Universal Floors

Western Union Tower our next door neighbor

2010-09-28T05:09:00.000-07:00

This distinctive facility is located at the corner of 41st St. and Wisconsin Ave. in the Tenleytown neighborhood of northwest Washington DC, near the highest elevation in the city. It was the first common-carrier microwave communications station in the city, and one of the earliest in the United States. Beginning service in 1947 and named the "Tenley Tower" by its owner, the Western Union Telegraph Company, this installation was part of the company's "radio triangle" - a network of microwave radio-relay stations linking Washington, Pittsburgh, and New York City. The inauguration of that system marked the first use of microwave radio for commercial communications, carrying traffic originated by the public. http://coldwar-c4i.net

Strand Woven Bamboo in Rural Virginia Countryside

2010-09-23T05:03:00.000-07:00

Strand woven is hard, dense and wears like nothing else.

Grand Style

2010-09-23T04:53:00.000-07:00

LÄGLER floor sanding machines stand for functional and ergonomic perfection, are easy to handle as well as extremely maintenance-friendly and meet stringent environmental and safety requirements.

Flush Vent

2010-09-23T04:48:00.000-07:00

Flush wood vents installed with the new floor are available in many sizes and shapes.

Borders Can Be Simple

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A single walnut feature strip with several boards following the same line can add a custom look to an ordinary floor.

Wide Plank Dining

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Wide plank white oak can be very affordable if you don't mind a few natural imperfections like knots, and mineral streaks. When the mill does not cut out such features the boards are much longer and there is a lot less waste.

Columbia Heights Parquet repair

2010-09-23T04:24:00.000-07:00

What used to be a closet and part of the hall needed to be part of the larger room. The original parquet needed to be extended.

Roslyn Condo with a View

2010-09-23T04:10:00.000-07:00

Nearly black stained engineered plank flooring installed over 6mm cork sound barrier.

Old world elegance with a Chevron pattern

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Ebony Stain, the clean modern look of black floors

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The Beautiful Floors from Brazil

2010-03-08T07:10:00.000-08:00

Brazilian Cherry

Available in prefinished and unfinished formats

The species Brazilian Cherry (Jatoba) is the most popular hardwood flooring import from Brazil to the USA. Brazilian Cherry, known for its hardness and durability, this exotic hardwood is a great choice in both residential and commercial installations. We offer only one superior quality grade (clear grade)

General Characteristics

Brazilian Cherry from South America has a brownish-red color. It darkens from a tan/salmon color to a deep, reddish brown and is 228% as hard as domestic Red Oak. On the Janka Hardness scale, Brazilian Cherry ranks 2820 vs. 1260 for Red Oak.

Brazilian Cherry is an extremely heavy wood; hard to cut, variable heartwood regarding color, from light brown to pink, to reddish brown, with some intense shadowing. Thick sapwood, notably differentiated, white slightly yellowed, uniform medium texture, regular to irregular grain of wood, rough and of poor shine surface; imperceptible scent and taste.

Main Applications

Hardwood Flooring - Prefinished and Unfinished.
For being very heavy and of high mechanical properties, Brazilian Cherry wood may be used for interior finishing such as beams, rafters/joists, wooden planks, door frames, parquet and flooring boards, in external engineering such as sleepers and double tee junction, frames, decorating wooden sheets, furniture and others.

The species Brazilian Walnut (Ipe) is the hardest species we carry. Brazilian Walnut, known for its exceptional hardness and resistance to wood boring insects and fugi, this exotic hardwood is a great choice in both residential and commercial installations. Typically users who require an extremely durable floor or desire a dark floor choose Brazilian Walnut. We offer only one superior quality grade (clear grade), in both Prefinished and Unfinished formats and several sizes.

Brazilian Walnut

Brazilian Walnut from South America has a deep dark brown colored wood with exceptionally fine graining. It is one of the densest woods available, and the densest in our collection - at 3680 on the janka hardness scale vs 1260 for Red Oak.

Brazilian Koa or Tigerwood

Available in prefinished and unfinished formats

Flooring Trade Name: Tigerwood
Botanical Name: Astronium, spp
Lumber Name: Goncalo Alves
Grows In: Brazil, Bolivia, Peru, Guatemala, Mexico

Tigerwood is a boldly striped species which has an orange/reddish brown background with wide dark brownish black striping, which we liken to the striping found in “vanilla fudge” ice cream.

