Engeneered vs. Solid Hardwood floors

It seems as though "engineered" in the world of hardwood floors is a drastic step down from solid, I am going to explain why if it were my floor I would prefer the engineered over a solid.
First, a solid floor is also by definition 100% natural, meaning it will perform or do what ever it wants to do (ie shrinking and cracking), as long as the purchaser knows that it may be fine.  You can expect more movement from the solid hardwood.
The engineered hardwoods have a surface that comes from a natural source to make it look and feel natural, but it core is built to give the customer less movement and thus better performance.  The final tipping point is that the engineered floor is less expensive than it's solid counterpart.

Walk-in Showers

With bathrooms becoming a real opportunity to upgrade our homes, it's no wonder the numbers of walk-in showers being built in this country are exploding.  We spend nearly three full days a year in the shower.  When someone uses our bathroom they see our shower.  Having a shower to be proud of is where it's at.

Make sure the person building your walk-in shower is reputable, and if you can find them through a designer, or a builder.  Finding one that regularly works with a trusted professional means they do a lot of work, and pass the test of working for other professionals.

The LVT revolution

Luxury Vinyl Tiles have really become the next big thing.  You may know them as Duraceramic, which is just one of the brands of LVT's.  Whether it's Congoleum, Armstrong, or Mannington making then they all accomplish the same thing, and suit the same purpose.  If you want a floor that looks, and to some degree, feels like a ceramic floor without feeling cold like a real ceramic floor can, this may be just the product you are looking for.  When you figure both the price of installation and materials, the LVT products are also less money than real ceramic.

Right floor in the right place

Today anyone looking for a new floor can find the search initially overwhelming, but asking yourself a few questions can help you find the right floor.  Different materials and properties make it possible to solve almost any flooring problem that can come up.  In the same respect putting the wrong type of flooring in the wrong spot can be devistating.  Here are a few questions that you need to ask yourself when getting ready to start looking for a new floor.

1.  How much traffic?
2.  Moisture?
3.  Pets?
4.  Is it a visual center-piece?
5.  Climate control, year round?
6.  Upstairs?  Downstairs?


If you would like to know the best floor for the space you are looking at please ask the carpet consultants at our or as me here on this blog.

Triextra, the smooth new carpet fiber

The Triextra fiber in the Smartstrand carpet from Mohawk gives you the best from both worlds.  For a long time now anyone looking to for a high quality carpet was told to ask for nylon carpet.  And it was a good rule of thumb, nylon does perform better, in general than a polyester.  Yet, nylon could never match polyester for feel, plastic is smoother than nylon.  The Triextra fiber gives you the a performance that appears, at this point to match nylon.  Being made of corn gives it a soft, smooth feel that really sets it apart.

What is this blog about?

The floor in your house is rarely considered until it begins to bother you, the homeowner, every time you walk on it or look at it.  Your floor is the only part of your house that must not only look good, but it has to function.  By "function" I mean you walk on it, spill things on it, and let your babies crawl across it.

This blog is about giving the people who visit it the opportunity to get the facts about finding the right floor, taking care of that floor and in the end we want you to "Love Your Floor".  There is a lot of misinformation about flooring that only clouds people's minds and doesn't help them make the right decision about the floors they put in their home.

You put a floor in and it will be there for over ten years, the decisions you make leading up to that floor being put in your house will make the difference in whether you still love it five, ten, or fifteen years from now.  This blog should help you in making those decisions.

Jeremiah

Welcome to Carpet Mill Club's Blog

Look for articles about flooring in the near future!