Flooring
If you are in the market for new home flooring, you will probably feel a little overwhelmed at first by so many options. Today, the market is flooded with traditional flooring such as linoleum to new and improved options to include Pergo. As you will discover in this article, you do need to understand home flooring so you choose the best material for the room. The good part is that changing out existing flooring will make a huge difference in how your home looks and feels. In fact, new flooring will definitely help increase the overall value of your home.
First, there is laminate flooring, which is comprised of various materials such as wood fibre, Kraft paper, resin, and others, which are then compacted under pressure. With this, planks are made. Interestingly, if you were to look carefully at the surface of a laminate plank, you would notice the design is actually a printed on image, using high-resolution film placed onto a thin, decorative layer. After this step is complete, the plank is treated with a wear-layer. By using this type of film, the plank appears authentic. The nice thing about choosing laminate home flooring is that it comes in so many choices, from realistic wood grain to beautiful colour.
Now, you can also go with hardwood home flooring, which is durable and brings the appearance of warmth to a home. Made from solid wood, you will have a choice of several grades, as well as thickness and width. Although there are a number of wood options, you typically find beech, birch, maple, and oak as the top choices. In addition to hardwood for home flooring, there are occasions when softwoods such as fir, hemlock, and pine are used. Regardless, this type of flooring comes in plank, strip, laminate, and parquet choices and some of the newer choices on the market are pre-finished with UV-cured polyurethane to protect the finish. Hardwood home flooring is a great, natural insulator, cleans up easily, and is not difficult to maintain.
Another type of home flooring to consider often used in kitchens, dining rooms, foyers, and bathrooms is ceramic tile. These tiles come in a variety of sizes, shapes, and colours. Additionally, you can choose ceramic home flooring as glazed or unglazed. With the glazed tile, the exterior tends to be a little more durable and moisture resistant. Glazed tiling is also easier to clean and fire resistant. However, the unglazed tile produces a more authentic look. This type of home flooring has a number of advantages such as durability, stain resistance, excellent for heavy traffic, and works well for radiant floor heating.
Next is linoleum, also known as resilient flooring, which is affordable and practical. Even though linoleum has been around for years, with advancements in home flooring, you will not be limited to colours and patterns. Sold in several types, you could go with sheet flooring, which is a thin layer of vinyl developed over a sponge-like backing, linoleum sheet or tile, rubber sheet or tile, cork, and vinyl composition tile. This particular type of home flooring is relatively durable. The only major drawbacks are that resilient flooring is thin, which means any irregularities found beneath would show, sometimes tile will curl, and scratches, tears, and blisters can appear over time.
Finally, you have the choice of carpet for your home flooring, which remains one of the most popular choices today. With so many different fibres from which to choose, you will have a huge selection, not to count colour, design, and thickness. With carpeting, your floors stay warm and the material is comfortable underneath feet. Carpeting used as home flooring is also an excellent choice for absorbing sound and, it is easy to install. The only thing to consider is the type of traffic the carpet will endure so you choose the appropriate type and grade.
When selecting home flooring, remember you want to choose the best option for durability and of course, appearance. Therefore, consider the amount of traffic, whether the area will be exposed to any moisture, if you need some type of sound barrier, the amount of cleaning and maintenance you want to deal with, people in the home suffering from allergies, asthma, or some other form of respiratory problem, warranty, cost of material and installation, and replacement.