My house had new wall to wall carpeting in the bedrooms and up the stairs when I moved in 27 years ago. Animals moved in with me and only just departed at the end of July. It would be nice to have it steam cleaned now. I only thoroughly vaccumed when the animals were here because I didn't want to use chemicals around them.

Since it's only been me and the animals, the wear is minimal. I agree that it is warmer in winter and quieter. The dogs didn't even wear collars in the house so no constant clinking of tags.

I like the look of all wood but the comfort of the wall to wall in the bedrooms is more to my liking.

No carpeting for me anywhere in the house. It is impossible to get it clean, and that doubles after it's been 'cleaned', with the cleaning product staying in the carpeting and attracting more dirt. I don't like clothes that can't be washed; same with floor coverings.

If I did use carpeting, I'd want wool. I can have wool for much less with rugs, and they can be sent out to be washed and thoroughly rinsed.

We asked the person laying our oak hardwood to toss all the short boards in a bundle. I don't like a busy 'patchwork' effect with straight lengths.

Hardwood, no carpet where I’m sleeping. Dust allergies drive me crazy. We don’t even have a rug in our main bedroom anymore and I really have to be careful with draperies and ensure they are run thru the dryer pretty often, and the bedding of course.

I do not mind carpet in bedrooms. Makes them cozier, IMO. And in general I do like it as a concept, soft on the bare feet. But it depends. Our 2 spare bedrooms have carpet though the master has hardwood. We have pets and they are NOT allowed in the rooms with carpet. I feel that if our master had carpet we for sure would have ripped it up by now. It is not worth the headache to keep it clean in such a high traffic area.

Hardwood floors (office with slate) downstairs, but wood only in the upstairs hallway. The decision for the two bedrooms to be carpeted was to minimize noise heard downstairs. That said, I have area rugs in the master bedroom that leave very little carpet showing, and also in the guest bedroom. We self imposed a ”no shoes upstairs” rule.

We briefly considered cork for the upstairs, but the cost and general contractor dissuaded us.

Lately I’ve been thinking about cork flooring again — I’m a bit tired readjusting the largish area rugs in my bedroom. The special pads definitely help, but there’s still movement. I’m also hoping that maybe cork is more common now, and there are more competent installers.

Have you ever pulled up wall to wall carpet? Even if you get the carpet cleaners in on a regular basis you are going to sweep up pounds of dirt that has sifted through.

patriciae

" I’m a bit tired readjusting the largish area rugs in my bedroom. The special pads definitely help, but there’s still movement. "

I don't know how big "largish" is, but I am using decorative mats in a yoga mat material (3mm thick), that I have never had move or slip under my feet or furniture. I'm a huge fan now and recommend them if you like and want a flat texture - that's my preference, my area rugs in the past had always been very low pile.

This is what I have as bedside rugs:

I would never have any bit of carpeting anywhere, if I had my way. As is, I do have one upstairs bedroom with a carpet that is quite new. The reason being that we were going to put the house up for sale and it was to refresh . We ended up not selling and now we have one room with this carpet. It is a low pile carpet.

I would never desire to have any of it . I think it is just nasty. Luckily it is just us two here now and the room is upstairs, so ...........it was for a reason that it got a carpet. But here we still are.

As a choice? never!

pllimpsest, how clean do you think a carpet gets? The answer is that it doesnt. I spent too many years in those decades trying to keep those darned carpets clean. I purchased carpet cleaning equipment and had powerful vacuums .All of that equipement had to be purchased and stored. Now with the hard floors, I can simply sweep and mop and be done with it. I love the freedom from carpets.

Hard to believe that it was so common as it was .It is now a bit like smoking, you just dont see it much anymore. For decades both carpet and smoking were widely accepted. Glad to see both gone!!!!!

In the small (just under 1000 sq ft) one story house I built in 2021, I have hardwood floors everywhere except in the bedroom. Carpet is warmer (crawl space, no basement) and the room tends to be cold at best--mini splits are inexpensive heat/cooling but don't ever really get a room warm. I would not be able to stand that cold wood floor. I'm not paranoid about dirt in a carpet and I do vaccuum. If I could have afforded it (totally out of the question on my budget) I would have put radiant heat and tile in the adjoining bath. As it is, it's also hardwood with one rug in front of the vanity and, at night, another right in front of the toilet for those midnight runs in winter.

As a disclaimer, I do not have wall to wall carpet in my bedrooms, or downstairs. (But I do have a room size persian that will probably never be moved in the living room.)

