When looking to buy timber flooring, some brands can appear cheaper than others - one factor that can greatly affect price (aside from the finish type etc) is the lengths and shorts percentage supplied. Often consumers are unaware of this which can result in them choosing a cheaper product with a lot of shorter lengths.
Shorts, or nested lengths, are a standard occurrence with timber flooring. When you see a timber flooring product that says it comes in 'xyz' lengths, a percentage of that amount is almost always 'shorts' or 'nested'. These terms refer to short boards that are included within the packs of full length boards. These will typically be in the format of 1/3+2/3, ½+½ or 1/3+1/3+1/3 of normal full length boards. These 'shorts' are usually offcuts from when the longer boards are cut to size and are included to minimize the wastage of the timber. A small percentage of shorts is useful for applications such as starting and finishing rows, in doorway thresholds, and in smaller areas such as wardrobes, cupboards and pantries etc.
Suppliers that provide shorter planks and a more nested lengths will usually charge less for their product than those who supply longer planks and less nested lengths, as it costs less to provide shorter planks. Consumers can be caught out when they opt for the cheaper product without realizing that it has such a high percentage of shorts.
At Forte most of our timber flooring range has around 17-25% shorts, although some of our prime grade products do include up to 33% shorts due to that grade being harder to source. Some other suppliers in New Zealand are supplying as much as 50% shorts - with that percentage of shorter lengths it would usually be quite noticeable throughout the floor once installed and is not likely to look as aesthetically pleasing as it would have with more long planks. So, to avoid having an over-abundance of short boards in your floor always check the shorts (aka nested lengths) percentage with your supplier before you buy!