How Long Can a Wood Flooring System Last?

Wood is a natural, sustainable, and renewable material, which has been used as flooring for centuries, but not enough is known about its durability and performance over time when subjected to different degradation agents. This study proposes a methodology for the service life prediction of wood flooring systems, considering the impact of different factors that influence the floors' durability. For that purpose, a fieldwork survey is performed to evaluate the degradation phenomena of 96 indoor wood floorings in-use conditions, located in Portugal. The data collected are converted into degradation patterns that graphically illustrate the loss of performance of wood floorings over time. An estimated service life of 44 years is obtained. This study thus allows quantifying the impact of various characteristics on the indoor wood floorings' service life. The results reveal the high importance of the type of protection, the type of wood, and the type of floor (with a range of estimated service life values of around 18, 17 and 16 years, respectively). This study is a first step to understanding the degradation mechanisms of the wood flooring systems, in order to extend their service life, while allowing optimising of maintenance actions, thus promoting the durability and sustainability of these floorings.