Are there quality differences between engineered flooring products?
Indeed there are some considerable variances from one manufacturer to the next. First of all the quality of the top layer is greatly dependant on whether it was sawed, like a solid plank (the preferred method), or peeled like a plywood veneer ( susceptible to micro checking). For the general public in North America and Europe there are certain manufacturing standards involving health and safety such as the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) Sadly no such standards exist in other parts of the world. Often their manufacturing technology may be as much as 30 years behind ours. Urea, formaldehyde or heavy metal contaminants are not uncommon. That doesn’t mean that there can be no quality products from China or South America, but the ones that we know of as good quality and whose products we carry, are very strictly monitored by the manufacturers or distributors from the Western World countries. It is to ensure that all the standards are met, including human rights of the workers and pro
