DuChateau Flooring Review | Home Flooring Pros

February 22, 2023, by: Greca Fotopoulos

DuChateau Flooring is primarily known for its exceptional wood flooring, but does also produce top of the line luxury vinyl plank flooring. In our overview of Duchateau we will look at both types of flooring so feel free to use our quick links to zip to the flooring option of your choice.

WHAT IS DUCHATEAU FLOORING?

DuChateau Flooring has manufactured high-end, contemporary flooring in both engineered hardwood and luxury vinyl planks since 2006.  Their website states that they look to architecture, design, fashion and the beauty of nature for inspiration. All of the flooring is manufactured at the DuChateau California workshop.

It’s clear from the unique treatments and wood finished that DuChateau flooring isn’t interested in being like everyone else. If you’re on a quest for gorgeous, distinct flooring even at a higher cost, keep reading.

DUCHATEAU ENGINEERED HARDWOOD

OPTIONS AND STYLES

DuChateau Flooring offers engineered hardwood featuring European Oak (click here for more about oak flooring) in a variety of options in 12 collections.  All of the flooring is finished with a non-toxic hard-wax oil treatment made from natural ingredients including linseed and sunflower oils and beeswax. The treatment provides a protective matte finish, repelling moisture and maintaining the natural look and feel of wood.

DuChateau also uses unique surface treatments including distressing, hand sculpting, wire brushing, torching, smoke fuming and carbonizing to bring out the grain and color variations in the wood and to create rich texturing.

Let’s look at several of the collections to see what’s available.

The Atelier Series features flooring with high-variation planking.  DuChateau uses safe, chemically reactive processes to bring out the natural characteristics within the wood. All of the flooring in the Atelier collection is treated with oil, rather than finished with urethane, to create a natural matte which becomes richer in color and develops a natural patina as it ages. Keep that in mind – and if you’ll be disappointed if the wood darkens, choose hardwood sealed with polyurethane.

Additionally, some Atelier Series planks are wire brushed, planed and torched. Of Burnt Oak, DuChateau says, “The name is a direct description of how this floor is produced. After an aggressive torching of the raw European Oak material, each plank is then cooled with water.” It’s worth a look.

The planks are available in robust widths of 8” and 9.5”, lengths of 96.5”, with a  5/8” thickness. Colors cover the spectrum from the bright white of Driftwood White, which is coated with a white pigment while allowing the grain to remain visible, to the almost black of Diablo. There are also natural tones, browns, and grays to choose from.  Some of the floors are available in random widths and lengths, chevron, and herringbone patterns.

On to the Chateau Collection by DuChateau. If you want flooring that is a little more predictable, this is a great choice. It’s available in 11 color choices, features a traditional smooth wood flooring look with low variation tones throughout the planking.

Colors include the natural oak tone of Basal, the honey hue of Bravone, the subtle gray of Domenico and the cool, deep brown of Windsor. The planks are 7.5” wide and 75” to 84.5” long. Plank variation makes it easier to avoid H-pattern seams and step seams.

The Strata Collection features unique, multi-color flooring. Fossil, offers blue, gray and brown tones and Urth features brown and black tones. There are also 4 choices of browns and grays. All planks are 7.5” wide by 74.5” long.

Three of the more unique series are the Makerlab Edition with 3” wide planks in random lengths up to 72” and available in 4 high variation colors, such as Joist, featuring a variety of mid to dark browns. There’s also the Palais collection offering parquet flooring in 36” squares and 6 color choices, from natural to dark browns, and gray. The Varacio collection features random plank widths of 4”, 5”, and 7.5” throughout the floor and is available in 3 shades of brown.

PROS AND CONS

Advantages:

Unique Selection: If you are interested in a high end, designer look, DuChateau has a wide selection of choices, many with unique styles, surface treatments, and finishes.

Construction: DuChateau engineered floors are made with a multi-layer construction including a surface wax layer and a base wax layer, the actual hardwood wear layer, a substrate core layer, and a substrate base layer all glued together to create a durable, stable product. The materials, as well as the glues, are all formaldehyde free.

Green: All DuChateau hardwood flooring is certified through the Forest Stewardship Council and is Lacey Act compliant. DuChateau is a partner of Global Relief and a member of the U.S. Green Building Council with their flooring qualifying for LEED credits.

DuGood Mission: DuChateau will plant one tree for every hardwood floor sold, with a portion planted in areas impacted by the California wildfires. They are also partnering with the National Forest Foundation and contribute to their effort to plant 50 million trees by 2023.

Warranty: All of DuChateau’s hardwood floors, for residential use, are covered by a 25 year surface wear warranty that states that the wood layer will not wear through or separate from the base layer, provided the floor has been properly installed and maintained.

Disadvantages:

Limited Wood Choices: Most of DuChateau’s floors are made with European Oak, so there are no exotic species included in the collections.

Can’t Be Refinished As Many Times: Being engineered, the wood layer of the flooring is not as thick as solid hardwood.

PRICE – HOW MUCH DOES DUCHATEAU FLOORING COST?

Sampling other brands, low-end engineered hardwood will cost about $4 to $6 per sq. ft., high-end, or exotic woods, can run $9 to $16 per sq. ft.

DuChateau’s flooring averages between $10 and $16 per sq. ft., depending on the collection. So, DuChateau’s prices run high average to high-end.

Take a look at our wood floor price comparison table to get a clearer idea.

