Real timber floors will always provide a more luxurious feel to a home. The longer timber floor boards have a completely different look to the manufactured engineered floor boards, that are all short lengths. As Floor sanders we are often asked to repair and re sand engineered timber floors. This can prove difficult at times as product lines are discontinued or the sizing changes and we are unable to find replacement boards. Sometimes during a home renovation a room may be extended and the owners wish to continue the engineer flooring into the new extension. This can cause major problems to the building budget when a matching product is no longer available. Engineered floors are a product worth considering in certain situations. Just make sure that surplus boards are purchased for that unforeseen mishap or for when the wooden floors require floor sanding and polishing or floor repairs in the future. Installation and Floor Sanding Engineered Timber Floors

Timber with timber can work brilliantly, and it's in keeping with the mid century style you want for your home. This room (below) is a little similar to yours, albeit with less of a pitch to the roof - the large feature lighting helps to break up the expanse of timber on the ceiling. You have a lovely open plan area, so I'd be inclined to use rugs to create zones and a cosy feel. Rugs reduce the impact of a large expanse of flooring material. They have the benefit that you can swap things around to change the look and layout at little cost. I think one trick may be to define your "walls" carefully, and paint these before you go with a new floor. This should give you a sense of whether the timber is overwhelming, and how to balance it. E.g. You might decide it works best to paint the kitchen cupboards to white, to give you a more seamless look and work with your new counter tops. If you want to experiment with the "paint ceiling" approach - gulp, it's a big one!! - then maybe that small section above the kitchen bench, at a different angle to the rest of the roof, could be the spot. It seems to have the same horizontal line as the wall, so even if you don't like the painted look for the whole, you might be able to get away with blending this into the walls. Best of luck!

Hi Lorraine, sorry I missed your question. I only bought this house a few months back and the glue has deteriorated anyway so I used the steam mop to test it out before I get new flooring. Because many animals lived in this house I was hoping the steam would help kill germs. I've read so many opinions on the use of steam on both vinyl and laminate so I'm at a bit of a loss now. One of my joeys has laminate and has been using a steam mop on it for 12 years now with no ill effects at all, despite that supposedly being a big no-no, but she found it so quick and efficient when the kids were toddlers particularly and the floor needed doing almost daily. I just have to wonder these days how much manufacturers are protecting themselves and not giving consumers honest information. How often do you buy an item of cotton clothing and then find the label says "dry clean only". This does not mean the item can't be washed, it is to protect the manufacturer from someone doing something like washing in boiling water. We need more transparency in care instructions, only then can consumers make informed decisions on the right product for them. If steam is going to affect the glue, then it follows water will too so then it comes down to just how do you clean your floors. Manufacturers' special products that are always ridiculously expensive are not the answer and having access to these products is not always possible for country people either. I believe there are two types of vinyl planks too - one type are glued down, the others are a floating floor which would not require glue, but I was told in the event of damage, a glued plank is much easier to replace than one in a floating floor. There are so many glues on the market now too, there must be one that could be used to reglue a plank that has come adrift.

I mean WOW Joanne, what a view! I think no-one will be worried about the board direction, honestly, their eyes will be feasting on the horizon!! Obviously this is your personal decision at the end of the day, and the more I look at this design dilemma the more I think both options would work. However I would keep the boards the same dimension throughout. Imagine entering at the front door and moving down the corridor space into the living room - you want a seamless flow as the eyes look towards the outside, and once in the room you won't mind at all the direction of the boards. I assume you are selecting a tile for the alfresco terrace - just match the direction of the boards and you can't go wrong! The link below is from the TonguenGroove website, showing a project with a corner aspect to a water-facing deck with fully glazed doors - so both conditions! They both work, right?! The main orientation IS long boards parallel to the water though.....also attached a photo of a Nicholas Murray project from Mafi website with short boards across the hall......looks good.... Good Luck! ..http://www.tonguengrooveflooring.com.au/projects/ventnor-beach-house/.