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January 21, 2025 in Design Guides

by Adam Robertson

Difference Between Aged And Reclaimed Wood Floors

What is Reclaimed Wood Flooring and Aged Wood Flooring

While aged and reclaimed wood floors might seem similar, they have distinct characteristics:

Reclaimed wood is authentic, previously used timber sourced from old structures like barns, factories, or historic buildings. Key features include:

Actual wood from existing structures
Genuine history and provenance
Naturally aged through decades of exposure
Typically sourced from old-growth trees, making them denser and more durable

Aged wood floors are artificially created to mimic an old appearance. Characteristics include:

New wood that has been intentionally treated to look old
Manufactured using techniques like wire brushing, hand-scraping, shrinking or machine distressing
Designed to create a vintage aesthetic without using actual old wood

Key Differences

Reclaimed Wood	Aged/Distressed Wood
Real historical wood	New wood artificially aged
Naturally weathered	Hand, Mechanically or chemically treated
Often more expensive	More affordable
Unique, unpredictable character	Customised to budget

Both options offer a rustic, time-worn look, but reclaimed wood provides an authentic narrative and potentially greater durability, while aged wood offers a more controlled and budget-friendly alternative

Benefits Of Choosing Reclaimed Wood Flooring

Unique Aesthetic Appeal

Reclaimed wood flooring features a distinct character and patina that cannot be replicated with new materials. The natural weathering, knots, and markings create a sense of authenticity and warmth, adding rustic charm to any space. Each plank tells a story, contributing to a unique visual narrative in your home.

Durability and Longevity

Reclaimed wood is often sourced from old-growth trees, making it denser and more durable than newly harvested wood. With proper care, reclaimed wood flooring can last for generations, often outperforming new wood in terms of longevity. The aging process allows the wood to expand and contract naturally, reducing the likelihood of warping or cracking over time.

Environmental Sustainability

Using reclaimed wood significantly reduces the demand for newly harvested timber, thereby helping to combat deforestation. This sustainable approach promotes resource conservation, lowers carbon emissions associated with logging, and minimizes waste by repurposing discarded materials. Reclaimed wood continues to store carbon, contributing positively to the environment throughout its lifecycle.

Strength and Stability

The age of reclaimed wood contributes to its strength; it is typically harder and more resilient than many types of commercially grown timber available today. This makes it suitable for high-traffic areas and environments where durability is essential. Additionally, reclaimed wood has often been exposed to various environmental conditions over its lifetime, enhancing its stability.

Historical Significance

Reclaimed wood carries a historical narrative that can add value to your home. Many consumers appreciate knowing the story behind their flooring—whether it comes from an old barn, factory, or another structure—making it a conversation starter and a unique feature in home design.

In summary, reclaimed wood flooring is not only aesthetically pleasing but also durable, environmentally friendly, strong, and rich in history. These benefits make it an excellent choice for those looking to enhance their living spaces sustainably.

Benefits Of Choosing Aged Wood Flooring

Distressed wood flooring has become popular for its unique aesthetic and practical advantages. Here are the key benefits:

Unique Aesthetic Appeal

Rustic Charm: Distressed wood flooring offers a rustic, aged look that adds character and warmth to any space.
Timeless Style: The worn, weathered appearance fits well with various design styles, including farmhouse, industrial, and vintage.
Enhanced Texture: The natural imperfections and hand-scraped details make the flooring visually interesting and tactilely pleasing.

Durability and Longevity

Hides Wear and Tear: The pre-distressed look camouflages scratches, dents, and scuffs that occur over time, making it ideal for high-traffic areas or homes with pets and children.
Sturdy Construction: Many distressed floors are made from solid or engineered hardwood, ensuring a long lifespan.

Low Maintenance

Easy to Clean: Dust, dirt, and minor damage are less noticeable on distressed wood, reducing the need for constant cleaning or touch-ups.
No Stress About Damage: Since the flooring already looks aged, additional imperfections often blend in naturally.

Versatility

Compatible with Different Decor: Distressed flooring complements modern, traditional, rustic, and eclectic interiors.
Distressing customisations are wide and varied, meaning that you can specify the types of distressing, the species of wood and colour.

Value Addition

Increases Property Appeal: The unique look and durability of distressed wood flooring can enhance the overall value and appeal of your property.
A Conversation Starter: Its distinctive style often draws attention and admiration.

Distressed wood flooring is an excellent choice for anyone seeking a durable, low-maintenance, and visually striking option that brings warmth and character to their space.

