Oak Flooring from Hackworth Sawmill

Prime Grade Oak Flooring

As with other timbers, prime grade hardwood flooring in oak is generally the grade which has the fewest knots and the least colour variation. At best prime grade oak will be free of knots and have straight grain. In reality, however, it is getting increasingly difficult to source because it is in such high demand for furniture making and for veneers. The cost of logs which will produce a genuinely clear grade of oak and other hardwoods, in any sort of decent lengths, has made it prohibitive for flooring. With some timbers, American Black Walnut, for example, prime grade is almost unobtainable. The result is that expectations have to be lowered, and prime grade oak flooring inevitably will contain some small knots and clusters of knots, and the lengths will be less than might be possible with character grade. There will be variations in grain pattern and texture of the wood, and some colour variation in prime grade. Our aim is to supply oak flooring in lengths of 1.8 up to 2.7 metres, but the reality is that with prime grade, there may be a significant number of boards closer to 1 metre. Obviously every batch is different, and we are restricted by the quality of the raw material at any given time. What it does mean, of course, is that the floor fitter has to be prepared to select prime grade oak boards carefully, and cut out any features in order to get the best out of the material available, and this is where the skill of the fitter comes in.