Color Range:
Tigerwood, as the name suggests, is a species which exhibits a wide range of color/striping. The striping can vary from fine lines to bold “brush strokes”. The background color can range from light tans to darker orange browns.

Color Change:
Tigerwood exhibits a large degree of color change with a pronounced darkening of the background under the stripes from an orangey tan to a deep reddish brown color, which then in turn makes the striping less contrasting and more subtle.

Hardness:
Tigerwood is 170% as hard as red oak (2160 on the Janka scale vs. 1260 for red oak).

Santos Mahogany

The species Santos Mahogany (Cabriuva) is our second-most popular hardwood flooring import from Brazil to the USA. A rich, dark mahogany colored wood, Santos Mahogany is a superior choice to domestic mahogany given its hardness and color fastness. We offer only one superior quality grade (clear grade), in both prefinishedand unfinished formats and several sizes.

General Characteristics: Our clear grade Santos Mahogany has very minimal color and grain variation. Santos Mahogany has a medium color range, varying between a light orange/brown with yellowish overtones to a dark reddish/purplish brown. Most pieces of the floor are medium to dark orange/brown mahogany tone. Santos Mahogany is 175% as hard as red oak (2200 on the Janka scale vs. 1260 for red oak).

Main Applications: Hardwood Flooring - Prefinished and Unfinished.

Patagonian Rosewood

Available in prefinished format
Color Change
A new arrival to our inventory, Patagonian Rosewood (Angico Preto/Curupay) is a great addition to our product line. We're offering it at a great price. We are offering it in Pre-finished 3/8 x 3 x RL 18 – 84” Glue down / nail down Solid and Pre-finished & Un-finished ¾ x 3” & 5 “ x RL 18 – 84” nail down Solid formats.
Appearance
Patagonian Rosewood is a highly figured wood with pronounced black striping.
Color Range
Patagonian Rosewood offers an extremely wide range of color variability from light cream colors through to almost black pieces.
Patagonian Rosewood undergoes a dramatic color change from when fresh milled to when fully aged. Initially the background wood (to the black striping) varies from cream to orangish tones and then over times changes to deep dark orangey/reddish brown making the black stripes less pronounced.
Flooring Trade Name: Patagonian Rosewood
Botanical Name: Piptadenia, macrocarpa
Lumber Name: Curupay / Angico Preto
Grows In: Brazil, Paraguay & Bolivia

Tiete Chestnut

Available in Solid and Engineered Prefinished formats
Appearance
Lustrous chocolate brown with interesting golden striping
Color Range
Tiete Chestnut exhibits a tan to dark brown color with unique interlocking grain pattern and occasional black striping.
Color Change
Color is mostly unaffected by light.
Flooring Trade Name: Tiete Chestnut / Brazilian Chestnut
Botanical Name: Bowdichia Nitida
Lumber Name: Sucupira
Grows In: Brazil, Paraguay & Bolivia
Solid
Solid Prefinished Tiete Chestnut/Sucupira 3/4" x 3 1/4 x Random Length 1'-7'

A new type of Wood Flooring

2010-02-06T07:02:00.000-08:00

Universal Floors is the only distributor for Hakwood

in the Washington, D.C. area.

Hakwood specializes in the manufacture of
wide-width, long-length flooring. Utilizing
sustainable resources in Europe, the US
and from around the world, Hakwood
produces state of the art solid & engineered flooring.

Hakwood wide-width engineered flooring is
a stable, beautiful, versatile, and environmentally responsible

choice for your hardwood floors.

Hakwood is a proud member of the Hak group of companies, a world-wide

operating family business of which the foundation dates back to 1903.

Hakwood was founded in 1979 and became a major industrial producer

of wood products.

Hakwood’s product range has expanded to a large program of both

solid and engineered flooring products for the professional market.

Over the last decade Hakwood has developed a great experience in the

production of engineered flooring products.

Hakwood engineered flooring is the solution for wide stable wood flooring.

In the past the fear of swelling, twisting, warping and shrinking have

prevented distributors from supplying wide boards with confidence.

