ᐅ Which types of flooring are recommended for single-family homes? What does the building expert community suggest?
Created on: 14 Sep 2020 07:43
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exto1791
Hello everyone,
We are slowly starting to consider the flooring for our planned single-family house and are still completely undecided.
We have an open-plan living-dining area with a kitchen. We believe that a seamless floor transition looks nicer than separating the kitchen from the living/dining area. For this reason, we want to have a uniform floor covering throughout.
Now the question: vinyl or tiles? We have already read about the pros and cons, but maybe we can get some first-hand tips or tricks here that might put some of the disadvantages into a more positive perspective?
1. Question: Is vinyl really safe to use in the kitchen? Is vinyl fully waterproof? How does vinyl flooring react if, for example, a knife slips from my hand and falls on the floor? Will I get immediate dents or marks? Are there vinyl floors that are significantly more resistant?
2. Question: How does vinyl respond to sunlight? Since we will have several large glass fronts in our living-dining area, vinyl "technically" seems to be excluded... Does vinyl actually deform? Is it true that vinyl, like parquet, fades significantly in sunlight?
3. Question: Is vinyl really only suitable for 10-20 years? What happens afterward? Do I have to replace the vinyl, or can it be refurbished or maintained?
--> We are considering tiling the entire area because then we would be "done," have a robust floor that works perfectly with underfloor heating, is simple, and very resistant to sun/fading/stains/impacts. We think generally that you can’t go wrong with tiles.
However, I see the problem that the tiles will likely stay in place for a lifetime, and I may not want or be able to replace them later due to the high effort involved. Also, any chip or damage to a tile will be visible for life since I can’t quickly repair it (true, vinyl also can’t be easily repaired, but I could replace the floor after 15-20 years). Another downside is cost. Tiles are generally more expensive, and I wouldn’t be able to install them myself (I don’t feel confident with tiles but feel okay with vinyl), so we are wondering what is best for us.
What flooring have you installed in your living/dining areas? What good or bad experiences have you had?
Now about the upper rooms:
1 bedroom and 2 kids’ rooms: vinyl/parquet/cork/laminate?
We are familiar with the pros and cons here as well. Parquet is "technically" out of the question because it is very expensive (is there good parquet for around 30€ (about $33)?). Opinions on vinyl are divided... We also have clear concerns (especially in the kids’ rooms) regarding plastic flooring... Are they really completely safe and non-toxic nowadays? If I pay attention to this, can I safely choose vinyl for the kids’ rooms? The kids’ rooms should be "good and affordable" above all. Cork might be an option? Laminate is somehow excluded because it is very noisy and offers no advantages over cork or vinyl.
Is parquet sensible for the bedroom? Here there is no fading, parquet is durable, and sunlight is limited. Very durable and might make the bedroom more visually appealing. What do you think?
We are open to any suggestions.
Where did you buy your flooring? From a hardware store? A specialist dealer? Are there recommendations, including manufacturers or models?
We are slowly starting to consider the flooring for our planned single-family house and are still completely undecided.
We have an open-plan living-dining area with a kitchen. We believe that a seamless floor transition looks nicer than separating the kitchen from the living/dining area. For this reason, we want to have a uniform floor covering throughout.
Now the question: vinyl or tiles? We have already read about the pros and cons, but maybe we can get some first-hand tips or tricks here that might put some of the disadvantages into a more positive perspective?
1. Question: Is vinyl really safe to use in the kitchen? Is vinyl fully waterproof? How does vinyl flooring react if, for example, a knife slips from my hand and falls on the floor? Will I get immediate dents or marks? Are there vinyl floors that are significantly more resistant?
2. Question: How does vinyl respond to sunlight? Since we will have several large glass fronts in our living-dining area, vinyl "technically" seems to be excluded... Does vinyl actually deform? Is it true that vinyl, like parquet, fades significantly in sunlight?
3. Question: Is vinyl really only suitable for 10-20 years? What happens afterward? Do I have to replace the vinyl, or can it be refurbished or maintained?
--> We are considering tiling the entire area because then we would be "done," have a robust floor that works perfectly with underfloor heating, is simple, and very resistant to sun/fading/stains/impacts. We think generally that you can’t go wrong with tiles.
