Floors

[7pntail]

Does the value of house warrant spending the extra money for the real deal? From a dog standpoint there are a few advantages to a laminate. From an aesthetics standpoint, go for the real deal. I have 1600 sq feet of pergo, and wish I would have put down real wood. Labor costs could be a deal breaker. Did it myself , on the cheap. wish I would have put down real pine Having said that, the stuff has been bullet proof for 15 years. Like the look and feel of real wood much better. Tile in the kitchen, bathrooms for sure.

Scratches on real wood, they call that patina.


My place in Klamath, I sanded down the soft redwood floor, and put some oil on it. Spartan, rustic, but love the way it looks even after the dogs have been there for a couple of months.

Hope the two cents helps.

[North Mountain]

Has anyone tried the resilient vinyl planking? Laminate is too slick for my old dog and I think it's kind of noisy. I live in a manufactured home and I'm not sure it could support the weight of tile. I also find tile to be cold and I drop too many things. The planking is approved for use in baths and kitchens.

[sick lids]

Lol my expertise , stay away from flat sawn oak, American cherry, beech, pine, birch. Maple and hickory for domestics and quite a few exotics are very hard. You will not notice scratches and dent with a character grade of wood as much. Pefinished flooring can have uv curring finish with aluminum oxide or ceramic in the finish however will still dent and scratch and in my opinion are often overpriced for what you get. My professional advice would be to get a site sanded and finished floor with 3 coats of Bona traffic to start, depending on how many dogs, how clean you keep the floors expect to need to do a recoat every 4 to 8 years.

FYI bamboo is one of the worst environmentally friendly options out there next to cheap carpet. It is a grass held to gather by glue. 90% comes from china with a box that was made in the USA..lol. It also has the highest failure rate that I have ever seen with any flooring product, to go along with manufactures that will not stand behind their product! When I can not change someones mind about bamboo I tell them good luck I don't need that kind of work and refer them to competitors. Within a year more than a few have called me back to see if I could fix their mistake.

If the environment is of concern, get FSC Certified wood, almost all domestics are.

[Truffle]

I do have some tile and it is very easy to maintain. Just don't get the shiny stuff; use the tile that is a matte finish and looks like stone. Whether to use tile or wood can be a function of your home design. If you want to put flooring on a cement slab, tile is easier, as it can be laid down directly on the slab. Wood would require an underlayment. If your flooring will be on an upper level, then wood is easier, as tile will need to have an underlayment such as hardie board, which is very stiff and require a nail gun to attach to the slab. This is what I had to do in my kitchen to install the tile; I remember much choice language from the installer. When I replace my remaining carpet with wood, I want prefinished, as I do not want the dust and fumes from sanding and finishing in my house.

[Waterdogs]

They have tile out now that is a plank and looks like hand scraped wood it is great looking. I put some in a house my cousin is building and it looks great and has the hand scraped texture wood look and will last forever. If I didn't already have new flooring I would change my kitchen out for this stuff. My dad has a flooring business so I have seen everything. Laminate floor it to slick for dogs and some tiles are to slick as well.

[Waterdogs]

Laura the vinyl planks that stick together have problems with expanding and contracting with temps. They stopped making it and then came out with some new stuff that I think is a little better.

[Shawn White]

I had a friend that found a "deal" on Teak (sp)wood ,he thought he had found the ultimate wood because it's so hard... It's so hard we had to pre drill every hole and then hand drive the nails as the staples from a flooring gun would not go threw only bend. He quickly realized why he got such a deal.

[Illini Coot Killr]

Here is a good compromise. It really looks like wood. A little pricey but very durable. Installer said it was tough enough to pave our driveway with it.

http://www.floridatile.com/products/berkshire

[Good Dogs]

We replaced our laminate beech floor - very hard - with bamboo after a couple of plumbing leaks ruined the wood. Day after the bamboo went down the DW hose decided to rupture flooding the kitchen. We, of course, panicked but our floor supplier said relax, let it dry out and it would return to its original shape and condition. He was right. 10 years now and very little evidence of scratching and only in the highest traffic area. (4 labs and goldens is the usual pack.) The bamboo is slippery for the old dog but easy to clean, soft and warm on the feet and easy on my back. Tile in the rest of the house is also an easy keeper but if I had to do over again I would have the bamboo throughout.

[EJ]

The laminate in a place we rented was like a skating rink for my pup. He spent all of his time downstairs on the tile or carpeted bedroom. Have to say he didn't scratch the floor though. Two other places with oak he has murdered. Especially an older red oak in a place we just moved in to. Mostly it sucks seeing him go sliding around. Constantly worried about him blowing out a ligament......just bought quite a few area rugs.