Anderson Tuftex Hardwood | Home Flooring Pros

Welcome to our report on Anderson Tuftex hardwood floors.  In this overview we will take a look at their collections, pros and cons, prices, installation and maintenance. We finish with further customer reviews.

SPECS AND STYLES

Anderson Tuftex is available in about 30 engineered hardwood lines but just three lines of solid hardwood flooring. Let’s look at their engineered wood flooring collections first.

ENGINEERED HARDWOOD – WHAT AND WHERE

The 30 Anderson Tuftex engineered hardwood flooring lines, each in several colors, give you plenty of options.
Oak hardwood is well represented in Anderson Tuftex engineered flooring, used in more than a dozen lines. Other hardwood species include Hickory, Maple, Walnut and Kupay.

Top sellers in oak include traditionally styled Buckingham, casual Muir’s Park in red oak and the weathered white oak of Coastal Art Oak II. Metallics features a clean, contemporary style in colors from cool Pearl to neutral Pewter and Bronze.

There’s a decent selection of other species. Maple is used in lines like the classic Churchill Series, handscraped Vintage Maple and distressed Mystique. Vintage Walnut 5 Inch boasts varied warm tones.

If you like the mixed width plank look, consider the gorgeous heavy-scraped Palo Duro Hickory produced in 3, 5 and 6.8 inch planks. The five lines feature dark and warm tones.

Best Locations: Anderson engineered hardwood is fine for above, at and below grade locations. Check with your retailer about bathroom installation for the specific flooring you’re considering, if that’s part of the plan.

Finishes: As you browse Anderson hardwood floors, you’ll notice Luster Lock, a glossy finish, on many products. A tougher but less glossy finish is Aluminum Oxide, which is used on premium lines of Anderson Tuftex hardwood.

If you’re willing to pay $2-$4 more per square foot, flooring with the Aluminum Oxide finish wears better and remains “like new” significantly longer.

SOLID HARDWOOD – WHAT AND WHERE

The three Anderson Tuftex solid hardwood lines are Colonial Manor Mixed Width, Colonial Manor 4 Inch and Virginia Vintage 5 Inch flooring.

All are solid hickory produced in a pleasing array of stain hues from light to quite dark. Planks 2.25, 3.25 and 4 inches come in each box of the Mixed Width flooring, which delivers visual appeal but is a little trickier to install and might leave a bit more waste.

While the price is higher than Anderson engineered hardwood, it can be refinished multiple times, and that pushes the cost of replacement flooring 60-100 years down the road. The downside is that solid hardwood isn’t suitable for wet areas or below grade – no basements or lower levels in a tri-level, for example.

Best Locations: The Anderson Tuftex solid hickory lines are ideal for living areas and bedrooms, and OK for the kitchen if you’re quick about drying up spills. It belongs at or above grade, but not in the basement.

Warranties: Most collections are backed by a lifetime structural warranty. Finish warranties are 30 years on Luster Lock and 50 years on Aluminum Oxide flooring, which also offers a 10-year commercial warranty on the finish. See individual products for details.

PROS AND CONS

Here’s what you’ll like about Anderson hardwood floors:

• The Anderson engineered hardwood selection is terrific with lots of choice.
• Finish options range from matte to high-gloss.
• Nail it, staple it, glue it or float it – Flexibility.
• Thier engineered floors can be installed over heated floors.
• Plenty of USA-made options, if that’s what you prefer.
• Certifications showing environmental responsibility include Cradle to Cradle for materials that can be reused or recycled, GreenGuard low-VOC and the Lacey Act for sustainable production of hardwood.
• The warranties are about average or a little better than average when compared with other brands.

Here’s where things could be better:

• There are just 3 collections of solid Anderson hardwood flooring – but each offers a handful of color choices.
• The warranties are not transferable to a new owner if you sell your home.
• Anderson will pay just 50% of labor to replace defective floors in the first five years. Their flooring goes bad, and you pay ½ the labor? After 5 years? Labor is not covered.

INSTALLATION

Anderson recommends pro installation. That’s common for most flooring brands. It leads to fewer warranty claims. Professional installers can advise you on the best subfloor and installation method for your project.

Most Anderson engineered hardwood can be floated or fixed with nails, staples or glue.

