"Price is King" ... When "Price-is-King", you may be shopping for short-term gain ... be cautious about Wideplank flooring material (of any kind) that is of mixed species and/or inconsistent widths. Substandard Grades, Air Dried, V-Joint (top edges), and kept in 'unpredictable storage', etc. as these are just a few items "you will eventually pay for" with regret.

Now, try buying Northern Ontario Wideplank Red Pine from these same Commodity-Oriented Retainers and you will have to buy 1,000 lf. at a time (if they can source it) — regardless of the quality — even if are short one board to complete your project, another 1,000 lf. is your only option.

My internationally recognized "EXPORT QUALITY" Northern Ontario Wideplank Red Pine beats them all, 'hands-down' on quality and consistency. I also offer increasing levels of Value-Added Products in my "Merchant Plus", "Select" and "Premium" Grades to suite your particular requirements.

"Lumber Yard Pine" .... Common lumber retailers know that "Price is King" ... lumber sold by them for flooring is just another commodity, period.  Flooring lumber is not treated as a climate-sensitive building component and is generally sold Air Dried to ~ 14% and stored in damp, cold outdoor sheds. Or worse, supposedly Kiln-Dried to 6% — which is too dry and prone to splitting during installation — will expand abnormally ... the floor will become unstable and rise — buckling — in our climate.

6% humidity is only used for furniture components and even then, only for 'floating' door inset panels. In addition, retailers are not at all knowledgeable when it comes to understanding the vast differences between Eastern White Pine Flooring, New Brunswick Red Pine and Northern Ontario Red Pine Flooring product.

Northern Ontario Wideplank is the unique product of its harsh environment ... at twenty-two (22) growth rings per inch (slow growth) of thickness, it is hardy and durable ... retailers, generally, buy on price alone and do not care to know the origin of the wood or the difference in quality. Shopping for Sustainable Forest Growth and Harvesting Consistency is not of any consideration because Consumer-Oriented Resellers only know one thing: Price is King.

Notable Quotes

"Our multi-million dollar kilning and milling operation has been in my family for generations (since 1901) and I have not seen anything like what you (Jesse Lance) do with our Wideplank Red Pine ... I relate what "the guys are doing in Canada" to my international customers in England, Sweden, Japan and China .... It is my pleasure to supply your high quality specifications. Isn't our 12" spectacular?"

Note: My Red Pine supplier uses Northern Ontario Red Pine exclusively (as I do) and is 'world-renowned' for Kiln-Drying Red Pine to 8–10% without 'Chaffing' and is able to top the 'quality' of Swedish Red Pine in Sweden. ... that is a major feat.

"Being a carpenter by trade, I long ago knew about the hardness and durability of red pine."

* Note: You can 'prove' Kiln-Dried lumber simply by looking for bluish 'gum' at the end of an uncut length of kiln-dried lumber ... unlike 'weathered wood', this bluish gum is, in fact, Kiln-Pitch (Gum forced out of wood by 'baking' in a kiln for seven (7) to ten (10) days depending on the season). However, the presence of Kiln-Pitch does not guarantee proper Kiln Dried lumber for flooring ... most common lumber retailers store the wood outdoors in damp, cold sheds, as mentioned, and the wood simply retreats to "Air-Dried", or worse, it expands naturally beyond 14% humidity while in storage. So, are retailers being untruthful when they insist their product is Kiln-Dried?

Retail lumber yards "break every rule in the book" ... not because they are 'dishonest' but, because they are not attuned to climate-sensitive product, storage or handling.  You may well end up with a 'problem floor' and the retailer will 'rightly' deny all responsibility for "whatever you did with the lumber after you accepted delivery".

But, we 'feel' for suppliers of all calibre because, Pineflooring.ca has also been 'questioned' ... in cases where DIY knowledge and skill are innocently lacking. For instance, it is incorrect to say that 'gaps' are caused by shrinkage (upon delivery and immediate installation) because that is not the case as the wood I supply has been properly kiln dried, held in controlled storage and delivered to the project promptly and in prime condition ... That is my specialty.  Upon receiving my wideplank Red Pine it must be stored under normal indoor conditions for as short a period of time as possible or, better yet, installed immediately. Admittedly, major 'gaps' between wideplank boards can occur because of an uneven subfloor and/or "less-than-tight" installation by installers.