A bedroom is not an entryway, a dining room, a kitchen, or a bathroom and it should not be. But you probably should not be wearing shoes you wear outside especially in the upstairs. Not once, not ever.

But it really pisses me off when this question get asked that people don't say "No I don't like it"

No, they have to imply that people who are okay having carpet in the bedrooms are okay living in Filth.

I pulled up the corner of my bedroom rug at the entry area, the biggest traffic area in any room.

Below are pictures of my filthy carpet, the stained pad underneath and all the dirt that has sifted onto the wood floor.

This rug has never been moved since it was laid 7 years ago, and the floor underneath has not been cleaned except a wipe around the edges. The line on the right of the floor is more of a color change in the wood finish. And that is not a line of dirty carpet in front of the door. That is the shadow of the pad underneath.

So I will make my own statement about people who think carpet is nasty. You just aren't clean enough for carpet. The Filth doesn't form by itself. As another disclaimer, the rug gets vacuumed every single day before bedtime. And yes we have jobs.

" You just aren't clean enough for carpet. "

Correct, apparently, and I have no shame in not being "clean enough" for something that requires that much extra effort and work. I do not want a product in my house that requires me to change myself or my habits, and that includes walking barefoot as much as I can.

I finally - after many decades - decided to furnish and decorate my house for the way I live now, not the way I think I will (or want to) live. I feel the same way about my clothes - they will get things spilled on them, and if they can't handle frequent washing, they're not the clothes for me.

I’ve had both and like things about each.

Currently, we have fairly plush carpet in our bedrooms (one-story house). As houses here are mainly on slab foundations, the warmth and softness of wall to wall is nice. In other homes, I had wood flooring, and used large area rugs, which is a look and feel I really like.

A third option I like is a solid flat weave carpet layered with pretty rugs.

If we ever have a house built again (or a remodel), I think my choice would be wood and rugs in the bedrooms.

Correct, apparently, and I have no shame in not being "clean enough" for something that requires that much extra effort and work.

That's fine. But maybe not everybody thinks 5 minutes to vacuum a bedroom rug everyday is "too much work". And if the person Is willing to put in the work, that is "decorating their house for the way They live", correct? This is a projection of your lifestyle on everyone's. (Not you personally, you generally)

But the anti carpet statements about "filthy, or gross" carpet should not be projected universally onto every situation and every person who has it. And that's what some of these responses do. It's a projection of the people who are not clean enough to have carpet onto everyone, including the people who Are clean enough to have carpet.

And I am not implying that people who are against carpet are necessarily unclean. But there are clearly different levels of housekeeping and having clean carpet is another level.

I also think cleaning with a Swiffer is not cleaning. That's all some people do. I think it's minor maintenance at best. But that's a different topic.

If you are living with pets of any sort wood might be a better option for you but if you don’t have pets carpet all the way. Makes the room so much more comforting.

The other wrench I'll throw into the equation....I have hydronic radiant heat in the whole house, even the garage. The carpet and pad is super thick. It takes time for the heat to penetrate the floor...heating the room. For THIS house....I'm hoping it makes the bedroom warmer to have solid wood. It did for the walk-in closet when I took the carpet out 3 years ago. It made a noticeable difference.

@palimpsest....Gorgeous flooring! As always, you have impeccable taste.

@Toronto Veterinarian...The arabesque bedside rug is very chic.

" But maybe not everybody thinks 5 minutes to vacuum a bedroom rug everyday is "too much work". "

Absolutely.....I only offer my own perspective about my life. I'm not the one who said some other people weren't clean enough.

@Toronto Veterinarian...The arabesque bedside rug is very chic.

Thanks! If you're interested: https://www.etsy.com/ca/shop/ARTMAISONCA I'm not involved in the company at all, but I like small businesses that produce a good product.

I like carpet. I have both wood and carpet.

I'm a bit of a clean freak - not a certifiable nut case but more than most people I know. The last time I had w/w in my bedroom it was a short frieze in a mushroom color. Vacuuming with a quality upright kept most of it clean enough for me. A canister vac with the right attachments attended to the area where the carpet meets baseboard (which an upright can't) and the rug attachment handled under the bed more or less. However, with a king sized bed there simply is no way to adequately clean under the bed and especially that area where carpet meets baseboard - unless you move the bed regularly and that's not possible with a heavy bed on carpet. When we moved from that house, not surprisingly, there was more accumulation than anyone should live with - IMO. Dust, hair, skin cells and mites we shed are an allergy nightmare and I don't even have allergies! I regularly flip/rotate/vacuum my mattress and box springs so that helps but it's not 100%.

