Mittens, what about cork?

mittens, we installed different brands of LVP both upstairs and down in our home. I noticed no off-gassing either time.

If if you decide to go that route, you could open the boxes and leave it loose in the garage for a week to minimize anything that might bother extra sensitive family members.

cpartist, oh yes! I'm a big fan of cork! I had cork tiles in my tiny (3'x5') kitchen for 20 years before we demoed the place (and funny, the cork was the ONLY thing that the demo crew couldn't demolish--it's still stuck to the slab!). I am glad you brought it up because I'm meeting my flooring guy tomorrow morning and it had somehow fallen off my radar, mainly because the last few times I priced it (the reputable stuff), it was more than hardwood. Thanks for the reminder. I'll definitely check again.

3pinktrees, thanks, I'd forgotten about that. I don't think vinyl for us, partly because we're trying hard to go green as much as possible, but I appreciate the suggestion.

We have the same dilemma as our 2nd home is located in SWFL. We have engineered wood floors & can not be sanded down as builders grade. The wood floors are all marked up & show every discrepancy whether it be Scratches, dust, & discoloration. We ordered the lvp & husband will install in Oct. The dealer stated that the lvp can go on top of the wood floors, but my husband wants to install it the “right way”. My SIL just had the Karndean Korlock - TX white ash installed in her FL rental home. She loves it & would do it again. She mentioned it was browner in color than what she envisioned , but was happy with the
final product.

Check out supercore from weshipfloors.com. The owner Alan is on the Houzz site often & very knowledge. Unfortunately, we could not find the color we were looking for. Paid for a whole box of different planks to be sent to us, but the color we liked had too many knots. (More of a rustic look) Here is a pic of our current wood floor & our future lvp. Good luck o you. Be sure to get several planks beforehand, lay them down in your house, to get better idea.

The $5 price point for the Engineered wood flooring would leave you with pretty bad quality material. I would look at the synthetic options that would fit that budget more easily.

I was thinking the same. Oak & Broad, what do you think is the lowest average price per sq. foot for decent engineered hardwood? I'm going shopping in a bit with my flooring guy. p.s. we are in a semi-arid coastal climate with year-round humidity that supposedly averages in the high 70s%, though that figure feels really off to me since it's bone-dry a good part of the time here. OK, probably time to start a whole new thread!

I would select a wood look porcelain tile. The LVT on slab is doing to telegraph any irregularity in the slab, and there is no way to avoid that. If the slab is wavy, your floor will be wavy.

At least with the tile a wet towel can sit on the floor for days and nothing will happen to your flooring. You cannot say that with engineered wood, regular wood or laminate flooring.

https://www.flooranddecor.com/catalogs/2019-summer-catalog.html?utm_medium=Email&utm_source=SFMC&utm_campaign=Newsletter_PRO_2019_05_TileTrends&User_Type=IsProUser

I did not notice any off gassing. I agree wood look porcelain is also a great choice, have it all downstairs. Just a much bigger expense and had to rip up old tile etc, it was a pain.

"LVP will eventually chip off like cheap paint. "

Huh?? That's nonsense.

"Engineered hardwood planks are BEAUTIFUL and have lovely textures/finishes, but keep in mind that it cannot be refinished like real hardwood flooring"

And that^^ is ALSO nonsense.

Honestly. Please don't post about things you clearly know nothing about.

Judy Wear - your new flooring is gorgeous! What is it??

A second home which could be a rental in Florida = tile. I know that vinyl is a great option for many people but it still has some issues with lack of temperature/humidity control (depending on the brand you work with). It is not the 'perfect' floor that everyone is looking for.

Vinyl does NOT like heat. It warps and discolours when exposed to heat. It requires humidity CONTROL. It may not be as difficult to work with as wood, but it still has to have a stable, humidity reduced climate. The HVAC must be running at all times regardless of occupancy or not.

Vinyl also has issues with direct sunlight...it warps and discolours in direct sunlight. In a hot, humid, southern climate this can be an issue. The WINDOWS that a home has will be the ONE AND ONLY thing that stops a vinyl floor from getting 'upset'. The UV rating on the windows is EXTREMELY important for vinyl. So important that poor windows have destroyed more vinyl floors than floods or hurricanes.

