Feeling Floored: How To Decide Which Floor Is Best For You
November 20th, 2008

There are more flooring options than ever before, but so much variety can lead to confusion. How do you choose which floor is best suited to your space?

There are three main things you need to keep in mind when choosing a floor: your room type, amount of traffic and budget. You need to determine what type of room the flooring is needed for and then consider how much traffic will be going through that room. After determining that, you should consider how much you're willing to spend on flooring, because that will make a difference in terms of the flooring you choose.

Here is a brief overview of the main types of flooring on the market today to make choosing your new floor a bit easier.

Wood

Hardwood is one of the most popular options these days because the elegance of this type of flooring will add character to any room in your home. Recent advancements in technology and manufacturing have made it possible for wood floors to be installed easily over almost any kind of sub-flooring. The increase in demand has also given rise to a higher quality and variety of finishes for the wood. There are three types of wood floors that can be purchased today: strip, plank, and longstrip. Each of these comes with its own pros and cons so you'll need to do a bit of research and decide on the best option for your home. You can also choose between a pre-finished or unfinished wood floor. Pre-finished may be more practical, but if a smooth, uniform surface is your goal, you might want to go the unfinished route.

Laminate

If you want the appearance of wood, but have high traffic areas or can't afford real wood flooring, you should consider laminate flooring. Laminate floors originated in Europe and most of the floorings available are still imported from there, though you can find a few domestic brands nowadays. Laminate floors are very easy to clean and are incredibly durable. They are also stain and fade resistant. Most brands snaps together so installation is easy â€" as is replacement at a later stage. With the quality of laminate floorings these days, some makes can even be mistaken for wood. Laminate flooring is an excellent alternative to wood if traffic and cost are issues.

Vinyl

Vinyl flooring may have gotten a bad rap, but now this type of flooring is available in all sorts of stylish colors and patterns. There are new manufacturing processes being used now that mean both the texture and look of tile, wood grain and stone can be replicated on vinyl. If you haven't looked at vinyl flooring options recently, you might want to take a second look.

Ceramic Tile

There are many reasons to choose ceramic tile. They are durable and scratch-, fire- and water-resistant. They are also environmentally friendly because they do not retain bacteria and odors. If you decide to go with ceramic tile then you will need to consider things like the slip-resistance of the tile, the most suitable cleaning methods and the color and thickness of the grout. Ceramic tile works better in some rooms than others. Types of ceramic tiles include: marble, granite and unglazed floor tiles.

Carpet

Carpet may not be as trendy as hardwood floors, but it can offer you a floor that is warmer and softer than any other flooring option. It is also much quieter than any of these other kinds of floors. You can choose from a real array of colors and patterns these days. If considering carpet, you might want to go with a solid, neutral color that will go easily with any décor you choose. Carpet is also more economical (in terms of the product itself and installation costs) than some of the other flooring options on the market today.

There isn't really a right floor for everyone â€" just floors that are more suitable for certain rooms and for certain budgets. Take a bit of time and think about your needs. This will really help you narrow down the type of floor that is best suited to your room. You can also consult your local home or décor store for more information on each type of floor if you are still having trouble narrowing it down

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