However these concerns can be put aside as Hakwood engineered

flooring provides the solution.

The reason for the stability and durability of Hakwood Engineered Flooring

is its unique structure. A 14 mm water resistant plywood back layer

together with a 6 mm solid Hardwood top layer ensures a stable durable

product. Hakwood flooring gives the appearance and properties of a

solid board, together with all the advantages of engineered flooring.

Hakwood pays great attention to the selection of wood and wood suppliers.

The purchase department travels all over the world to ensure that top

quality products are delivered by reliable suppliers.

At different stages of production Hakwood’s wood flooring is sorted

and inspected to insure that each grade meets its requirements. Before finished

products are dispatched, each production is thoroughly inspected in the laboratory.
These engineered flooring products are produced by a “State of Art”

process, ensuring excellent quality control. Hakwood always concentrates

on industrial research and development in order to continuously improve

its state of the art production process and maintain its leading position.

Hakwood’s facilities are located half an hour away from one

of the world’s major ports - Rotterdam. This allows access

for international transportation to every conceivable destination.

Our distribution service takes pride in successfully catering the

needs of the most demanding customers. Our production and

storage facilities (approx.16 acres) are equipped with state

of the art wood processing equipment, climate controlled

factory areas for improved products, and all that is necessary

for efficient loading and unloading. Both the raw material and the

finished products in stock allow for flexiblity in meeting customer demands.

2010-01-20T08:21:00.000-08:00

CORK FLOORING

Consider Cork- the most environmentally friendly available - for use in every room in your home. This all-natural flooring product is a fully renewable resource that comes from the bark of a Cork Oak tree. This bark is harvested every nine years up to a total of eighteen to twenty harvests in the life of the tree. This natural phenomenon combined with some of the most advanced manufacturing technology in the world results in a Solida Cork floor.

Cork is made up of millions of air cells. These air cells produce a soft comfortable natural cushion floor, a naturally quiet and warm floor to walk on, and a durable, dent-resistant floor. Cork is hygienic, easy to maintain and suitable for any room in your home.

Cork, natures most perfect gift, has been fashioned into flooring for over a hundred years. The wide selection of Solida Cork designs, colours, and shapes offers endless design possibilities. Solida Cork floors can be custom coloured and shaped to match any decor.

- Outstanding Acoustical and Thermal Insulation
- Resistance to Moisture Damage
- Comfort and Warmth Underfoot
- Easy Maintenace

- Durability

Cork is the natural material carefully harvested from the bark of the cork oak tree, which grows only in the forest plantations of the western Mediterranean. It is a renewable and sustainable natural resource offering a wide range of funtional properties in addition to great flexibility of design.

No trees are destroyed in the production of cork. Harvesting the cork oak is not harmful to the tree. By using cork products, we keep the forest alive, and the habitat undisturbed.

Cork trees produce their bark to provide protection from droughts, fires, temperature fluctuations and other environmental conditions. This unique raw material with its lightweight, flexible honeycomb cellular structure is impermeable to liquids and gas, this makes it an ideal material for a myriad of household products.

Insulation - Because 90% of the tissue consists of gaseous matter, the density of cork is extremely low, giving the material wonderful insulating properties, thermal as well as accoustical.

Resilience - When cork is subjected to pressure, the gas is compressed and volume decreases considerably. This action creates a comfortable firm but cushiony walking surface.

Durability - Cork is remarkably resistant to wear, as due to its cellular structure, it is less affected by impact and friction than other hard surface materials.

Impermeability - The presence of Suberin, a natural waxy substance, makes cork impervious to both liquid and gas. As a result, it does not rot.

Hypoallergenic - Cork does not absorb dust, consequently it does not cause allergies.

Fire Retardant - A natural fire retardant, cork does not spread flames, and it does not release toxic gases during combustion.

Cork is available in several different styles, stains, pre-finished or unfinished, with beveled or square edges, with a 'clic' glueless installation system, as a floating floor or full glue down installation, in lots of sizes - stop in today to see this unique product in flooring.

The Best Colors for Painting Floors

2010-01-13T11:10:00.000-08:00

Painting the floor is one of the quickest, most powerful makeovers. How about tomato red, ocean blue? These top designers think color works on wood floors.