If your windows allow sunlight to 'pool' on your floor, you will need to find out how HOT it gets in those spots. Sliding glass doors, french doors, picture windows, etc all have a tendency to allow sunlight to hit the floor. Most of these vinyl floors cannot be allowed to get hotter than 85F.

In Canada, in summer time a spot on a floor can reach 110F before noon. Which means if it can happen in a cold climate it can happen in a hot climate.

Please be very aware of your house's windows, UV ratings, HVAC requirements for vinyl and the limitations of the vinyl you choose. They can all add up to one nasty surprise.

Of course porcelain tile is the most appropriate product for this situation and location.

Flooret here has the thickest wear layer I've seen. 40 mils for their 9" x 72" Modin ridgid planks. Here.

The pricing is direct only at 3.95/sqft.

Of course porcelain tile is the most appropriate product for this situation and location.

Hogwash.

If this was my own house, and if I expected to live there for most of the year, the question would be easy to answer. I'd get engineered hardwood. I have seen nice LVP, and while it is a huge improvement over older products, I still much prefer actual wood.

We recently installed engineered hardwood from Uptown Floors, and it's an amazing product. The wear layer goes all the way down to the groove of the tongue-and-groove system. It can be sanded just as many times as solid wood, but it stands up better to changes in humidity. My hardwood contractor was impressed that we picked this product and said that he had never seen anything nicer than this wood.

The downside is that it isn't even close to $5/sqft. And that's the crux of it. If you plan on putting the house up on AirBNB, then you'd have to expect much more wear and tear. You either need to install materials that don't really wear out (e.g. tile) or you have to prepare for another remodel (or at least refresher) in a couple of years. So, a cheap LVP product might be a better choice, and just plan on replacing it in 5 years.

i was looking for hardwood at my tile place the other and saw this one. I thought it was real wood but it's a good laminate ( I think it says secflooring.com)

mohawk laminate

swiftlock

and don't overlook a good wood look tile. Tilebar has a slew of nice ones (Montana, chestnut)

Lipari

We are having the same question on LVP or engineered hardwood. We r doing a build and our builder is recommending we use LVP bc we live on the Florida intercoastal and have 2 large dogs. I’m worried about the seeing the repeat in pattern and whether it feels like plastic. Our 3000 sq ft house only has walls where the bedrooms and bathrooms are - so basically it’s a big open floor plan, huge floor to ceiling window.

We are looking at engineered hardwood: Hallmark Floors Ventura Sand Castle or for LVP Rocaille Cathedral Plank.

Ventura has 2mm wear layer, they guarantee 2 refinishing (not that I would go through the headache mess of even doing one).

Michelle and Bob - just an FYI - you'll be lucky to get ONE refinish with a 2mm veneer. Just not enough wood there. I would not go with a 2mm unless I was certain that I would never refinish (but I agree with you - I never would - too much mess!!).

Michelle and Bob, I have a friend on the water in my SW Fl town who went with LVP. That person has told me that they now regret the LVP and wish they had gone with engineered hardwood as after less than 2 years it's showing wear, etc. Especially in the sunny areas. They said if they had it to do over, they'd only have put it on the ground floor below BFE and put engineered hardwoods in the rest of the house.

I would be leery though of anything less than 3mm for engineered hardwood. Besides the refinishing (which I'd never do either!), is the issue that if anything heavy drops on the floor and dings it, with only a 2mm wear layer, you'll see down to the base.

I reiterate my recommendation for Uptown Floors. If you decide on engineered hardwood, you'd be hard pressed to find better quality. They have an extremely thick wear layer, and I was blown away by the quality of the wood itself. The supposedly "high end" solid wood that I have in the rest of the house shows a lot more knot holes and other defects. If I had known before, I would have done my entire house in this material instead. Of course, price is higher. But then, you get what you pay for, and if you plan on living in the space for the long run it should eventually amortize due to longevity.

I'm currently considering the invincible/titanium line of LVP for parts of my home. From what I gather, this is a high quality product and the warranty for their products is pretty outstanding. I've been doing a lot of research on Houzz and other websites on how people feel about luxury vinyl vs wood. Although I can afford the hardwood, I've personally suffered through the pain of refinishing my hardwood (never do it again) and the horror of having to repair water damage. I've learned that life is better when you don't have to worry about the material things cluttering your mind. The expensive LVP is indistinguishable from wood to 99.9% of people and seems like a dream to maintain. Good luck with your decision!

