January 1, 2015
If you’ve been looking for prefinished flooring for any amount of time, you’ve probably run across the term “edges & ends” on your research to the perfect floor for your home! So what exactly does edges & ends mean and why are they important for you to understand?
These terms are used to describe the way the sides of the individual prefinished hardwood boards are cut.
“Edge” refers to the long sides of the board while “end” references the short sides. The terms are also descriptive of the overall appearance that is created once the flooring is installed. The grooves between the boards will be more or less apparent depending on the option you select. Edges and ends are typically described as beveled, micro-beveled, eased, kissed, or square. The more beveled the edge or end is, the more apparent the grooves will be between the boards. The Impressions Flooring Collection offers floors in a variety of edge and end prefinished hardwood styles.
Beveled – Beveled edges/ends were the first style to emerge when prefinished wood became popular. A beveled edge/end will have the most distinctive groove and can clearly be seen in your floor. This style perfectly complements rustic and country designed homes. The flooring that often offers a beveled edge/end is one that is hand-scraped or wire-brushed.
Micro-Beveled – This type of edge/end is the most commonly used edge/end in the industry. Micro-bevel is a smaller version of beveled and is, therefore, less noticeable. You might hear words like eased, kissed and micro-v to describe micro-bevel when looking at different flooring options. This type of edge/end is the most versatile when it comes to complementing home decor and looks great with any style.
Square – The edges/ends of the floor meet up with each other so there is no bevel but instead a uniform surface between the boards. There are only a few manufacturers in the prefinished market that still make this type of edge/end. The reasoning is because it is very difficult to cut the boards to meet up exactly, and therefore the chance of overwood is more likely. The benefit of having square edge flooring product is that it looks like a site-finished installation (meaning it looks like it has been installed, sanded and finished in your home). Boards with a square edge/end fit flush together on all four sides of the wood to give the floor a seamless and sleek transition between the individual boards.
Remember! All micro-bevel edges or ends are not the same and floors can come in many different combinations of these three types of edges and ends.
Shop around and get the product that looks and works best for you and your home. If we can help answer any questions, please drop us a note today!
