High-gloss Hardwood Floors

The beauty of high-gloss hardwood floors

When you want your hardwood floors to really stand out, a high-gloss finish may be a great option. High-gloss hardwood floors are finished with a sealant that has a high luster level to create an incredibly glossy look. Glossy hardwood floors will reflect more light than a matte or satin finish hardwood floor, giving the floor an extra shiny appearance.

At Carlisle Wide Plank Floors, our design consultants can help you understand the pros and cons of semi gloss vs. high-gloss hardwood floors as well as matte vs. satin finish hardwood floors. We’ll also walk you through all the options for wood, grade, color and texture to help you design a wide plank floor that will truly be a central feature of your home.

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Frequently Asked Questions

What is gloss or sheen on a hardwood floor?

When finishing a hardwood floor, you have the option of using sealants with higher or lower sheen or gloss. Sheen refers to the amount of luster in the sealant – essentially, the amount of light that the floor will reflect. High-sheen or high-gloss floors will reflect a great deal of light, giving them a shiny appearance. Low-sheen or matte floors will reflect little light, giving them a flatter and duller look.

What are high-gloss hardwood floors?

High-gloss hardwood floors are finished with a sealant with a luster level of about 70%. High-gloss floors will have an incredibly shiny appearance and are most often seen in bowling alleys and gym floors.

What are the pros and cons of high-gloss hardwood floors?

High-gloss hardwood floors will draw a great deal of attention. They're most often used as accents or when a homeowner wants to highlight an exotic hardwood. High-gloss hardwood floors can be incredibly difficult to keep clean, as they'll easily show scuffs, dirt, dust, pet hair or streaks from cleaning.

What is the best gloss for hardwood floors?

Determining the best gloss for hardwood floors is a matter of personal preference. In addition to high-gloss hardware floors, you can opt for semi-gloss hardwood floors which have a luster level of around 55%. Semi-gloss floors will still look quite bright and new, but they'll be a little easier to keep clean. Satin finishes have a luster level of roughly 35-40% and are the most common type of finish. Matte floors have a luster level of between 10% and 25% and will hide dust and dirt quite easily. Floors with a lower sheen level will also allow the grain and personality of the wood to be seen more easily.

How do I get a high-gloss finish on hardwood floors?

To get a high-gloss finish, you simply need to use a sealant with a high-gloss sheen for the final coat on your hardwood floors.

What's the difference between a urethane vs. polyurethane finish?

The terms "urethane" and "polyurethane" are typically used interchangeably. Both are a flexible, abrasion-resistant polymer floor coating that provides a highly effective layer of protection for hardwood floors.

Customizing your high-gloss hardwood floors

In addition to the finish for your hardwood floors, Carlisle offers many options that let you custom design the floor of your dreams.

A selection of wood

At Carlisle, you can choose high-gloss hardwood floors made from a variety of different hardwoods.

Proprietary grades

Wood grades allow you to design a floor with planks that show more or less of the wood’s character. Our Heirloom Grade minimizes knots and color and grain variations for a more consistent and formal look. Our Original Grade timbers reveal more of these variations for a relaxed and rustic appearance. And our Signature Grade blends the best of both Heirloom and Original grades for a personalized look.

Options for color

At Carlisle, your choices for stain colors are virtually unlimited. Our custom matching system lets us perfectly match the hue of your stain to the color of a paint swatch, piece of fabric, ceramic tile or any other object you bring to us.

Solid or engineered boards

Our hardwood floors are available in both solid and engineered planks. Solid floorboards are cut from a single piece of hardwood, while engineered boards are made with multiple layers of material that are glued to a top layer of hardwood. Engineered floors are more resistant to higher levels of moisture and humidity and are ideal for installation below grade, on concrete slabs and over radiant heating systems.

Choosing texture

We offer a number of textured treatments that can make new floors look like antique or vintage surfaces. Our craftsmen can hand-scrape edges to give floorboards the appearance of planks that were once prepared for installation by hand. We can also add saw marks and other imperfections to the boards to reproduce the look of planks that were cut at early sawmills. And we use a variety of wire-brush techniques to wear down the softer grains in the floorboards, giving the floor the appearance of a surface that has been walked on and lived on for generations.

Working with width

Your Carlisle wide plank floor can be made with boards that are as wide as 20″, depending on the type of wood you choose. The average Carlisle floor uses boards that are 8″ wide and 12′ long. Choosing boards of equal width will give your floor a more even and consistent appearance, while varying the width can add visual variety and produce a more rustic and casual feel.

Lakehouse Heart Pine

Why come to Carlisle for high-gloss hardwood floors?

Carlisle craftsmen have been creating the finest wide plank floors by hand for more than 50 years. With time-honored processes and the soundest, most reliable timber grown in American forests, we fashion one-of-a-kind floors that are destined to become the centerpiece of any home in which they’re installed. Our craftsmen understand that every inch of your floor is important to you – that’s why they obsess over every detail. From hand-selecting individual planks to applying the exact shade of a gray stain, our artisan woodworkers will create your floor one plank at a time to maximize the beauty, stability and design of your Carlisle surface.

People often say that the only thing that rivals the beauty of our floors is the quality of their experience as a Carlisle customer. From your first phone call or visit to a show room, our wide plank specialists will guide you through every step in designing a one-of-a-kind masterpiece for your home. From helping you choose the wood and grade of your floorboards to determining the width, texture, color and finish for your high-gloss hardwood floors, our team will answer every question and offer expert guidance throughout the entire process.