Flooring Question - Hardwoord, Bamboo, Laminate, Carpet???

[andsoitgoes]

OKay - so we finally signed our lives (and a lot of money away!!) on our new house.

The thing is the people there are HEAVY smokers, we knew this going into it and is why we got it for a reasonable price.

So - that said, we're doing some heavy painting and also redoing ALL the flooring. Unfortunately not all the flooring NEEDS to be done, but all the smoke in everything, anything soft is coming up and GOING.

I'm just wondering if anyone has sources/information/assistance for doing any of the above floors? We're thinking of turfing (hah) carpet completely and doing a type of wood.

We have cheap laminate in the place where we currently rent and it's a flippin' disaster. You BREATHE on it and it scrapes, scratches, etc. I don't want that in our new place, but I also don't want to have to muddle around with oiling this and that to keep things clean.

Can someone help me, please???

Thanks!

[andresont]

We had IKEa laminate in our old appertment (installed by myself).Once i was filling my topoff bucket in the morning, and forgot about it for about 9 minutes and endup with about 0.5" of water on the floor.
Only i know how much water i spilled on it ! And it is still fine!
Amazing.
Eazy way to figer out wich product will hold water and be resistent to scratches is to get as many samples as you can, mark'em so you remember the price and store. And soak the sumples in the bucket of salt water from your tank.
You will be amazed how different they are.
Please note I used glue when this laminate was installed originally "just in case". I am glad i did.

[digital-audiophile]

It all depends on how much money you want to spend I guess? We had the same kind os situation when we moved into this house last year. Lost of ethnic food smells in the carpet and stained ceilings and layers of grease on the cabinets in the kitchen. Man it was nasty to clean up!


Anyhow we repainted from top to bottom and had the ceilings sprayed. We went with a hardwood called tiger wood, we did the entire main floor and the stairs, we still have the carpet on the upper level but will change it out in the next year or two money allowing.

My suggestion would to go with hardwood, it will last a lifetime and will do nothing but increase the value of your home.

[andsoitgoes]

Thanks guys - this is what I was looking for. Hearing about the Ikea laminate and the dogs certainly gives that a thumbs up.

However we were looking at something that would really increase the value, and having been IN houses with hardwood, they really pop and I would in a second pay more.

Greg - with Hardwood, what sort of cost per sq foot did it run you? Did you install it yourself, or did you have it professional done?

I'd REALLY like to do hardwood, specifically the Gunstock Oak style:

http://www.kingoffloors.com/ca/Hardw...tock.php?p=182

But heavens it's PRICEY. We need to keep around 2 - 3/sq ft (we've got about 2400 sq ft to do) and we are probably going to do the ENTIRE house and just go from there.

[Ruth]

I went with Mirage hardwood in my house - I did everwhere except the bathroom, kitchen and hallways - so I did the bedrooms and living room. I love it! I live in a log home so I decided to go with a lighter wood and went with the White Ash.
Here is a linkhttp://www.miragefloors.com/

[andsoitgoes]

Originally Posted by Ruth

I went with Mirage hardwood in my house - I did everwhere except the bathroom, kitchen and hallways - so I did the bedrooms and living room. I love it! I live in a log home so I decided to go with a lighter wood and went with the White Ash.
Here is a linkhttp://www.miragefloors.com/

ruth - how much did that end up costing you? Per sq foot, if you don't mind me asking of course!

Also - what sort of maintenance do you need to do on the wood?

It looks great, and I'm really excited about it now!!

[Ruth]

I can't remember the exact cost per sq. ft. but I think it was somewhere around $9-$10 installed but that included everything from ripping out the carpet to putting down a sub floor and install. I also live out of town so had to pay travel time.
I am sure it would be cheaper down there with a lot more dealers and installers etc.
I don't do anything special. I just sweep and use a hardwood spray cleaner a couple of times a week.
I really like the Mirage line of flooring and I shopped around quite a bit before I decided. It was more $ but the quality was definately there.

[woodcarver]

Hey Nick, It may not be your bag but have you given any thought to tiling in the main traffic areas ? You could even do under floor heating.
It is not too difficult to lay tiles correctly and price per sq ft is very competitive. Completely resistant to scratches and water!!

Just a thought.......

.......................................Dave

[Ruth]

Originally Posted by woodcarver

Hey Nick, It may not be your bag but have you given any thought to tiling in the main traffic areas ? You could even do under floor heating.
It is not too difficult to lay tiles correctly and price per sq ft is very competitive. Completely resistant to scratches and water!!

Just a thought.......

.......................................Dave

That is what I did - hardwood in living room and bed rooms and tile everywhere else including hallways.

[andsoitgoes]

I'm thinking of tile in the entry way and bathrooms - do you think Tile would be appropriate for the hallways to the bedrooms then?

As for heating under, isn't that getting into a whole other ball of worms?

My oh my, oy!!

***actually, I think our concern with tile was due to it being SO hard, and our poor lil girls being so clumsy. Having hardwood/laminate is bad enough, but tile just seems SO painful!