Herringbone hybrid flooring

Herringbone hybrid flooring, also called hybrid herringbone flooring, is hybrid flooring made as short planks. The planks are laid in a zig-zag pattern, and each plank meets the next one at a right angle. The floor has the pattern of a classic parquetry floor and planks that click together. In November 2026 we read the suppliers' own pages and documents for 8 patterned hybrid ranges sold in Australia. Seven were herringbone ranges and one was a chevron range. A range is one product line from one supplier.

Herringbone, chevron and parquetry

• Herringbone. The planks are rectangles. The end of one plank meets the side of the next plank. The pattern is a stepped zig-zag.
• Chevron. The ends of the planks are cut at an angle. Two planks meet end to end and make a V shape.
• Parquetry. This is the general name for a floor laid in a pattern from small pieces. Herringbone is one parquetry pattern. One supplier calls its herringbone hybrid range parquetry, and people also search for hybrid parquetry flooring.

Herringbone plank sizes

A herringbone plank is much shorter than a normal hybrid plank.

• In the 7 herringbone ranges, a plank was from 600 to 750 mm long and from 120 to 150 mm wide.
• A normal plank was from 1,200 to 1,842 mm long. That is what we found on 85 normal plank ranges where the supplier stated a size.

A smaller plank makes a finer pattern. A larger plank makes a bolder one.

Thickness, wear layer and underlay

These are the numbers on the 8 patterned ranges.

• Total thickness: from 6 to 9 mm. Four of the 8 ranges were 9 mm.
• Wear layer: stated on 7 ranges. It was 0.5 mm on 6 ranges and 0.55 mm on 1 range. The wear layer is the clear layer on top that takes the wear.
• Attached underlay: stated on 7 ranges. Where the supplier gave its thickness, it was from 1 to 2 mm. The attached underlay is a thin soft layer fixed under the plank.

A and B planks, or one plank for both sides

Some herringbone floors come as two kinds of plank. They are called left and right planks, or A and B planks. One kind is the mirror picture of the other, and the pattern needs both. Other herringbone floors use one kind of plank for both sides.

This is what the documents of the 7 herringbone ranges state.

• 2 ranges come as two kinds of plank. For one of them, the supplier states that a pack holds 6 left planks and 6 right planks. It recommends sorting the planks into two piles before laying.
• 2 ranges use one kind of plank for both sides.
• For 3 ranges, the documents we read did not say.

Ask which kind a range is before you order. With two kinds of plank, a spare plank only fits one side of the pattern.

Chevron hybrid flooring

One of the 8 ranges was a chevron range. Its brochure states these facts.

• A board is 305 mm wide, about 718 mm long and 9 mm thick.
• The wear layer is 0.5 mm.
• It is laid as a floating floor.
• The largest floor without a break is 8 m by 20 m.
• It comes in 8 colours.

The brochure we read gives no laying steps. Ask the supplier for the installation instructions before you order a chevron floor.

Herringbone colours

Patterned ranges had fewer colours than most normal plank ranges. Each of the 8 ranges had from 4 to 8 colours, and 4 of them had 6 colours. In our wider reading of 111 hybrid ranges, a range most often had 10 colours.

Seven of the 8 ranges had both a Blackbutt colour and a Spotted Gum colour. These are two Australian timber names.

The same colour names also appear on normal planks. For each of the 7 herringbone ranges, the same supplier had a normal plank range with a colour of the same name. The same name does not prove the same picture or the same thickness. If you want herringbone in one room and normal planks in the next, ask the supplier if the two are made to match.

How a herringbone hybrid floor is laid

This is what the suppliers' documents state for the 8 ranges.

• A floating floor. A floating floor is not glued or nailed down. The planks click together and rest on the subfloor, which is the floor under your new floor. The documents of 7 of the 8 ranges describe a floating floor. For 4 ranges, they state in plain words that the floor must not be glued or fixed in place. For the eighth range, the documents we read had no laying instructions.
• Start from the middle. For 4 ranges, the instructions start the pattern from the centre of the room.
• Who lays it. For 3 ranges, the supplier states that the floor should be laid by a professional or qualified installer. One of them states that it needs a high degree of technical skill. For 1 range, the supplier states that many people lay its herringbone floor themselves.
• More cuts. In a herringbone floor every wall meets the pattern at an angle. So more planks are cut, and more cut pieces are left over. One supplier states 10 to 15 per cent extra for its herringbone floor. A second supplier states 20 to 25 per cent extra for chevron and herringbone floors in its general instructions. Ask your supplier or installer how much extra to order.
• Large rooms. Suppliers state the largest floor that may be laid without a break. A break is a small gap in the floor, covered by a strip. One herringbone range states 15 m by 15 m. One more supplier states 10 m by 10 m for its herringbone floor. For two of its normal plank ranges it states 15 m by 15 m. So check this number for a large room.

The subfloor must be flat, dry and solid for any hybrid floor. The installation instructions of your floor state how flat it must be.