- What is hardwood?
Hardwood includes such trees as oak, ash, pine and others. Hardwood is very durable and stronger compared to clear boards, veneers, laminates and other materials. Nordic Hardwood Factory uses natural, real hardwood, which also creates high quality and durability for nhf.lv products. Hardwood not only gives the room sophistication and chic look, but also creates a cozy and warm atmosphere.
We offer various hardwoods – oak, ash, pine and others.
nhf.lv offers to make hardwood doors with glass or hardwood facades, thus giving the room sophistication. One of the biggest advantages of hardwood products is that it can be restored, sanded and replaced with rotten parts many times. Hardwood is an ecological and environmentally friendly product. The price of hardwood may seem high at first, but it pays off in the long run. No wonder that grandfathers give their sons oak or other hardwood houses, doors, tables or other hardwood products. While other products have a visible tear off, hardwood products tear off in a less visible way and are more durable if handled, cared for and maintained properly.
Since 2000, nhf.lv craftsmen have been manufacturing unique interior and exterior doors, furniture, kitchen tables, doors and other products that decorate their houses and apartments. All our works are made accordingly to individual size, color, design and fittings. All this is coordinated and selected by designers according to the specific wishes, capabilities and needs of each client. Nordic Hardwood Factory manufactures not only interior doors, but also insulated exterior doors, kitchens, tables, panels, fences, curved panels and other hardwood products. We use only certified trees that have been processed and properly stored so that they are long-lasting and qualitatively later converted into the product of your choice. The Nordic Hardwood Factory team creates not only sophisticated hardwood products, but also functional ones.
2. What includes hardwood doors?
Hardwood doors are natural wood doors consisting of oak, pine, ash or other trees. Such doors do not use particle board, veneer, plywood, joinery board or oriented strand board. Today, technology is highly advanced, giving metals, plastics and other substances the texture, color and appearance of wood, even though they are not natural wood materials and are not processed by carpenters.
3. How to determine if the product you purchased is hardwood?
Follow the signs below if you are not sure that the product is made of real wood:
- Hardwood furniture is very heavy. If the product is large, such as a door, it is practically impossible for one person to lift. If, however, the product can be easily moved, it is possible that only the top layer is some glued wood, but in fact there is a chipboard or similar inside.
- Check sides / edges and fastenings. If the fastener is the so-called ‘swallowtail’, where the edge of the wood product is exposed and the fibre and cut edge of the wood can be easily seen, then it is a wood product. It is very difficult to create a ‘swallow tail’ attachment if it is not a real tree, but with the advancement of technology, it also starts to be ‘processed’, so be careful not to get an artificial product.
- If a fibre and uneven shape is visible, most likely it is a real tree. Of course, it is necessary to look at whether the wood has not been treated with, for example, varnish, paint, epoxy or similar, thus reducing the possibility of determining the naturalness of the wood. If the pattern appears to be repetitive, the surface is perfectly smooth and the texture does not express, it is probably veneer or similar. If the fibre is not visible at all, it is most likely a laminate.
- Carved ornaments, drawings or patterns are only possible for natural wood. For other products, such as veneer, laminate, plywood, it is almost impossible to scrape unless laser cutting, but this is another type of treatment.
- Due to the difficult extraction, hardwood products will always be more expensive, but you are more likely to be able to pass it on to future generations if you carefully maintain and care for it.
4. What is the most durable wood material?
The most durable material directly from wood is Oak. Its properties are unique. Oak tree has always been a symbol of knowledge, strength and resistance. Its strength has been written about in many books. By its nature, oak, if properly cared for and maintained, serves from generation to generation. Oak doors, tables, chairs, kitchens and other furniture are a great addition to your home, not only in terms of durability, but also as a design element.
5. Types of hardwood doors – interior doors, exterior doors?
Doors fall into two major categories – interior doors and exterior doors.
Exterior doors are those that protect a house, apartment or office from the weather and unwanted guests of the outside environment, at the same time it will decorate the exterior of the house and distinguish it from others. We usually recommend insulating exterior doors to keep the home economical and keep the warmth of the house inside. The layout, design and color of the panels depend on each customer individually. At Nordic Hardwood Factory carpentry we can design and produce doors based on your desires and preferences.
Interior doors are those doors that can serve as a room enclosure, as a windbreak or as additional protection against thieves. Interior doors can be with double-glazed windows, wooden fillings or some other design element. We make each door in our carpentry in Riga according to individual wishes, design and size, so they are unique. Every door is different, whether it is varnished, painted or otherwise treated in one technique, because each wood is unique and no one will have the same fiber, color or tone. Everything can change over time and depending on how the door will be cared for, maintained and where it will be, for example in direct sunlight or indoors and in the basement, the varnish, color or tone can change and is not predictable because every tree is unique.