@M thanks for the link to Uptown Floors - if I buy hardwood, my builder “requires” that I purchase through our local ProSource bc our ProSource has a flooring expert they approve of that does the install. I can purchase tile or other flooring elsewhere since my builder has a tile guy on staff.

I like the idea of USa company Usa made. I will look into it... Bonita Springs is 4 hours away, good road trip!

Mittens Cat , $7 per SQ FT for prefinished Engineered is where you can start to have some decent quality product. It may not be that wide however. Look for at least a 4mm wear layer and lengths that start at 2' not 10".

I will also mention Flooret for LVP. I have received a bunch of sample pieces and full planks and it looks to be a great product. Comes in 6 ft by 9" planks and has the best wear layer around. Also its less then $4 a square foot. I had installed some Lifeproof in my last house, good product, but in the new house I am going with flooret the entire house. Personally I will never by a real wood floor ever again.

@Oak & Broad, thanks for the input. Any hardwood suggestions for the best value overall? I don't care about trends, so not super worried whether it's wide board, long board or skateboard. :) Just looking for best value and a light to medium natural color (I tend to prefer warmer tones). I'd love to use cork for all its wonderful qualities (had it in my former kitchen and loved it), but I know it has its downsides and (more importantly) it seems to price out higher than most hardwood, alas!

thank you everyone - we had a reminder today when our 125 gal fishtank backed up about a gallon of water onto the floor that wood will not work for us. we travel a lot and it’s normally days before we find out. we will install travertine like we have in our current house ... now to decide to go dark or light travertine - i’ll start a new thread

luvbeautifulthings Can you provide more specifics regarding that LVP you mentioned? Brand name?

I'm currently considering the invincible/titanium line of LVP for parts of my home.

Update - I decided to go with the Karndean LVP in Warm Ash. While I love hardwood and would probably install that in my primary residence, I really wanted a flooring product that was super easy to clean. My biggest concern about LVP was that it would look fake, but I was drawn to its cleanability and low maintenance. I brought large samples of Hallmark Alta Vista Malibu wide plank engineered hardwood (which Studio McGee uses frequently - https://www.studio-mcgee.com/studioblog/2018/1/20/our-favorite-hallmark-floors) and the Home Depot Malibu Delano wide plank engineered hardwood (which looks almost identical to the Hallmark, though the wear layer on the HD is considerably less) to compare to the Karndean LVP. The Karndean Warm Ash looked almost identical to both the engineered hardwood samples, so I was pleased. I haven't installed it yet, but as soon as I do, I'll share a photo. Thanks for all the input!

@kimberd02 I'm a huge Studio McGee fan! In fact, they helped me design the living/dining area of my previous home :-) You have great taste. I too was in love with the Hallmark floors they frequently use. Looks like we are both looking for the same thing. I will definitely check out Karndean LVP Warm Ash, thanks. And yes! please do share pix once you get it installed.

Glad you shared this. I also follow Studio McGee and was happy to see they also recommended real hardwood, not just vinyl. Also funny to see all the floors named after California coastal towns-- including mine! Anyone have Hallmark hardwood in their home?

@kimberd02 Do you have any pictures of the warm ash after being installed? I love the look of the Malibu floor too. I was interested in the warm ash lvp but some pics online make it look orange and show a ton of variation. Any input would be super appreciated!

@flashpolkadot Did you check out the Karndean Warm Ash? I thought I saw you on a different discussion board saying you chose sweet talker. If so, can you give me your opinion on the two? Thank you!

@Jen B. - Here are some photos of the installed floors. Overall, I'm happy with the floors, especially for a second home at the lake where a lot of sand gets tracked in. The floors are very easy to clean. I think for LVP, the Karndean Warm Ash is the best looking that I've seen. The variation on individual planks is minimal, however, there are some big differences in color from plank to plank. I wish I had been there when they were installed so I could have instructed the installer to try to minimize the variation in planks used within in each room. Also, one big negative about them is that I find that they do scratch easily. In the end, I think I still would have preferred the engineered hardwood floors (Hallmark Alta Vista Malibu), but my wallet is definitely appreciating the LVP decision.