X-Link (sister page): GripTight Fastening Technique

Doing it Right.

Prefinished Pine ¹ — No true wideplank (over 5") is ever prefinished because finishing one side of any wide lumber will cause cupping. In addition, there is no such thing as a perfectly level subfloor so, wideplank requires installation, sanding and finishing on-site to obtain a sealed floor.

Prefinished Pine ² — prefinished wood flooring (usually 2" to 4" wide) of any species or quality — is not recommended when you live with "kids and dogs" as prefinished wood flooring topcoats are "micro sprayed" soooo-very-thinly, that it dries instantly under UV-Light ... Topcoats may be sprayed a dozen or more times but it is none-the-less "Thin Skinned" compared to my Onsite Double (2X) Floodcoats ... prefinished flooring scratches and scuffs easily and it overexposes scratches and dents. Prefinished Wideplank is usually only available in White Pine in Four (4") inch widths with a dirt-catching V-groove along the top-sides of each board to help "compensate" for uneven subfloors. I offer Solid-Face (no V-groove) Wideplank for Six (6"), Eight (8"), Ten (10") and Twelve (12") Wideplank Red Pine and On-Site Finishing. Lastly, all prefinished wood flooring is high-maintenance and difficult, if not impossible, to repair or have refinished.

Prefinished Pine ³ — prefinished wood flooring of any species or quality — is not recommended because Prefinished Woods can not be sanded 'level' — board-to-board — when there is slight but, ever-present, unevenness in all subfloors. The unevenness in the subfloor will 'float' to the surface ... your Prefinished floor will look 'wrinkled' in daylight and feel uneven when you walk over it ... I hasten to add that Prefinished wood has a "V-Groove" on the top edge surface — between the boards — in an effort to 'compensate' for uneven subfloors but, the "V-Groove" is a nuisance to clean whether you sweep or vacuum. (Note: Retailers will deny that their 'Micro-Groove' is a nuisance ... but, they will not volunteer to wipe up spilt milk or baby food ... try it.)

Prefinished Pine ⁴ — prefinished wood flooring of any species or quality — is not recommended because it is 'impossible' to install without scuffing, scratching or denting during the installation process ... try it.

Wideplank Pine over twelve inches (12"+) inches in width is not recommended because it is not available in RED ... it is only available in common pines which, as stated, are too soft for active lifestyles.

River Salvage: Waterlogged, Deadheads, Beachcomber 'Pine' — reclaimed pine flooring and, so-called, Antique Pine Flooring is not recommended because it is not 'what it claims to be ... it is a mix of species that include the softer White Pine, as well as, 'lost woods' and 'cast-offs' that are not necessarily 'Pine' and are not compatible in quality and hardness. River Salvage companies proclaim ~ 6% humidity (no shrinkage) which is misleading because wood will naturally acclimatizes itself to its environment which is (for wood) ~ 8-10 humidity under normal circumstances.  Being too dry, Waterlogged Lumber is "Brittle Wood' (prone to splitting and chaffing)... and 'inflexible' — where flexibility is absolutely necessary — firstly, for proper installations and secondly, to accommodate seasonal changes in humidity and heat.

Brittle Wood has its place" as baseboards, window frames and in furniture building but, as wideplank flooring, it is infamous for cracking, blistering (chaffing) and splintering. Lastly, Brittle Wood can not be used below grade or in unwinterized buildings.

Barn Board 'Pine', is not recommended because it is not usually milled by professional mills and it seldom meets "building code" ... use it for decor only after applying a 'fire-retardant' (as may be required to meet local building code and insurance requirements) for indoor or outdoor wall applications".