6. When choosing the most suitable door, various aspects must be taken into account:
- Do the doors need to be insulated?
- Do interior doors need sound insulation?
- Do they have to be moisture resistant when separating the bathroom?
- Do the doors need special fittings?
- Or any other aspect you determine to be guided by.
7. Which is the best security system for doors?
Nordic Hardwood Factory team always recommends careful consideration of safety aspects. For exterior doors, we recommend choosing the appropriate fittings so that the house is safer and unwanted guests cannot enter the property.
Often people think that metal doors are the safest, but this is not true – it is the fittings that determine the possible burglary of the door to allow thieves to enter and exit. The best way to avoid thieves is to buy a door with mechanical security. The sash must be resistant to vertical and horizontal mechanical action as well as strong fittings.
Metal doors mostly use simple locks, so unwanted guests can easily open the door with a screwdriver or drill. The basic principle of thieves is to get in as quietly and as quickly as possible. In very rare cases, thieves try to cut or slam the door, as this attracts unnecessary attention and creates a sound.
Even if you choose a manufacturer of cheap and little-known fittings for the highest quality doors, there is a great chance that unwanted guests will easily enter through them.
8. What is basic criteria for good and secure fittings:
- Requires a complicated cylinder mechanism, making it more difficult to unlock.
- The lock arrow must ensure maximum safety. The recommended minimum arrow length should be 20mm.
- The cylinder must not be removed easily and quickly, otherwise the lock will no longer be relevant.
- It is very difficult to make copies of a quality key and only manufacturers can make a copy of the lock.
- Secure hinges – their number depends on the weight of the door, not the dimensions. In addition to safety, we recommend installing lifting pins that are installed near the hinges.
Hardwood doors with quality fittings are a great choice from a safety point of view. It will be difficult for a thief to break in if he wants to break in, but if there is ever a fire or other accident in the house, the emergency services can break in and enter, saving your life. Wood doors can be cut, which will make a lot of noise that thieves will not use, as they will pay too much attention to themselves, but doctors, police officers or firefighters will be able to enter.
nhf.lv recommends using professionals who will install the door, because during the installation it is possible to damage the doors, fittings or the room in which it is to be installed. If any of the parts are damaged, the product warranty will not take place and safety of your home may be affected. Nordic Hardwood Factory team also offers installation on site, mention it to our staff, when ordering our hardwood doors.
However, if you choose to assemble the door yourself, leave it as the final process of renovation, because, for example, an unfinished floor may leave a large gap at the bottom or, conversely, the door may not close because you have not fully calculated the correct heights. Even if painting, tiling or similar work remains, they can also cause difficulties in further operation.
9. What are advantages of hardwood?
(a) High strength material
Hardwood as a material is strong. It can be used not only as interior and exterior doors, but also in kitchens, table tops, wall panels, furniture and other products. Hardwood natural fiber allows it to be used in various ways. Properly treated and maintained, wood can withstand a variety of weather conditions, high pressures and weights before any damage occurs.
b) Each tree is unique
As you know, each natural wood is unique in its appearance and structure, thus giving each furniture, door, kitchen and surface a unique design. Wooden products are also fantastic in that they fit not only in a classic style home, but also in a modern one.
c) Long-lasting — just as beautiful
One of the best features of hardwood is its sustainable life. Not only a new hardwood door, kitchen or other product look beautiful, but also after many years of being well maintained and cared for, it will look irresistible. Natural wood is also relatively easy to restore, so if there is a shade, bouquet or similar, then it can be renewed to obtain the previous appearance. Over the years, a wooden door, kitchen, surface or something else will gain even more importance and give it a more design element in the room.
d) A timeless design element
Hardwood products look stunning in almost any room and color combination. The natural textures and feelings of the wood are preserved, which will never leave the style. Although fashion trends are changing, wood never goes out of fashion. It can be repainted, varnished or otherwise treated, but the wooden elements remain anyway.
e) Always perfect
If any gaps, cracks or other deformation occur over time, for hardwood products these things can be restored. The possibilities depend on the problem and the intention you want to achieve. Hardwood can be sanded, replaced with damaged parts, filled with epoxy or other options. Repairing things like laminate, stone, metal, aluminum or others is much more complicated and expensive.
10. Which is the right and which is the left door swing?
Often customers confuse the door swing sides, because they do not really understand how to understand which is the right, but which is the left door swing.
The right hand door, with the door opening away from yourself, the door hinges must be on the right, while the door handle must be on the left. In this case, the door can be opened with the right hand.
In contrast, when the left swing door opening away from yourself, the hinges must be on the left and the handle on the right. In this case, the door can be opened with your left hand.
The illustration is below.
