Since the 1980s, hardwood flooring has overtaken carpet as the flooring of choice. But is all wood flooring hardwood? The 2 ¼” planks of oak and maple, of course, are hardwood. However in many Victorian era homes, the wood is wider plank, and is made of fir or pine (softwoods). These woods were not intended to be finished floors…in fact, in the Victorian era, conspicuous consumption dictated purchase of carpets (which came in 3’ wide runners). If you see an old softwood floor, and you notice tack holes at about a 3’ interval, that would explain it.
Then there’s Pergo/laminate flooring….these came out some time ago and make sense for many applications. Then there’s engineered wood flooring, which in the cheaper cases looks….just like Pergo.
Kitchen cabinets, of course, are usually made of wood. But did you know that a lot of the cabinets marketed as cherry, are actually maple stained with a reddish cherry hue? Then there’s the particleboard cabinet bodies and shelves. If you have this typical type of cabinetry, you can add vertical supports under the midpoint of the shelf, to prevent too much sagging.