Wall & Ceiling Board 'Pine', is not recommended for flooring because it is not milled, graded or kilned for flooring. Wallboard and Ceiling 'paneling' is easily identified by its thin 5/8" thickness and 1/16" bevel cut into the Top-Side edge of every board to form a "V-Groove" upon installation. The "V-Groove" allows ease of installation on 'uneven' walls and offers a 'rustic' feel in a room. Secondly, and tragically, Unfinished Wall & Ceiling Board with a 1/16" bevel (used as flooring) can not be Professionally sanded, stained or TopCoat FloodCoat Finished. Lastly, where the boards do not have Bottom-Side Anti-Cup Grooves, the boards must not be 'reversed/turned over' to create a flat surface thus 'eliminating' the "V-Groove". Using wallboard for flooring will demand a costly replacement of the floor — in the near future — with the correct materials, which should have been used, by an informed Client, in the first place.

Imported Woods, and particularly, Asian, Russian and South American flooring is high risk for North American consumers. These woods appeal to buyers based on "Bamboozle" ... 'exclusivity' and 'eco-friendly' but, these products are not 'recognized', 'rated' or 'regulated' by any North American (hardwood or softwood) Non-Partisan Party ... when an imported wood floor becomes a 'problem floor' consumers seem to have little effective legal recourse. According to lawyers who represent 'disgruntled' clients and contact me for 'help'. I have been told, it is a big problem.

Hardwood  

These are the facts you must know when buying wideplank Red Pine flooring — in comparison to any hardwood flooring — as follows:

1) Hardwood is seldom "real" any more ... it's medium density fibreboard (MDF), so-called "Engineered Wood" or Stripped (laminated) flooring (chipboard) with a thin veneer top layer ... They are synthetic and all Gas-Off forever!

Strip Hardwood Flooring "ripples" in the sunlight because it warps.

Strip Hardwood flooring has a 3^mm veneer top layer, the base of the 'board' may be 12^mm MDF or "Engineered Wood" which denies the hardwood the ability to be refinished. Quality hardwood is solid wood but, it will expose every ding, dent and scratch and may need to be refinished three or four times over its lifetime. That is inconvenient, costly and poor value. That is not the case with my artistically-distressed solid wideplank Red Pine flooring.

2) True, Solid Hardwood is extremely costly to purchase ... when refinishing the topcoat must be sanded down to the bare wood so that the grouting (filler between the boards) can be removed and replaced before that kind of floor can be refinished ... again, it is inconvenient, time-consuming and costly. That is not the case with my artistically-distressed solid Red Pine flooring ... there is no grouting involved ... therefore, should you ever choose to refinish a Marreed-Prestman floor, only the sheen of the 'Diamond-Finish' need be hand-sanded (in the direction of the grain) prior to refinishing.

3) Most common hardwood is pre-finished with 'umpteen' coats of a NANO (micro-thin spray resin and UVL cured). Each spray-coat is so fine that one could not spray their hair with spray as fine. These coatings are cured within seconds under ultraviolet light (UVL) before going through another instant-coating. (Great for manufacturers, not great for consumers.) All-in-all, ten (10) coats of a UV-cured finish = .006 mil which is only 10% of my multiple on-site FloodCoats of 'Diamond-Tough'. Lastly, and most importantly, Epoxy-Cured Resin finishes are about half as hard and durable as Aluminium-Oxide Cured Resin (I use the latter exclusively).

4) True Hardwood flooring may need to be refinished every ten years — if you are particular — whereas a Marreed-Prestman floor may never need doing ... scratches, dings and dents that accumulate over the years simply add to character, beauty and value of this 'Old World' flooring.

5) "Hardwood" lengths are usually advertised "up to three (3') feet in length when, in fact, ninety (90%) percent of the boxed pieces are much shorter at approximately (~ 12" - ~ 18 and 24") twelve, eighteen and twenty-four inches in length.

Red Pine flooring is a natural  product ... it is not a composite, it is not plastic, as such, ~ 1% expansion and contraction of the wood in the annual "breathing" cycle may occur. Additional, expansion and contraction may be "aggravated" by non-related factors* affecting the building prior to, during, or after the installation and finishing processes.