Despite having options, be sure to follow Anderson’s Installation Guide. Run afoul of it, and the warranty might be voided.

From the Warranty Exclusions, “Damage caused by improper storage, handling, or installation methods is not covered by these warranties.”

The full warranty is worth reading, especially if you’re planning to DIY.

The Anderson solid hardwood must be nailed or stapled to the subfloor.

Most Anderson engineered flooring with Aluminum Oxide finish can be installed over radiant heat systems. Some of the floors with Luster Lock are not suitable for it. Double check any flooring you’re considering for its compatibility with radiant heat.

COST

Anderson engineered hardwood flooring starts at about $6.00 per square foot. Most is priced between $8.00 and $12.00 per square foot.

Solid Anderson hardwood cost is $12.00 to $14.00 per square foot.

Note on MSRP: Anderson lists the manufacturer suggested retail price on its site. Most retailers sell Anderson Tuftex hardwood for 10-20% below MSRP.

PRICE COMPARISON

As mentioned at the top, Anderson hardwood prices are definitely higher than many other wood flooring brands. Take a look at this table below to see how Anderson compares with other leading hardwood floors.

Brand	Solid Hardwood, per sq.ft.		Engineered Hardwood, per sq.ft.
Bruce	$3.30 – $9.00	Jasper	$1.50 – $5.00
Blue Ridge	$3.50 – $5.50	Pergo Wood Flooring	$2.90 – $3.50
LM Flooring	N/A	LM Hardwood Flooring	$2.20 – $7.20
Mohawk Solid Wood	$3.50 – $7.00	Mohawk Engineered Wood	$4.50 – $8.50
LifeCore Hardwood	N/A	LifeCore Hardwood	$4.00 – $7.00
Mazama	$3.90 – $7.00	Heritage Mill	$3.50 – $6.25
Mullican Hardwood Flooring	$4.30 – $7.40	Mullican Hardwood Flooring	$4.20 – $5.60
Somerset Wood Flooring	$4.50 – $8.50	Somerset	$6.00 – $8.50
Johnson Hardwood Flooring	$4.40 – $8.99	Johnson Hardwood Flooring	$7.99 – $8.99
Kahrs Hardwood Flooring	N/A	Kahrs Hardwood Flooring	$6.00 – $14.00
Anderson Tuftex	$8.00 – $12.00	Anderson Tuftex	$12.00 – $14.00

MAINTENANCE

If you’re a stickler for maintenance then your flooring, of any kind, will stay beautiful for more years than neglected flooring.

Anderson hardwood floors should be cared for as outlined on their website.

Their maintenance instructions include pretty standard do’s and don’ts for hardwood flooring care:

• Sweep regularly, but not with a vacuum with the beater bar rotating or with dirty vacuum wheels.
• Clean up spills immediately.
• Keep dog claws trimmed.
• Put pads on chair and table legs.
• Never, ever, EVER, wet-mop, or even damp-mop per Anderson’s instructions. Steam mop? LOL. No!

See our Hardwood Floor Care and Maintenance Guide for comprehensive detail.

Anderson makes its own line of hardwood flooring cleaner, but it’s not in the warranty that you have to use its brand. Any cleaner designed for hardwood is OK to use.

CUSTOMER REVIEWS

Anderson hardwood flooring reviews are 90%-plus good.

Rene in Portland is typical of the majority, “I’m really happy with the engineered Anderson Tuftex we installed several years ago. Our climate is damp, but there have been no issues with warping, etc. And it is some beautiful stuff!”

Negatives are few, but Patti88 in Reno said, “The flooring we got was more variable in color than the sample. It’s good looking, there’s just more colors than we anticipated, so it threw off our decorating plan.”

Patti makes a good point. Some lines do have color blends that vary significantly. Anderson is aware of that and rates each flooring for color variation from CV1 (color variation 1 – minimal) to CV3 (significant). The Specifications on each product page show this rating.

What do you think of Anderson hardwood floors? Let us know in the comments below.

About the Author:

Greca Fotopoulos

Greca is the lead style writer at Home Flooring Pros (more), with a BA in Technical Art, she’s focused on flooring trends, flooring ideas, and flooring brand reviews.

“There’s nothing more satisfying than creating a home that you love. The hardest thing about this job is trying not to covet all the great floors I get to review; if I could remodel my home every month, I would!”