Help with floor choices

7 years ago

Hi my husband and I are in the midst of replacing floors in our first floor. We will be installing in an open floor plan...entryway, living, dining, kitchen, family room, and to our back door. I also want to add that we would walk in from our garage as well onto the floor. Our budget is around $4 a sq ft. We have 1 small dog that is getting up in years and teenagers/young adults still at home. We are stuck between hardwood, either solid or engineered and luxury vinyl.
In a previous home we had hardwood but was original 40 yr old in wonderful shape flooring that I’m assuming would have been site finished. My understanding is that’s one of the best kind of hardwood to have. However that is not an option now. We both like the idea of hardwood or engineered because of it being more of an investment for the money, but I’m not so sure we can get a quality product in that price range that can hold up to a busy household. We don’t have any intentions of moving at this time however life might dictate otherwise when we are empty nesters and aging becomes a factor. My husband is struggling with the idea of luxury vinyl because of no long time proven track record of how long it may hold up. We are in our late 50’s and would hope to not have to replace again in 10 yrs. And for a very good quality luxury vinyl plank product I know we would have to spend around the $4 range or higher. He is struggling spending the same amt on something he is saying is fake. I understand his struggle but have also come across some very nice lvp. The houses in our neighborhood go for the low to mid $300’s. Our house is on a basement and there is no moisture issues. We get a whole lot of natural light and would like to keep the floors in a light color for hiding any scratches. My head is just spinning due to the choices and so may reviews of any of the 3 can result in a ton of negative reviews with any product out there.
Thanks so much for any and all input.

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Comments (4)

PRO
Oak & Broad
7 years ago
$4 for wood flooring is not likely to be sufficient. Most of the negative reviews are for very cheaply made floors that are also cheaply installed.
tarasmom
Original Author
7 years ago
Thank you, could you give me recommendations for that price range. And what is the least expensive option of a hardwood or engineered wood floor that is going to be a better quality. Maybe we could install it ourselves and go up in price for the floors.
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SJ McCarthy
7 years ago
An engineered hardwood with a 3mm wear layer (this is the MINIMUM requirement for a 'mid-range product) should start around $7/sf. Anything you see at a big box store (Home Depot, Lumber Liquidators, etc) is going to be (around) $4/sf.

A mid-range LVP/LVT is going to start around $5/sf and move up to $9/sf without much effort. A high-midrange product in EITHER category (engineered hardwood or LVP) can hit $9/sf in a heart beat. A high-end engineered hardwood (site finished with 6mm wear layer such as the one's Oak & Broad has access to) can come in around $15/sf.

It is *possible to find a pretty little red oak 3" plank (solid unfinished) hardwood for $4/sf (from a local hardwood store run by the owner). Installation + site finishing can then push you to $7-$9/sf.

If your husband does NOT want to spend money on 'fake' then that gets you into 'real'. And real (solid hardwood or engineered hardwood) gets you into a price range that could become uncomfortable.

You are asking your $4/sf floor to give you:

1. More than 10 years (most laminates are out...especially for kitchens)

2. Not 'fake' = hardwood, stone, porcelain tile or cork

3. Not expensive...which means all the 'real' products are out of range

Hmmmmm....something is going to have to give.

If it were me, I would find the MOST EXPENSIVE European laminate on the market ($4/sf gets you an AMAZING laminate product) and the MOST EXPENSIVE underlayment (1/2" cork is OUTSTANDING) to install.

I would find a beautiful LVT ('T'= tile = looks like stone or tile) for the kitchen and then wash my hands of the whole thing. A HIGH END European laminate will give you an AMAZING FLOOR that will give you 10 years or more (most will go 20+ years without effort).

And watch out for vinyl in front of old windows (old being 1990's or older). Vinyl HATES sunlight sitting on it. And it HATES direct heat (like sunlight pooling on the floor and heating it up past 85F).

Before you look at vinyl I HIGHLY recommend you find out how HOT the floors in front of the windows get. You might find that vinyl is off the table simply because of all your natural light.
tarasmom
Original Author
7 years ago
Thank you for your input! You have given me some great things to think about. I have wondered about sun and lvp but most sales people at flooring stores in my area have said “no problem” to that question. I have read otherwise. I still have a lot of home work to do, but you’ve given me much needed wisdom.