Two fastidious adults willing to vacuum daily is one thing.

In most households, the census is different than that. I had wool blend sisal wall to wall in bedrooms. And 3 kids. We did not wear shoes in the BRs. We had cleaners coming in 3x a week. My issue was how easily is stained, esp. w kids and pets. Even in our MBR, I sharpened an eye pencil in my dressing room, a bit fell on the floor, got rubbed in, and i never ever got it out.

So I personally don't use it because I don't like the feeling of having to be ultracareful. Moreover, I never feel like anything is really clean unless it involves water and rinsing. By the same token I only like slipcovered soft goods. The idea of people sitting or napping on a sofa for a decade, without proper washing and rinsing of the fabric, does not appeal.

No carpet virtually anywhere due to dust mite allergies. The only way to clean carpet of dust mites is steam cleaning. Regular HEPA vacuuming helps, but they must be steamed to kill them

The 2.99 oak you're pointing to isn't the European Oak pictured. It's domestic oak with open grain when flat cut and sold for 2.99. Price out 11" French Oak from Hakwood produced in Denmark and add a '2' to the front of that 2.99. Hurst Hardwoods has more value priced European Oak from one of the many SE Asian manufacturers that use some of the other 300 varieties of oak. Often Russian species.

Siberian Oak from Lee in China direct sales.

@dan1888...Oak is "out-of-style" here in Colorado. Knotty Alder doors and trim are "in". I might use the cheap Oak flooring in my rental...it needs a new floor in the whole house. This is about resale...not being converted....sorry. I'm not saying I don't like Oak...just not going to use it. Everyone's got their favorite. I can work with any wood.

Pal, I think the reason your rug and floor have done so well is the backing on your rug. Carpet has a backing that almost looks like netting and dirt, dust, etc sift down through the carpet onto the floor beneath to where it cannot be cleaned. Looks like someone would come up with a better backing!

Controversial question! We have a new build and have hardwoods in all living areas, and went with a wool carpet in the master. Very glad we did.

@.nicole . Alder, knotty alder? That's a softwood like pine. 590 Janka hardness. That'll get character dents quickly. Should be OK for the knotty grade. Quercus robur, European Oak is 1120. Domestic red oak is 1290.

This is a custom build in Boulder listed for 3.5M new construction. European Oak flooring.

2941 21st St, Boulder, CO 80304 | MLS #1044330 | Zillow Not a rental. Built by family-owned Faraday Construction. Link.

You can find this a hundred times without one new construction example using alder or knotty alder. Unless you've got some examples. No Brazilian cherry either.

Softwood. The only convoluted reason to choose alder flooring is to match alder kitchen cabinets. Alder was brought in for cabinets to stand in as a kinda grain match for cherry without the UV darkening problem. Decades ago. This could be a try to solve the problem of US cabinetmakers not making European Oak cabinets to match the floors every US supplier has plenty of stock available. Many get their doors from Conestoga Wqqd Specialties. They have not yet began producing Euro Oak parts. Same with higher end supplier WalzCraft. Ikea has some made in Hungary using European Oak. Vedhamn.

Acacia is 1100-2500 depending on variety. Hardwood.

mtnrdredux, I agree with you about cleaning with water. I dont go for vaccuming, wiping off, or cleaning with a damp cloth. I want to see it rinsed through or actually washed. And how many would balk at sleeping in anothers bed on theri sheeets, when the reality is that many both sit and sometimes sleep on the sofa and we accept that as normal.

True confession, I like to watch people making things clean and clearing over grown yards, and the such. On occassion, I watch someone clear and clean a hoarders house and I see that they just wipe things, whereas I would take a hose to it. No, they put some PinkStuff on a sponge and wipe! I am screaming inside "that is NOT clean!". You need to sop and mop and repeat, not just wipe.

I suspect that a lot of hotel cleaning is like this. They have just sprayed that bathroom sink and wiped it. They did not use soap and water.

I, like you, prefer to have my floor and the other things that we use to serve us, and,not to have us serve the floor or the fabric on the sofa. I dont want to have always try not to get them dirty.. I want floors that can be walked on and cleaned, easily.

I used to have so much floor care equipement. Now it is just things on the end of a stick.........broom, mop, dust mop. Thats it .And the mop head goes into the washer. And, I have naught but a simple and inexpensive shop vac that does all I need. I have no need for these expensive vacs. This shop vac does it all, wet/dry, blow out the garage, clean the cars, vac up dust bunnies, just a real work horse. Nothing fancy.

