Which Wood Floor Is Best for Pets?

When selecting a wood floor suitable for pets it is better to have all the information you need because no one knows your home or pets better than you. We have broken down the required information into five categories to help with your decision. They are strength, ease of cleaning, ability to repair, resistance to odor and health and hygiene. In our opinion a good quality Laminate floor or a Solid or Engineered wood with a Lacquered finish is best suited because of the hard wearing layers.

Laminate flooring:

• Strength:

  A good quality laminate floor has an extremely tough and durable surface finish, which helps to prevent scratches meaning claws are unlikely to damage the floor.

• Ease of cleaning:

  Laminate floors are extremely easy to maintain and clean, vacuuming and sweeping will keep the laminate surface strong and cleaning using a recommended laminate cleaner will ensure the floor holds its appearance. Wet pets or muddy paws will be no problem for a laminate floor.

• Ability to repair:

  If the worse happens and your laminate flooring is damaged, it can be repaired. Laminate can be repaired with the use of a coloured mastic or repair paste. In extreme cases some click system laminates can be uplifted and the damaged board replaced.

• Resistance to odours:

  As long as regular cleaning is carried out a Laminate floor will resist most smells

• Health and hygiene

  Laminate flooring is far more hygienic than carpets, due to the fact that laminate flooring is so easy to clean. It will dramatically reduce the existence of storage and dust mites along with all other parasites such as fleas, as these effect allergy and asthma sufferers most, this will improve general heath.

A good quality laminate floor is often considered the best choice with pets in mind.

Solid wood and Engineered wood flooring:

There is very little difference between the surface of a solid wood floor and an engineered wood floor so when making a choice of which is best for pets it’s better to look at the finish of the flooring i.e. lacquered or oiled than the construction of the product itself.

Lacquered finish:

• Strength:

  Wood flooring is tough and durable, but both solid and engineered flooring will scratch and dent its part of the characteristic of a wood floor. Over time these become part of the character of your wood floor. Pet owners should be aware that pet claws can scratch a lacquered floor. A good quality pre finish lacquered floor should have at least 7 coats of UV lacquer applied during production; this creates a strong sealed finish.

• Ease of cleaning:

  Lacquered wood flooring is extremely easy to maintain as the sealed finish means most spills and stains sit on the surface of the flooring and only require a damp cloth to remove them. For best results use a good quality wood cleaner to clean. Wet pets or muddy paws will be very easy to clean away.

• Ability to repair:

  Lacquered wood floors are tricky to repair but be done with the use of wax crayons and lacquer repairs kits.

• Resistance to odours:

  As long as regular cleaning is carried out a Lacquered floor will resist most smells.

• Health and hygiene:

  Wood flooring is far more hygienic than carpets, due to the fact that wood flooring is so easy to clean it will dramatically reduce the existence of storage and dust mites along with all other parasites such as fleas, as these effect allergy and asthma sufferers most, this will improve general heath.

With its hard, durable and easy to clean surface lacquered floors are excellent choices for a home with pets, but bear in mind scratches will occur from time to time.

Oiled finish:

• Strength:

  Wood flooring is tough and durable, but both solid and engineered flooring will scratch and dent. It becomes part of the character of your wood floor over time. Brushed & Oiled wood floors help to hide the scratches as the grain is enhanced with brushing. Additionally, small scratches caused by claws will very rarely require any attention

• Ease of cleaning:

  With regular maintenance, an oiled floor can be easy to clean, as seen in our how to clean an oiled flooring guide. Greasy or even water spills, often around the front or back door or around water bowls, can cause slight discoloration. this can be rectified with the use of a good quality oil wood floor cleaner and an easily applied maintenance oil which helps to reseal the floor.

• Ability to repair:

  Oiled floors are easily repaired so are ideal if your pet has a tendency to scratch the floor, small scratches can be repaired with the use of a maintenance oil, deeper scratches can be lightly sanded first. Please see our wood floor repair section for more information.

• Resistance to odours:

  As long as regular cleaning is carried out an Oiled floor will resist most smells

• Health and hygiene:

  Wood flooring is far more hygienic than carpets, due to the fact that wood flooring is so easy to clean it will dramatically reduce the existence of storage and dust mites along with all other parasites such as fleas, as these effect allergy and asthma sufferers most, this will improve general heath.

With the right cleaning and maintenance an oiled or brushed & oiled floor can be very rewarding and as it’s easy to repair it can be a great choice for a home with pets.