18 
HOUSE &• GARDEN 
GOOD FLOORS 
There Are Two Kinds—Floors to be Covered and Floors Uncovered—Upon That Depend 
the Choice, Cut and Laying of the Wood 
ERNEST IRVING FREESE 
Hard-wood floors require a level sub-floor. They should not be 
plastering is thoroughly dry and all the other woodwork in the 
O F the various native woods suitable for use as flooring 
there are practically but five that are worthy of con¬ 
sideration : maple, oak, birch, pine and spruce. Of these five, 
the first three belong in the hard-wood class and the remain¬ 
ing two in the soft-wood class. 
Most of the maple comes from the sugar maple, and fulfills, 
to the highest degree, all the requirements of a desirable 
flooring material. It is heavy, hard, strong, stiff, tough and 
has a fine texture. In color it is creamy white, shot 
through with shades of light brown near the heart. Maple 
lumber is also susceptible of a high sur¬ 
face-polish, and often shows the wavy or 
“curly” grain that is a beautiful character¬ 
istic of this wood. Moreover, it shrinks 
only slightly in seasoning, is easily 
worked, is durable in hard service, and 
wears smoothly. Unquestionably for 
flooring purposes, maple ranks the high¬ 
est of any of our native woods. 
a beautiful and characteristic “silver- 
grain.” All oak lumber shrinks and cracks 
considerably in seasoning, but, after be¬ 
ing thoroughly kiln-dried, it stands well 
and is highly durable. 
The wood of the birch tree is heavy, 
hard, strong and has a fine texture. It 
is capable of taking a high polish and 
develops a satiny lustre. The heart- 
wood is colored in shades of brown, red 
and yellow. Birch, like oak, shrinks 
considerably in the process of seasoning, 
but stands well after being properly dried 
out. 
The wood of the evergreens, which 
embrace the pine and the spruce, is con¬ 
siderably more plentiful in the United 
States than that of the broad-leaved 
trees. For this reason pine and spruce 
are more economical as to cost than any 
of the woods belonging in the “hard¬ 
wood” class heretofore mentioned. Again, 
the soft-woods are characterized by an 
exceedingly simple structure; the fibres 
composing the main part of the wood 
being all alike and their arrangement 
regular. Flence they dry and shrink 
evenly and suffer less disruption in sea¬ 
soning than any of the hard-woods. This 
also makes for economy, and is another 
reason why they are so widely used 
where cost is the governing factor. However, the ques¬ 
tion of cost does not alter the fact that pine and spruce, 
by their very nature, are eminently less suitable for 
flooring than any of the hard-woods. Especially is this 
so if wearing quality and beauty of finish are to be at all 
considered. 
The conclusion is evident: all uncarpeted floors should be 
of hardwood, while for floors that are carpeted, or otherwise 
covered, spruce or pine will answer all requirements. Further¬ 
more, exposed flooring should preferably be “quarter- 
laid until the 
room finished 
The Species of Oak 
Oak is of three distinct species, live, 
white and red. Of these three, the live 
oak is the strongest, toughest, least por¬ 
ous and most durable. However, the 
scarcity and consequent high cost of live 
oak render it practically unavailable for 
flooring purposes. Nevertheless, white 
oak possesses, in a slightly less degree, 
all the good qualities of live oak. Red 
oak is coarser of texture, more porous, 
less durable and is more troublesome in 
seasoning than white oak. Moreover, it 
is often brittle. Therefore, particularly 
for flooring, white oak is the most adapt¬ 
able of the two available kinds. White 
oak is of a light straw color, while red 
oak, as its name implies, is tinged with 
red, and this difference in color becomes 
accentuated in varnished surfaces. White 
oak, when “quarter-sawed,” exhibits 
The completed floor must be cross-planed, scraped and sandpapered to a 
smooth and uniform surface. It is then ready for the painter’s coats of filler, 
oil, stain, wax or varnish 
