Ducati Monster Forum

We have 3 big dogs (1 GSD/rottie mix and 2 Siberian huskies) and are looking at buying a house.  Whatever we buy is going to have hardwood flooring on at least the main level. 

Does anyone have personal experience with hardwood and large dogs?  The GSD tends to walk on his pads, but because the huskies stand so upright  on their toes, they tend to give hardwood a serious shredding.  Does anyone have anything that they really like that is super durable?  Does anyone have recommendations for what not to get?

It's only been in for six months since we moved in, but two large, rambunctious dogs have yet to make a dent in the oak we had installed. FWIW, we chose "second" grade flooring, because it's lots of different colors & includes knots and a whole lot of character, so it's not going to show damage quite as quickly to begin with. It's finished with a matte two-part finish that cures fast and has held up well to two adults, two dogs, two cats & an energetic 13-year old girl.  Hope that one data point helps...

That's an interesting data point.   [thumbsup]  Second grade is always the way to go unless you need a very uniform color.

Not an expert, but a laminate with a higher aluminum oxide content may be more durable than a standard hardwood.

From what I just read also, it would be easier to maintain once in, and would offer better scratch resistance

In our current rental property, they have laminate in the kitchen.  The problem is that it forever looks, feels, and sounds like laminate.

Ok, so maybe another question... Is there any laminate out there that doesn't feel so... laminate?

Emily, Ive had great success with a two part polyurethane floor finish called Pacific Strong.  My parents built their home over 20 years ago, the oak floors have survived 3 labs and 2 Jack Russells.  Its not perfect but has really stood up admirably!

Another wood to consider is Cumaru, "Brazilian Teak".  Its incredibly dense and a bit of a PIA to install but its gorgeous and durable.  Just for reference, it rates approximately 3500 on the Janka scale compared to about 1200 for red oak.  The Janka hardness scale refers to the pressure required to press a 1/2" ball bearing 1/2 way into the wood. 

We only had a year to Labrador test it before we had to put Jake down but it has held up very well.  Make sure any wood you install is well acclimated to your home before it goes down.

2 problems with laminates, as you said, they "feel" fake and repairing them effectively is a PIA.  You should be able to refinish a 3/4" floor 3-5 times throughout its life depending on the stains.

 ......thats right, you live with Stillie, make that 1-3 times..... [evil]

I had good experience with bamboo flooring before.

Have you considered bamboo flooring.  Super durable, hard, and mariginally more sustainable than wood. 

Msincr. beat me too it.   ;)

Bamboo is cool but you cant change the color once its down.  Big points for sustainability as DDiva said.  Cumaru grows something like 14' per year and its surprisingly inexpensive if you look in the right places.

Maple, Yellow Birch, and Oak should all hold up well. As someone pointed out, 'lower' grades have more color so won't show damage as readily.  Factory applied finishes are head and shoulders above anything I've seen put on after installation, the downside is they all have a micro-bevel edge.  Some like it, some don't.

Rex-thane....

forget about factory applied finishes.

My parents put in hardwood a few years ago.  1 German Shepard, 2 Beagles and a couple cats.  They told the guys that installed it they needed something durable to resist the animal claws.  Whatever they put on it worked great.  It was Diamond something for the brand name ~

JM

I've used Diamond finishes.  Good stuff, but still not as good as pre-finished.

I know you said you weren't going to go with laminate but I thought I'd share this anyhow.  My parents have Pergo floors in their kitchen and my giant doberman got scared and tried to run fast on the floor and put two big scratches in it.  Don't buy their commercials that say it's unable to be scratched by dogs.

I guy I worked with had cork flooring, one *big* dog (125#) and one normal dog.
He said it held up great, and it looked awesome.

Wish I could remember the name of the stuff. :(

When moving into this house, I redid all the maple floors. I used Minwax oil based poly. THe dog has since scratched the shit out of it everywhere he's been. stupid dog. I used 5 coats. In a couple places, he even managed to get down to the wood  :'(
So apparently the minwax isn't so durable.

Pre finished is "baked on hard", but every seam is open.  Water, pet urine and other liquids have a direct shot to an area of the flooring that cant be touched.

Site finishing gives you a protective "membrane" which buys you a little more time when it comes to standing liquids.

+1 on the laminate.

My parents put in laminate and it has held up great over 5 years.  They have an American Bulldog and a fox terrier, but often have 4 more bulldogs and a beagle when the watch my sister's dogs.  I'm not sure the brand but it wasn't anything fancy, they got it at home depot.  I've also heard great things about cork, and it gets the renewable resource points as well.