Have you ever heard of fumed oak wood flooring? No? Then this article is for you and we are sure that at the end you will at least consider the fact of purchasing a new fumed oak wooden floor and if not, you are most probably already putting on your shoes and rushing to the closest wood flooring showroom.

Fumes oak wood comes in an engineered wood type of flooring. As you already know, engineered wood is made out of a few layers of wooden materials and this softwood core is the main advance of this type of flooring, because it makes it extra solid, extra sturdy and hard-wearing and most importantly – it allows engineered wood to be installed in rooms and spaces, where humidity, moisture and temperature can otherwise destroy solid wood timbers.

What makes fumes oak engineered wood even more special is its unique structure, where manufacturers are placing spaces between each layer and that way it is allowed the air to circulate where ammonia is introduced into the air to penetrate the cell structure of the wood. The whole process takes several days to be completed and the main goal is achieving a certain visual effect. Depending on the natural colour of the oak wood species and the final colour of the planks required, it may take more or less time, so that the complete top layer is saturated with ammonia and the final colour and effect are consistent and uniform throughout the thickness of the wood.

Why the fuming process is made? Fuming of oak wood is generally carried out to bring out the natural tannins of oak, In fact, ammonia is what brings the tannins to the surface and the colour variation you can get is really natural and impressive. Each piece of wood is unique and that is why each piece of wood will end up with different saturation and shade of the natural colour. The nearer the tannins are to the surface, the darker the finished board will be. The variation of colour after fuming can be from dark brown to virtual black colour. Finishing is also an important step of the process and in this case, with foamed oak, your best choice will be oil finish. The more oil you put on the fumed oak, the better it will look.

The process of fuming is not the same as staining or applying ammonia directly to the wood. Since ammonia will simply not penetrate the entire thickness of the wood, the final effect of direct application will be very different. In the case of fuming, the oak wood is subjected to ammonia in the atmosphere and as you may guess it, it is a skill requiring the process. Generally, if the timber is processed in the chamber for 48 hours, the final effect will be light fuming, while intensive fuming requires 72 hours for fully fumed boards. And there you have it! Your fumed oak wooden floor is like a piece of art, really different and special! Be sure to consider this option, if you are planning to purchase and have installed a new wooden floor.