Key Visual Differences

The primary distinction lies in authenticity. Reclaimed wood tells a genuine story through its natural aging process, while aged wood floors are carefully crafted to create an illusion of age. Older reclaimed wood tends to have more pronounced grain, deeper patina, and unique characteristics that cannot be perfectly replicated through artificial distressing.

Aesthetic Nuances, reclaimed wood offers more organic variation, with colours and textures reflecting its actual historical journey. Aged wood floors, while visually appealing, provide a more standardized vintage appearance that can be tailored to specific design preferences.

The choice between the two depends on whether you prioritize authentic historical character or a controlled, designed vintage aesthetic.

Types of Reclaimed Flooring

in terms of reclaimed oak flooring there are a few options available

Outside cut of beams

Oak reclaimed from the beams of old barns and buildings is the provides the purest and most authentic reclaimed flooring. Typically taken from beams that are at least 300 years old. The outside cut is achieved by taking the a lamella (layer) from each of the outer sides of the beam to be used as the wear layer of an engineered wood floor. The appearance will give a very wide range of texture and colour. The outsides of the beams will have hundreds of years to naturally seal harden itself and thus no need to finishing with oils or lacquers.

Inside cut of beams

Once the outer sides of the reclaimed beam has been cut, the remainder of the beams are cut to provide lamellas for the wear layer of engineered wood floors. The oak lamellas still provide an authentic reclaimed appearance with wood worm holes, nail marks, stains and wear produced over centuries. The finished floor will need sealing to protect the oak with optional colour treatments and beeswax polishing if required.

Railway Wagon Oak

Taken from the floor boards of railway wagons aging from approximately 80-100 years in age. These floors tend to be consistent in widths at approximately 180mm wide and have distinctive holes with black iron stains from old fixing bolts. The thickness of the oak allows for both inside and outside cuts. Shown here with outside cuts.

Whisky and Wine Barrels

Reclaimed from old barrels, typically narrow widths and short lengths. Due to the smaller dimensions of the raw material these floors will often be made onto engineered planks with multiple staves

Types of Aged Flooring

There are many techniques that can be applied to ageing a floor, often utilising multiple methods to achieve the desired look. Some of the popular methods include:

Hand Scraped

Traditionally floors would the scraped with a sharp edge by hand leaving scrape marks on the surface.

Hand Distressed

Using various tools from small hammers, chisels, sanding tools and nail punch to create marks such as worm holes and indentations. The edges of the board are often sculpted by hand to either provide a rough scraped edge or soft hand rolled bevels.

Tumbling

A mechanical method by placing oak planks or parquet battens into a tank with heavy chains, nails and other items. The tank is then rotated to distress the oak pieces inside.

Shrinking

A shrunk floor is where the wood has had water applied and then kiln dried rapidly to shrink the oak. The effect causes splits in the timber and an uneven surface around knots.

Planed Surface

The wood surface is machine planed to leave natural variation in the smoothness of the surface. The surface around knots tend to have a slightly rougher finish.

Burnished

The surface of the timber is burnt with a blowtorch creating charcoal colour and texture.

When Is It Best To Choose Aged Or Reclaimed Parquet Flooring?

When choosing between aged and reclaimed parquet flooring, consider the following factors to determine which option is best for your specific needs:

Choose Reclaimed Flooring When:

Authenticity is a priority: Reclaimed wood offers genuine historical character with unique imperfections and patina developed over decades or centuries of use.

Environmental concerns are paramount: Using reclaimed wood reduces demand for new timber, contributing to sustainability and waste reduction.

Durability is essential: Reclaimed wood is often more stable and durable due to its age, with wider growth rings and denser structure.

You desire a unique story: Each reclaimed floor has a distinct history, adding depth and interest to your space.

Radiant heating is planned: Reclaimed wood’s stability makes it suitable for use with modern heating systems.

Choose Aged (Distressed) Flooring When:

Consistency is important: Aged flooring offers a more controlled, uniform appearance while still providing a vintage look.

Budget constraints exist: Aged flooring is typically more affordable than authentic reclaimed wood.

Ease of installation is crucial: New aged flooring is often easier to install and may have fewer issues with fit and finish.

Structural integrity is a concern: Aged flooring provides the look of old wood without potential structural issues of reclaimed materials.

Specific aesthetic preferences: Aged flooring allows for more control over the final appearance, with various distressing techniques available.

Consider your priorities regarding authenticity, budget, installation ease, and desired aesthetic when making your choice between aged and reclaimed parquet flooring.