Looking for Opinions on wood floor vs tile

spacecadet · #1 Oct 30, '05, 5:59 pm

we want to get rid of our carpet. i hate carpet, especially with a pet and a child. it just feel like it is never really clean. we want to get wood floors. we are under the impression that laminate and pergo is not as good as an investment and not as durable so we want real hardwood.

one person at our condo suggested getting tile instead because if a neighbor has a water leak into our place it will damage the floor. another neighbor said that has hardly ever happened and not to worry about it. we do have a fire sprinkler system, but it has never gone off in 7 years. i think tile grout is nasty and tile chips too so i really want wood. we have tile in kitchen/bathrooms and it hasn't held up well.

i'd love to here any and all opinions

DJgang · #2 Oct 30, '05, 6:12 pm

I highly recommend hard wood floors.

However, make sure that the finish on your hard wood is NOT wax. Mine are and I have a difficult time keeping them clean. I have to use "oil" to really get them clean.

We are planning on adding on in the next few years. I'm going to replace all my down stairs in finish hard wood. Right now I have hard wood in the dining and living area. Vinyl in the kitchen and bathroom. Carpet in the bedroom. I probably will install that kind that is already finished, like Bruce Floors, so that I can just damp mop and go!

Is you foundation concrete?

I wouldn't worry about water,etc...that's what insurance is for should something happen!

Karin · #3 Oct 30, '05, 6:13 pm

We have wood floors (oak) throughout our house (kitchen, bedrooms, living and dining rooms and staircases) except for the bathrooms that are tiled.

I LOVE them !! So easy to take care of...a quick sweep, and a light damp mop and they are done! I have two kids and two cats and these are the best...when they make a mess 1,2,3 it is clean. Another perk with real wood floors is that if the finish starts to go a sanding and resealing and they are as good as new!

In regards to water damage from a neighbors leaking pipes...if it ever did occur your home owners insurance should cover teh cost of repairs to the floors.

I do not know much about Prego flooring other than it looks "fake" to me .
Tile floors outside of the bathroom I do not know about...but the grout lines etc. would bother me especially if they where all over the house!

spacecadet · #4 Oct 30, '05, 6:31 pm

i'm pretty sure our foundation is concrete.

another question: how are engineered wood floors? do they hold up? i don't think we can afford solid wood

Joe Kelley · #5 Oct 30, '05, 6:35 pm

We have stone in the kitchen. It removes all worry about whether something will bread when you drop it. It always explodes into several thousand pieces.

maggieodae · #6 Oct 30, '05, 6:37 pm

I love wood floors, and I love Dogs...Unfortunately, the two do not mix well. Our daughter found that to be true also. They built a house 5 years ago, and the dogs did a real number on their wood floors. The had to have them redone, Expensive, so they could sell the house. They just built a new house and have gougeous flagsone tile in the upstairs. Downstairs, they have a newer type of carpet, which is lovely, and seems more durable than most. But of course, it all cost a fourtune.

If you go for wood, be sure it is quality and make sure it is laid in the proper temp. That was another problem with the kid's wood floor at the other house. It started to curl slightly on the top, as it was not properly laid.

We laid wood floors in our old house, and it was beautiful, but again, the dog we had was rough on it.

We had to have it redone after only three years.

spacecadet · #7 Oct 30, '05, 6:45 pm

well, no dogs here just a cat, so that i don't need to worry about

is it better to have the wood laid during fall then, and not humid weather? if so this is a good time to do it

maggieodae · #8 Oct 30, '05, 6:58 pm

Quote:

Originally Posted by spacecadet

well, no dogs here just a cat, so that i don't need to worry about

is it better to have the wood laid during fall then, and not humid weather? if so this is a good time to do it

Well, I would say Fall might be better, but then I am no expert.

Here is a good article for you.

