre-finished, and engineered hardwood.
• Each form has a different level of strength. Furthermore, each form reacts to extreme changes in temperature differently. This is due to the fact that wood is known to naturally shrink with cold temperature, while it expands under the presence of heat.
• The issue people have with hardwood flooring is that it is also known to be one of the expensive types of flooring materials.

Polished concrete flooring

• This type of flooring does not need the installation of flooring panels. With a house or office that already uses concrete as its base, you just have to perform a few steps to create beautiful, polished flooring.
• The processes that the concrete floor needs to undergo include grinding, honing, and polishing.
• One of the main advantages of using this type of flooring is that it is very durable against heavy foot traffic. It may even last for more than 20 years.
• This type of flooring can give a beautiful industrial look to a room.
• However, due to its hardness, it may feel uncomfortable as there is no cushion for your feet.

Vinyl flooring

• This type of flooring is made from mixing polyvinyl chloride (PVC) with different compounds.
•  A vinyl flooring panel includes a printed design layer. This is the reason behind the different looks vinyl flooring can have.
• This is considered to be one of the cheaper flooring alternatives.
• Even though synthetic material has a good protection against wear and tear, vinyl flooring can still get marked by sharp objects, like the sharp heel of certain shoes.

5 Key Factors to Consider When Choosing a Flooring Supplier in Ontario

After you have decided which type of flooring material would fit the design and location of your property, you must then decide where to purchase them. However, you should consider the following factors:

Authenticity of service and products

Whether you are looking for a company that sells low-end or high-end flooring materials, you must always consider if the company is selling authentic products while also being specialists when it comes to flooring solutions. Since there are no specific licenses needed to become a contractor that installs flooring solutions in Ontario, you should consider looking at the experience and reputation of a flooring supplier instead.

By doing further research on certain flooring suppliers, you will be able to find out if the company cares about customer satisfaction. In addition, you can also do further research on the products they are selling to check if the products sold are authentic and not just cheap imitation. This is crucial for flooring panels like European hardwood flooring, where the price may be a bit higher but is made with excellent quality and design.

Price differences

Since budget is always a factor that would affect the decision on which type of flooring that you will be using for your property, you should consider comparing prices between different flooring suppliers. It is crucial that the quality of the flooring panels should be proportional to their prices. If a type of flooring panel is said to be made from materials with excellent quality but also have a very low price as compared with other suppliers, this should raise some concerns of its authenticity. There may be considerable price differences between suppliers, but one should be critical if something seems too good to be true.

Availability of installation services

Flooring suppliers may or may not offer flooring installation services. You should consider the circumstance of your project if you already have expert installers ready to do the job or if you would need the installation services of a flooring company. There are times that it may become cheaper if you buy the flooring panels from one supplier and avail the installation services from another company. You just need to be ready to do the extra work with negotiations so that you can avail of the cheapest possible solution for your case.

After-sales service availability

Another thing that must be considered is the availability of after-sales service from a reputable flooring supplier. You should ask for this as the possibility of errors that might need fixing or even future maintenance might become an issue. It is always best to have after-sales support from the installer since they are the ones who are familiar with the details of your flooring needs.

Expertise and professionalism in the field

A reputable flooring company should employ experts who will always act as professionals in their fields. A flooring company should be open to give you recommendations while also able to accept any criticism you may give them of their work. You should try to check if the experts you are talking about your situation will give you relevant information that may fit or even improve your requirements. Be careful of those who try to hard sell their products and services which you might feel would not really fit your design and requirements. They may just be trying to sell their products without considering your inputs.

Being Vigilant When Choosing a Flooring Supplier Helps You Maximize Your Flooring Investment

Always remember that the construction of your house or office is an investment. Just like in businesses, owners will try to get as much profit from their investments. When it comes to the purchase and installation of flooring panels on your property, you should get as much satisfaction as you can. For this to happen, you must be able to feel the effects on the quality of the flooring panels that you had chosen to buy. These panels should be able to meet the standards that have been set for them.

For the installation and after-sales service, the chosen flooring company should be responsive to any of your concerns. During the time of maintenance, the flooring company should be able to keep their promises and should not be the cause of delays. Always remember that it is always the better option to avail the services of flooring experts because, other than installation services, they can also help evaluate the feasibility of the type of flooring you wish to use on your property. With their expert opinion, you may be able to find a better solution that may maximize the life of the flooring materials that would be used.

If you are currently looking for one of the best flooring companies in Ontario, you can contact Three Trees Flooring at (416) 665-2624. Our experts are always available to help you with any of your flooring concerns.