Condo flooring recommendations

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SkiToKill
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Condo flooring recommendations

Post by SkiToKill »

I am going to replace the old carpet in my living room/dining room and would like to use engineered hardwood, but I'm not sure if it will take the abuse of renters and ski boots. I am also considering a vinyl that looks like wood because it might be more durable. Anyone have any experience with earthier, or any recommendation.
tt431
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Re: Condo flooring recommendations

Post by tt431 »

I replaced my carpet last season with Pergo XP. I don't have enough time to really rate durability but so far I'm very happy with it. I got the Highland Hickory which resembles old wood with little defects, perfect pattern to hide possible scratches. Very natural looking and very easy to install. I wouldn't consider installing vinyl flooring. http://www.pergoxpvs.com/browse-styles/
PinnacleJim
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Re: Condo flooring recommendations

Post by PinnacleJim »

I put laminate in a travertine pattern in the kitchen of my condo more than five years ago. It still looks great inspite of lots of renter abuse. I would be concerned about an engineered wood with a glossy finish. I'm sure it would show scratches easily.
CAPBOY
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Re: Condo flooring recommendations

Post by CAPBOY »

Engineered hardwood isn't much more durable than regular hardwood. It is a thin layer of hardwood over a composite base, just like pergo. It's good if youwant hardwood but are on a slab. Problem is, you can't refinish it like hardwood.
da Pimp
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Re: Condo flooring recommendations

Post by da Pimp »

Get some Armstrong or similar brand better quality laminate flooring. It goes down over a thin foam sheet and "floats" on it. Buy enough board so that you can have extras left over. Anything that gets damaged can be picked up & replaced with new. They mate together with a dovetail design. Some models of laminate plank board claim to be waterproof. The styles & colors are numerous, including the look of stone or tiles.

I used a good Armstrong laminate in my kitchen 6 years ago which gets all sorts of abuse every day because it is also the main entrance/exit to my house via the garage. So far no sign of wear, fade, or damage. Easy to clean.

If installing over a typical wood subfloor, take the extra time to shoot a ton of 2" or 3" deck screws thru the existing floor into the beams underneath, they are probably 16" apart. That will eliminate the squeeks. First use thincoat on the existing floor where you have any dips or depressions. General instructions & tips are available from any Home Depot, the manufacturers, and on the web. Pretty easy to do it all yourself.
Highway Star
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Re: Condo flooring recommendations

Post by Highway Star »

I'm personally not a fan of any synthetic flooring. I would tile the whole thing and use area rugs. Seriously.
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Highway Star
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Re: Condo flooring recommendations

Post by Highway Star »

Check this out.....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G_U7d-6ZFmQ" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

http://www.thefloorpro.com/community/ha ... inate.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
"I'M YELLING BECAUSE YOU DID SOMETHING COOL!" - Humpty Dumpty

"Kzone should bill you for the bandwidth you waste writing novels to try and prove a point, but end up just looking like a deranged narcissistic fool." - Deadheadskier at madhatter

"The key is to not be lame, and know it, and not give a rat's @$$ what anybody thinks......that's real cool." - Highway Star http://goo.gl/xJxo34" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

"I am one of the coolest people on the internet..." - Highway Star

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Jim McClain
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Re: Condo flooring recommendations

Post by Jim McClain »

Highway Star, I registered here to thank you for linking to my website, The Floor Pro Community. Linkbacks are always appreciated and now that topic has a linkback to this site (this thread specifically).

But I also wanted to respond to SkiToKill's issue of what type of flooring to put in a rental, especially one that may be exposed to more than the average abuse, including moisture from snow and muddy boots. I'm a former skier and have lived in snow country most of my life. Due to lung disease, I can no longer hit the slopes, but this discussion reminded me of those so many times I would call a customer to tell them I was snowed in and had to delay their new floor for a day. What I didn't tell them was that I was snowed in Squaw or Mt. Rose, trying to get in a few runs in powder.

My emphysema did not prevent me from changing all my floors out a few years ago though. I switched from carpet and sheet vinyl to luxury vinyl planks. I got the wood look without the problems of wood. Engineered hardwood is even more susceptible to moisture damage than solid hardwood. Solids can be refinished a number of times, but most engineered hardwood flooring can't take a sand and refinish - some can be screened and finished, but that's not the same.

My last home had engineered hickory. It was beautiful, but my old dog damaged a couple spots. I installed thousands of square feet of laminate flooring in this area too, but I also did a number of expensive (to the customer) repairs when they damaged that flooring. You can't fix a damaged laminate plank without replacing it and replacing is not as easy as you would think, especially if the plank is in the middle of the room.

There are a number of luxury vinyl plank floors that can be installed via floating installation - sorta like laminates. But I much prefer the glue-down LVP. I have both in my apartment:

Image Image

You can see a few more pictures of my floors in my TFP album: http://www.thefloorpro.com/community/me ... loors.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; This flooring has given me the break I need when I spill something or track wet foot prints after a shower - or those damn people who don't know how to wipe their feet when coming in from the r*in or snow this winter. :bang The floors are very easy to take care of and look as realistic as any wood-look flooring (lower qualities will not look as realistic).

I agree that a wood-look ceramic, or any ceramic would wear better and even improve the value of the home. But if your renters are anything like the renters I manage, the cost of grout cleaning and cracked tile repairs will eat up that benefit quickly. I have convinced the owner of my apartments that switching to LVT or LVP is a great way to lower long-term costs AND improve the luxury appeal of the units. Now, when tenants move out and it's time to replace carpet, he goes with luxury vinyl planks. He paid a little more up front, but doesn't have to pay for cleaning and there have been no repairs to make in the last 2 years.