Deep Ocean
"Blue was a natural for a Nantucket boathouse, and it brightened all that old wood. Then we spattered it with red, white, and blue, so you don't notice all the sand you track in. You just tap a wet paintbrush against a strip of wood, but it's more difficult to control than you think. It could end up looking like a Jackson Pollock — but that would be cool, too." - GARY MCBOURNIE

Gray Owl & Blue Jean
"I just painted a sunroom floor in two colors, a gray khaki over a dirtied-up sky blue, so as you walk over it the blue starts to show through. It creates this nice scruffy look, as if it has aged over a long time — but it happens faster. When you reach that ideal moment and it looks pleasantly worn, finish it with clear polyurethane to preserve it." - STEVEN SCLAROFF: BENJAMIN MOORE GRAY OWL 2137-60, BLUE JEAN 2062-50

I couldn't live without my red floors. Every floor in my log cabin is red. I've been buying rustic antiques and Americana for years, so it ended up being a nice base for my collections. And it brings me this absolute cheeriness. In summer, it feels like the Fourth of July; in winter, it's like Christmas." - ANTHONY BARATTA: BENJAMIN MOORE CARNIVAL RED 23

I love painted staircases, and I'm doing one right now that leads up to an attic playroom. The base color is a wonderful, warm white, and then I'm having a two-color stripe — in gray-beige and a deep, rich gray-blue — painted on the outside ends of each tread and riser. It's like a virtual runner. A little tongue-in-cheek, and less expensive than a carpet." - BETSY BURNHAM: DUNN-EDWARDS WHISPER DEW340, DUNN-EDWARDS MUSLIN DE6227, FARROW & BALL DOWN PIPE 26

Why not put the sky on the floor? Sooo cool. It's unexpected, contemporary, upside-down! This turquoise is the color of our Santa Fe sky on a clear day. Hang an antler chandelier, slipcover the sofas in oatmeal linen, add a rustic coffee table, and you've got a hip, affordable Santa Fe look." - EMILY HENRY: BENJAMIN MOORE SPECTRA BLUE 2049-50

A plain stained floor is a missed opportunity to me. I did this radiating squares thing to add some zing to a little pass-through space at the Kips Bay showhouse where a real rug would have been a tripping hazard. The squares were espresso brown and soft silver-gray, but if that's too much contrast, do tone-on-tone. Classic blue and white would be great in a beach house." - JOEL WOODARD See next slide for paint information.

Kitten Whiskers

"The reason I paint a floor is to get this sort of tonal cocoon. I do the walls and the floor in the same color so the eye goes around very softly. There's nothing jarring. I like this color because it's more than a beige. Sometimes it's strawberry yogurt and sometimes it's wet sand, depending on the light. It always works because it's so calming." - BRETT BELDOCK: BENJAMIN MOORE KITTEN WHISKERS 1003

Westcott Navy

"I painted my dining room floor because I didn't want to go through the hassle and expense of refinishing it. I wanted something dark, because a dark floor dresses up a room. This iron gray has a little blue in it, and that tinge of color gives it more depth. It's not just a dead black. And then you can bring in a brighter color and have fun with it. It's pretty with my yellow chairs." - KATIE RIDDER: BENJAMIN MOORE WESTCOTT NAVY 1624

Pretty Painted Floors: Breathe new life into your wood floors with inspiration from these colorful rooms.

2010-01-11T08:33:00.001-08:00

Opening Up

To enlarge a space visually, coat every surface in white―including floors. Introduce color in a cheery hue through furniture and accessories to keep a white room from feeling sterile.

Going Beyond

Coastal motifs stenciled onto painted wood floors add a playful touch and take a traditional blue-and-white scheme to a whole new level.

Interesting Addition

Striped, polka dot, checkerboard, or plaid, pattern adds spunk to a vanilla kitchen. Here, extra-large diamonds add bold interest and make the space look

Striking Entrance

To create an entryway that’s fun and functional, use latex porch and floor enamel and paint a diamond motif. Before painting make sure you sand floors properly and vacuum thoroughly. After paint has dried, apply a second coat. Floors take loads of traffic, and two coats are essential.

Significant Design

Wake up a boring floor with paint. Here, thin stripes of white outline alternating shades of blue to create interest. A compass draws the eye toward the winding staircase.