When Water and Wood Combine

The ideal moisture content for flooring installation can vary from an extreme of 4 to 18 percent, depending on the wood species, the geographic location of the end product and time of year. Most oak flooring, for example, is milled at 6 to 9 percent. Before installation, solid wood flooring should be acclimated to the area in which it is to be used, then tested with a moisture meter to ensure the proper moisture content.

ack · #9 Oct 30, '05, 7:02 pm

If you have animals, keep in mind that animal pee can do awful things (discoloration) to hardwood floors with certain types of finishing if it's allowed to soak in for a few hours. Be sure to consider that...

Courtneyjo · #10 Oct 30, '05, 7:40 pm

Check out the web sites for one of the large hardware store chains. They have information on wood vs laminate vs engineered wood. If I recall you cannot put hardwood on a concrete subfloor, but you can put engineered hardwood or laminate on it.

We bought laminate to do a bedroom that is not heavily used and engineered hardwood to do another that is used more. We plan to do this in the Spring. You can lay flooring in any season as long as it has acclimated to the room and you leave enough room for expansion.

I would not do tile. It is hard and cold. Wood and laminate will scratch if you have big dogs. The floors are scratch-resistent, not scratch-proof. They clean up with a swiffer for dusting, and spray cleaner if cleaning is needed. Never use soap or water or wax. Water that stands on laminate for a long time will warp it.

After doing Internet research, we looked at Home Depot, Lowe's, and also attended a big home show to talk to flooring salespeople. The best thing we did was take a class on floor installation at Home Depot. Lowe's offers these too. The instructor was the salesman. He was retired from his own business where he installed floors for thirty years. He told us that the size gap that the manufacturer recommended at the walls wasn't enough for this climate, that it really needed to be twice as much. Lots of little hints and advice. I took lots of notes and made little drawings. There was no pressure to buy.

Take your time to do your homework, look at colors and prices. You'll find what's right for you.

carol marie · #11 Oct 30, '05, 7:55 pm

When we lived in Florida, we had ceramic tile throughout our home. It was very pretty - large squares w/ a very neutral grout - easy to keep clean (vinegar water) but COLD all the time. If you live in a cooler climate, I would not reccomend tile. The grout wasn't such an issue though because they have special sealers that keep it pretty clean.

Our home now (in Illiniois) has hardwood (oak) floors throughout. They are beutiful and not nearly as cold as tile. We have a dog & kids and we just had the floor resanded after 10 years. They didn't look all that bad before, but we did some remodeling so we figured why not. (By the way..the resanding of floors is the dustiest mess!!! Know that up front)

I personally am much happier with the wood vs. the tile. But I like BOTH about a 1,000 times more than carpet.

Island Oak · #12 Oct 30, '05, 10:37 pm

Have lived with both and like aspects of both...but one key question is how much time will you spend on your feet on the tiled area? If it is substantial, I'd go for wood. Tile can be murder on your joints, feet, even lower back, etc., if you spend hours standing on it. (and no, I'm not 83 or in poor health/physical condition). If it will be a space where you have just occasional walk-throughs, this is probably not an issue.

**puzzleannie** · #13 Oct 31, '05, 2:34 am

built new house with NO carpet, ceramic tile, I love it. wood not good for our climate. However if you have kids and are on your feed a lot get treated wood. We had Bruce wood floors in several areas of past house and I loved it. joins between boards were tight so dust did not get in there, floor was sealed, Bruce has the proper cleaners. If you have large dust-catching mats at the entrances you will eliminate most of the grit that comes in and damages floors (these can be hosed down in driveway to clean--essential if you live where snow and salt are a problem).

There is also vinyl flooring that looks like wood, but I don't like fake, but would have no problem putting resilient flooring throughout as well in a neutral shade and pattern.

paramedicgirl · #14 Oct 31, '05, 5:29 am

Quote:

Originally Posted by spacecadet

i'm pretty sure our foundation is concrete.

another question: how are engineered wood floors? do they hold up? i don't think we can afford solid wood

We have engineered hardwood floors (Lyptus downstairs and oak upstairs). They are beautiful. They are wax free and easy to clean. We had to go with engineered hardwood because we have an in floor heating system.

We have marble tile in the kitchens and bathrooms, and if you have an in floor heat system like we do, tile floors are wonderfully warm.