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 Max	$2.99 – $4.99
LM Flooring	N/A	LM Flooring	$2.20 – $7.20
Mohawk TecWood	$3.50 – $7.00	Mohawk SolidWood	$4.50 – $8.50
LifeCore	N/A	LifeCore	$4.00 – $7.00
Mullican	$4.30 – $7.40	Mullican	$4.20 – $5.60
Johnson Hardwood	$4.40 – $8.99	Johnson Hardwood	$7.99 – $8.99
Somerset	$4.50 – $8.50	Somerset	$6.00 – $8.50
Kahrs	N/A	Kahrs Hardwood	$6.00 – $14.00
Anderson Tuftex	$8.00 – $12.00	Anderson Tuftex	$12.00 – $14.00
Duchateau	$10.00 – $16.00	DuChateau	N/A

CARE AND MAINTENANCE

The DuChateau website features a variety of videos on cleaning and maintaining their flooring. The floors should be cleaned often by sweeping, do not use vacuums with beater bars or rotary brushes, and then can be damp mopped. DuChateau also sells their own cleaning products including oils for maintaining and refurbishing the flooring.

CUSTOMER REVIEWS

Rocio writes that he has had the flooring for many years and even with children, the floors look as good as when they were installed and that they are super easy to maintain.

Lainie writes that she lives on a farm and has 2 children yet after a year, the floors still look stunning.

While most of the reviews are positive, some customers have complained of the floors creating slivers. Other criticism relates to problems common to all wood flooring, such as scratches and dents.

DUCHATEAU LUXURY VINYL PLANKS

DuChateau offers luxury vinyl flooring that is just as distinctive and mimics the look of hardwood in a variety of choices through their 3 collections. Below we look at the specifics of the collections in floating and glue-down options.

OPTIONS AND STYLES

Luxetech 20, the largest collection, is a floating/click installation material. It is finished with a ceramic reinforced urethane coating for toughness, and is embossed in register (EIR) to create a natural-feel wood grain. Plank widths are either 7” wide by 48” long or 9” wide by 60” long. There are 22 color choices including the natural aged look of Gillion, the warm brown Delacio, gray/brown Tage and the almost black Loreto. There are also many brown and gray hues.

The Sovereign Collection, featuring glue down installation, provides the thickest wear layer at .7mm, ideal for heavy traffic areas. Plank sizes are either 7” wide by 48” long or 9.25” wide by 59” long. The Sovereign collection is available in 6 high variation colors including Hurst, with rich browns and grays, Temson with medium browns, blues, and grays, and Afton which includes light tones of gray, brown, and green.

The Vinyl Deluxe Classic Collection offers the wood visuals found in their Signature hardwood collection. This collection has a .55mm wear layer and a urethane ceramic beaded coating, with planking at 7” wide and 48” long. Vinyl Deluxe Classic is available in 13 colors ranging from almost white Arctic, to natural and rich browns and grays. Nile is nearly black.

DuChateau designed the Vinyl Deluxe Classic to match the wood Signature collections to allow for extending the look of your hardwood flooring into high-moisture areas – bathrooms, laundry, or mudrooms.

All DuChateau vinyl flooring is Floorscore certified meaning they have low VOC emissions.

PROS AND CONS

Advantages:

Selection: You’ll find several floors that appeal to you among DuChateau’s 40 LVP styles. The wide planks create a more contemporary look than traditional vinyl. Any color you want is available.

Authentic Appearance: DuChateau states that their luxury vinyl perfectly emulates the look and feel of wood through their proprietary, high variation printing technology. There are fewer pattern repeats. Their use of print films is inspired by European hardwood with bold character.

Durable Construction: DuChateau luxury vinyl flooring is made with a 5-layer construction including some of the thickest wear layers available in luxury vinyl. They also use a WPC (wood plastic composite) core which is 100% waterproof.

Disadvantages:

Price, as discussed next.

DUCHATEAU LUXURY VINYL COST

DuChateau luxury vinyl flooring, like its quality and style, is high end. The average market cost is $3 to $8 per sq. ft. for other brands. DuChateau prices range from $6 to $14 per sq. ft. for materials.

Once again, a quick glance at the comparison price table below will show you that DuChateau produces the most expensive EVP vinyl flooring on the market.

Brand	Price per square foot
MSI	$1.60 – $3.50
Islander	$1.70 – $3.85
Smartcore	$2.00 – $3.70
NuCore	$2.35 – $3.80
Congoleum Triversa	$2.50 – $3.50
LifeProof	$2.79 – $4.39
Armstrong Luxe Rigid Core	$2.79 – $4.39
Mannington Adura Flex	$3.00 – $3.50
Mohawk SolidTech	$3.50 – $6.25
Mannington Adura Rigid	$3.60 – $4.60
Mannington Adura Max & MaxAPEX	$3.00 – $6.00
Pergo Extreme	$3.99 – $5.99
COREtec Pro	$3.80 – $7.99
Karndean Korlok	$4.50 – $7.00
Armstrong Pryzm	$4.90 – $8.00
DuChateau LVT	$6.00 – $14.00

CARE AND MAINTENANCE

Nothing out of the ordinary is required.

DuChateau vinyl floors are easy to clean by sweeping regularly and damp mopping. Use a floor cleaner that is compatible with vinyl flooring.  Do not allow excess water to remain on floors. Floors should be cleaned often to keep dust and dirt from dulling the finish.

Mats or rugs with latex backing should be placed at entry ways and areas with high traffic. Floor protectors should be used under heavy furniture to prevent indentations and heavy furniture should not be pushed across the flooring.

CUSTOMER REVIEWS

There does seem to be mixed reviews with the most common negative being that the floors are easily scratched.

Whit writes that their small dog’s nails and small pebbles cause scratches in the flooring.

Denise writes that they’ve installed the product in their laundry and mudrooms and after 5 months, it still looks new.

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!”