Wood Effect Porcelain
15th September 2015
At Floors of Stone my colleagues in the advertising and marketing department are very quick to notice when trends are starting and listening to what it is customers are looking for. I suppose one could say that wood has always been a popular material for cladding and interior design purposes, but what intrigues me the most about our latest range is it’s clever and convincing guise!
I have to be honest and say that when I was first informed I was rather cynical, having seen ligneous products elsewhere that very much failed to meet expectations (I am a huge fan of natural wood). My main issue with products imitating wood is that it is very difficult to replicate the organic grain of wood, difficult to convince the eye that a knot or bend is a legitimate mark of time. With this new range, I needn’t have worried- I have been won over!
So let me introduce our new range of oak planks. The planks are in fact made of porcelain, a man made product that creates a very versatile nature. These planks can be used inside and outside, they can go on walls and floors and are suitable for under floor heating systems. They do not require sealing like natural stone or lacquering like natural wood and they are a very low maintenance flooring option as a result. They are installed with a very thin grout line of about 3-4 mm (like normal tiles) the grout is normally chosen to be as close in colour to the porcelain planks as possible to create a seamless look.
The porcelain planks are of a high quality and it shows. The suppliers have put a lot of thought into creating the most natural look possible. The planks have multiple varied designs throughout. Like natural stone, if you “dry lay” the planks and arrange them in a mixture, you will enhance the natural look of the planks and the different designs contribute towards an authenticated look (the cheaper planks I have seen elsewhere, have the same design again and again which gives the game away immediately).
So if you are looking at real wooden planks but are worried about allowing for expansion gaps, warping and maintenance, this range may be what you’ve been looking for…