@kimberd02, those are gorgeous! Have you noticed whether they stand up to water damage?

@kimberd02 Thank you so much for the response. They look beautiful and are the color I'm looking for but I'm worried about scratching. The purpose in putting down LVP vs refinishing our hardwood (other than cost) was for durability. I have 2 toddler boys and we plan to eventually get a dog. They drag toys and furniture around the house. That's disappointing to hear they scratch easily. Well, your beach house looks beautiful!

@kimberd02 Even with the scratching they look so great that I still want to check them out. Did you look at Coretec or Provenza? I'm just curious how you thought those compared look-wise. Again, thanks for the help! This is such an expensive decision so I'm hoping I don't screw it up.

@Akila McConnell I haven't had anything happen that could cause water damage. The house is brand new, so there better not be any! But that was one of the reasons that I chose LVP. The Karndean states their floors are waterproof, and if there is a bad water leak or flood, they're supposed to be easy to pull up, dry out, and reinstall.

@Jen B. Maybe I shouldn't have said they scratch "easily." But when we installed the refrigerator, which is a huge, heavy object, I noticed some scratches. Also, when we moved the sofa, there were some scratches. But once I put furniture pads on the sofa, there was no issue. So just beware of big, heavy objects scratching the floors if you end up going with LVP. I looked at a bunch of other LVP products, but don't remember exactly which ones. I just know that there was not a single other LVP product that I liked the look of. There were a few Karndean options that I liked, such as the Karendean Texas White Ash (but I wanted a warmer color). I would recommend going to a flooring store and looking at large samples, though, because if I had only seen the sample of the Karndean Warm Ash, I might not have liked it either.

@Jen B. Also check out gallagherboyfarm on Instagram. She recently built a house with LVP flooring and she used MODA Living in the Sweet Talker color. It is really pretty, too. I had already chosen the Karndean by the time I saw her post, but the Sweet Talker definitely would have been a contender for me. Her instagram account has a Floor Tour highlight bubble that gives all the details.

https://www.instagram.com/gallagherboyfarm/

@kimberd02 Thank you for the info! I get what your saying about it being heavier things that left scratches. I'll keep that in mind. I love the sweet talker but I'm worried there's too much variation between planks. The other floor I'm considering (1st choice until I get a sample of warm ash) is Coretec Calypso.

@Jen B. I hadn't seen the Coretec Calypso before. It's really pretty! I really like that color. Good luck on your decision! Post pics when you're done.

So happy to see this thread. I am in the same situation and can’t decide between en hardwood or vinyl. I was looking at Tower color: https://www.paradigmflooring.net/20mil-products-1/tower-con2004pad

@Hinge Stand - That color looks nice. Do you like the bevel? I didn't want a bevel because I thought it made it look more like faux wood tile. I am really liking how easily I can clean my floors with the LVP and I do think they look nice and everyone who visits thinks the floors are wood. But honestly, if I did it over again, I would just get the engineered hardwood floors that I loved.

Another thing to consider when looking at the engineered floors is plank length. I just realized why I didn't like some of the photos I saw ... they had too many short pieces which gives the floor a choppy look and to me, it looks too much like a tile effect.

The Uptown Floors suggested above sound great, and I will look at them more closely, but they still have "shorter" board (12" to 8 ft). I am looking at another company with board lengths from 3 ft to 12 ft. Those longer boards make a big difference in the overall look in a larger open floor plan. The longer boards do cost more, so I need to do some more comparisons and value of spending more for a more pleasing look. Their other specs are mostly similar. I think floors are going to be my hardest decision!

To answer your question: engineered hardwood is my preference any time over LVP. Engineered being the operative word.

Heres a vid for LVP for the Flooret Modin plank. 9"x72" direct sales.

anyone able to post more pictures of the wood flooring that is vinyl and looks like McGee's?😊

What is "McGee's"??

sorry studio mcgee.

Still have no idea what you are looking for. Maybe post a pic?

she's a blogger/designer. Shea McGee.

most of her designs resemble this. really nice casual, modern farmhouse, modern boho types of designs