What are floor knots? Are floor knots good or bad?

Opinions vary widely regarding floor knots. Some believe that knotted flooring is a true reflection of nature, while others consider it unsightly, a sign of poor quality, or a sign of cheapness. So what are the facts about floor knots? Today, we'll clarify this for you.

There's a German proverb that says, "The strongest part of a tree is where it has a knot." Trees grow in nature, enduring wind, frost, rain, and snow, witnessing the changing seasons. Inevitably, trunks and branches will fall and break. If a tree survives, the broken parts heal, forming knots. Although knots are darker in color and less aesthetically pleasing, they are the strongest parts of the entire tree.

Therefore, knots are an inseparable part of a tree's natural growth and a testament to the natural properties of wood. Whether knots affect the quality of flooring depends on whether they are live or dead knots.

A live knot is a knot that is intact and closely connected to the surrounding wood. It is still full of vitality, has a complete grain connection, has not formed a break, and has no pith structure.

Dead knots are knots located around the lateral branches of dead trees. They are surrounded by a ring of darker veneer, which tends to separate from or partially separate from the surrounding wood, affecting the stability of the structure. Therefore, when choosing flooring, it's important to carefully identify dead knots.

Actually, too many or too few knots on the floor are not ideal. Fine and even knots can give the living space a unique charm and a strong vitality. Your home is not uniform or neat, but a precious gift from nature.