Just my opinion. And thanks again, HS, for linking to my flooring forum.

Jim
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Re: Condo flooring recommendations

Post by MrsG »

Highway Star wrote:I'm personally not a fan of any synthetic flooring. I would tile the whole thing and use area rugs. Seriously.
As beautiful as the tile is, it is colder than a 'witche's mammary gland' . . . and ups your heating bill - you can't even walk on it with slippers sometimes . . . you have to put so many rugs down, it defeats the purpose of the beauty . . . I was always against synthetic flooring until I saw it in some rentals - not bad looking, and, as mentioned, easy to replace pieces when needed.

We just put distressed engineered wood in our living room at home, and it's awesome, but will not get the traffic a rental does . . . but looks like it could take any damage offered, especially with the distressed look :wink:

Good luck - good info here :D :seeya
realreddy
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Re: Condo flooring recommendations

Post by realreddy »

Before you change to hard wood or tile check your condo By-laws. Many By-laws require that a certain percentage of the floor space be carpeted, especially if you are over someone. Some By-laws provide for penalties for non-compliance.
SkiToKill
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Re: Condo flooring recommendations

Post by SkiToKill »

Thanks for all the recommendations so far, and if it makes a difference it will be installed on a slab.
Geoff
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Re: Condo flooring recommendations

Post by Geoff »

For something that gets rented, I can't fathom why you'd use anything but carpet. On a slab, the floor will be really cold if it's not carpeted.
Image
Jim McClain
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Re: Condo flooring recommendations

Post by Jim McClain »

Geoff wrote:For something that gets rented, I can't fathom why you'd use anything but carpet. On a slab, the floor will be really cold if it's not carpeted.
Then you will need to pay for cleaning and repairs over and over again. Hard surface floors are much easier and less costly to maintain long-term. There should be nothing in the tenant rules that would prevent them from supplying their own area rugs to keep their tootsies warm. My own luxury vinyl plank flooring is on slab construction. It's well below freezing outside and I am wearing only socks to keep my feet warm.

If you are offering furnished rentals for relatively short periods of time, then you probably should supply the area rugs, or go with wall-to-wall carpet in low traffic places like bedrooms. But LVP and LVT are very good options for these economic times. Increase the perceived value and lower the long-term costs, equals more profit and less work.

R'gards,

Jim
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Re: Condo flooring recommendations

Post by RENO »

Jim McClain wrote:Highway Star, I registered here to thank you for linking to my website, The Floor Pro Community. Linkbacks are always appreciated and now that topic has a linkback to this site (this thread specifically).

But I also wanted to respond to SkiToKill's issue of what type of flooring to put in a rental, especially one that may be exposed to more than the average abuse, including moisture from snow and muddy boots. I'm a former skier and have lived in snow country most of my life. Due to lung disease, I can no longer hit the slopes, but this discussion reminded me of those so many times I would call a customer to tell them I was snowed in and had to delay their new floor for a day. What I didn't tell them was that I was snowed in Squaw or Mt. Rose, trying to get in a few runs in powder.

My emphysema did not prevent me from changing all my floors out a few years ago though. I switched from carpet and sheet vinyl to luxury vinyl planks. I got the wood look without the problems of wood. Engineered hardwood is even more susceptible to moisture damage than solid hardwood. Solids can be refinished a number of times, but most engineered hardwood flooring can't take a sand and refinish - some can be screened and finished, but that's not the same.

My last home had engineered hickory. It was beautiful, but my old dog damaged a couple spots. I installed thousands of square feet of laminate flooring in this area too, but I also did a number of expensive (to the customer) repairs when they damaged that flooring. You can't fix a damaged laminate plank without replacing it and replacing is not as easy as you would think, especially if the plank is in the middle of the room.

There are a number of luxury vinyl plank floors that can be installed via floating installation - sorta like laminates. But I much prefer the glue-down LVP. I have both in my apartment:

Image Image

You can see a few more pictures of my floors in my TFP album: http://www.thefloorpro.com/community/me ... loors.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; This flooring has given me the break I need when I spill something or track wet foot prints after a shower - or those damn people who don't know how to wipe their feet when coming in from the r*in or snow this winter. :bang The floors are very easy to take care of and look as realistic as any wood-look flooring (lower qualities will not look as realistic).

I agree that a wood-look ceramic, or any ceramic would wear better and even improve the value of the home. But if your renters are anything like the renters I manage, the cost of grout cleaning and cracked tile repairs will eat up that benefit quickly. I have convinced the owner of my apartments that switching to LVT or LVP is a great way to lower long-term costs AND improve the luxury appeal of the units. Now, when tenants move out and it's time to replace carpet, he goes with luxury vinyl planks. He paid a little more up front, but doesn't have to pay for cleaning and there have been no repairs to make in the last 2 years.

Just my opinion. And thanks again, HS, for linking to my flooring forum.

Jim
Lots of good info in this thread. I like the flooring in the left picture for the living room. That looks nice. The right picture flooring just seems too dark. Looking to replace our carpeting in the condo hopefully this summer. Sits on a concrete slab. Don't want carpeting in the living room again. Looked at Pergo since our neighbor has it. Really like tt431's PergoXP options also.
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Re: Condo flooring recommendations

Post by Bubba »

When I redid my condo a couple of years after purchasing it years ago, I thought about putting an engineered wood floor down in the dining room, just off the sliders that went out to the deck. I was advised against it as people go out on the deck when there's snow, then come back into the dining room with wet shoes. Wet shoes on an engineered wood floor would be a recipe for slip and fall events. Obviously, a mat of some kind would help but not completely solve the problem and it would also have been unattractive in that particular spot. I went with carpet and it turned out just fine.
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