However, I see the problem that the tiles will likely stay in place for a lifetime, and I may not want or be able to replace them later due to the high effort involved. Also, any chip or damage to a tile will be visible for life since I can’t quickly repair it (true, vinyl also can’t be easily repaired, but I could replace the floor after 15-20 years). Another downside is cost. Tiles are generally more expensive, and I wouldn’t be able to install them myself (I don’t feel confident with tiles but feel okay with vinyl), so we are wondering what is best for us.
What flooring have you installed in your living/dining areas? What good or bad experiences have you had?
Now about the upper rooms:
1 bedroom and 2 kids’ rooms: vinyl/parquet/cork/laminate?
We are familiar with the pros and cons here as well. Parquet is "technically" out of the question because it is very expensive (is there good parquet for around 30€ (about $33)?). Opinions on vinyl are divided... We also have clear concerns (especially in the kids’ rooms) regarding plastic flooring... Are they really completely safe and non-toxic nowadays? If I pay attention to this, can I safely choose vinyl for the kids’ rooms? The kids’ rooms should be "good and affordable" above all. Cork might be an option? Laminate is somehow excluded because it is very noisy and offers no advantages over cork or vinyl.
Is parquet sensible for the bedroom? Here there is no fading, parquet is durable, and sunlight is limited. Very durable and might make the bedroom more visually appealing. What do you think?
We are open to any suggestions.
Where did you buy your flooring? From a hardware store? A specialist dealer? Are there recommendations, including manufacturers or models?
I am a huge fan of natural stone. Having a floor beneath your feet that has formed over thousands of years, with patterns that cannot be artificially replicated, fascinates me every day anew. Likewise, the finely brushed surface and the warm, natural appearance provide pure comfort.
Actually, it’s a rather silly initial question to start this topic: Which floor types do you recommend? That’s purely a matter of personal taste. One person says natural stone, preferably marble. No, wood, real hardwood. Nonsense, that restricts the heat pump too much, better vinyl. Or tiles. But I really like the barefoot feel of carpet. So good fitted carpet. Nonsense, the kids and the dog just make it dirty, cheap and practical, laminate. Has anyone suggested cork yet? The dream floor for any red wine lover, natural cork. No, that’s nonsense, today it’s all about industrial style, exposed concrete or exposed screed. That’s it. Not everyone has that. Oh, I think a pure garage floor is cool and minimalistic, just some epoxy paint, that’s enough. You can drop stuff or bring in your bike, no problem. You’re crazy, the true connoisseur has teak strips installed, grouted with filler like on the Gorch Fock. That’s something maritime. But that doesn’t fit Augsburg South, so we’d rather take… endless. Technically, almost everything is possible. It just has to suit the heating system, the budget, and the owners’ preferences. We’re on a tight budget, so vinyl, tiles, and some IKEA rugs on top. That’s okay. Warm, easy to clean, tiles were partly on sale, vinyl all included with installation for about 2,500 for 65 square meters (700 square feet). Those were the arguments.
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BauFamily12 Apr 2021 23:14Does anyone have experience with underfloor heating and laminate flooring? It should feel warmer than tiles, right? In our apartment (without underfloor heating), we have had laminate flooring for 10 years with two children, and it still shows no damage.
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SamSamSam14 Apr 2021 14:37BauFamily schrieb:
Does anyone have experience with underfloor heating and laminate flooring? It should feel warmer than tiles, right? In our apartment (without underfloor heating), we’ve had laminate flooring for 10 years with two kids, and it still shows no signs of damage.I’m also interested, as we will be building with underfloor heating. But why should laminate feel warmer than tiles? I would have thought the opposite since tiles conduct heat better. For my part, I’m still wondering whether floating laminate is really suitable for underfloor heating or if we should opt for a glued floor covering instead. I honestly have no idea how much difference that makes.N
nordanney14 Apr 2021 14:44SamSamSam schrieb:
But why should laminate feel warmer than tiles? I would have expected the opposite since tiles conduct heat better.In summer, tiles feel quite cold for this reason—especially in spring and autumn when the heating is off or not yet on.SamSamSam schrieb:
For my part, I'm still wondering whether floating laminate is really acceptable with underfloor heating, or if we should choose a floor covering that is glued down. I have no idea how big the difference really is.It’s more than manageable. I’d rather question building a house and then putting plastic on the floor. Affordable hardwood flooring is not much more expensive (sometimes even cheaper than high-end laminate).Similar topics