You cant wipe up filth and debris with a sponge. That just smears it out. It needs a sop and mop and/or a good wash and rinse. And, removable slip covers or covered furniture is my preference. I take them off and wash them when needed.

@HU-688559642,

That has something to do with it. My bedroom carpets and my stairs are velvet cut wool from Italy and I know two of them are woven carpets, not tufted with glue on the back. And Stark has a very good pad.

@nicole you mentioned that you have Brazilian cherry in your house but didn't say if that flooring is outside your bedroom. It's a very different look than the acacia you want to put in the bedroom, not only just where the two floorings will meet but overall 'vibe'. The wood grains are different, the color variations are different and it's possible (likely) that the plank width and lengths will be different. Having an affinity for each of the woods is one thing but putting them together is another - it will be a very busy look - just making sure that has figured into your plan.

@palimpsest...What's your source for a velvet cut wool rug from Italy? It sounds purely elegant....posh....and would love to put my toes into that when getting out of bed.....

"both sit and sometimes sleep on the sofa and we accept that as normal." AND we all do it wearing several layers of clothes!!! Let alone the amount of time one sleeps vs sits on any one chair. HUGE difference than "another's sheets". Germ phobia I know exists but people gotta live!

Ya know....I've seen photos of people sitting out in the barn with their horse...sleeping with a cow....I doubt those folks are worried about germs....I wouldn't be. My cat rubs his chin against mine....these germs are OK...:0)

@DLM2000-GW.....It's COOL to say your house has ...for instance ...8 different hardwoods. It's the NOT matchy matchy....still a thang in decorating....it gives the vibe....you didn't get a volume discount. 🤔The wood tone is the same. AND it's DONE....DH did the install. We matched the width of the wood AND thickness to the cherry that was there. (We do remodels, we've NEVER done acacia wood before. The lighter colored pieces were softer than the darker colored pieces.)

(The construction noise kept the cats up. They look pretty tired)

And...the cherry floors that were here, were VERY streaky....white boards mixed with dark...more of a craftsman look....not formal. There's another master suite downstairs. We might do that one in acacia too. Carpeted homes with pets....a hard sell for "resale". I'm not sure THIS is our forever home....still shopping around....

Different hardwoods in the house? Sorry, but no. I like the rooms in a home to flow together. Actually, Ive never seen a house have different kinds of wood floors. 🤷

I had bedroom carpets removed and hardwood installed.After seeing what had accumulated under the carpets and pads, I said, ”Never again!” to carpet in my home.

@HU-688559642...The house is 6400sq ft. It's a THANG here....in larger homes. The master suite is "isolated" too.

@nicole

The rugs were retailed by Stark.

They are actually not all that plushy, they are a short pile, very dense weave. But they feel good under foot

It comes down to aesthetic capability. Lotsa separation and space plus resources of time and free capital. Art can be fun.

@palimpsest..Stark. They have hand loomed silk! WOW! Click to see

nancy_in_venice_ca , I have a cork floor in my kitchen and I love it. Nice underfoot, not cold in the winter, nothing breaks when dropped.

Our apartment has beautiful 100 year old hardwood floors, but co-op rules state that 80% of the floor must be covered by rugs. I'm not crazy about the Persian rugs that my husband already owned when we met, but I will say that the low pile vacuums easily and the pattern makes them very forgiving of stains.

We bought a home with some WTW carpeting in the upstairs hallway & bedrooms and it still looks good (Berber carpet). But I wish the previous owners had done a little planning ahead of laying the carpet. Some spots "squeak" as you walk over the carpet and a simple solution could have eliminated the squeaks. Before installing the carpet, those floor squeaks could have been fixed with a few screws to tighten up the floorboards where the nails have been loosened up over time. Those loose nails are usually the source of the squeaks. Once the carpet has been installed it's too late for that simple fix.

@Jupidupi Thank you for the recommendation. My husband loved the cork flooring in the main Pasadena, CA library, and praised its ability to muffle sound.

I have hardwood in the kitchen, a welcome improvement over tile in a previous home. I would be silently cursing even before the glass or plate shattered on the floor.

I love cork too. I had it in a c1920s kitchen in Phila. I used it in a craft room/sunroom. Only problem was fading.

Fading is a problem with Brazilian cherry too.

@mtnrdredux_gw...I remember you painted the wood floor in your pantry. Was it cherry?

@Toronto Veterinarian, i went to your link for area mat and find it quite interesting. i need a small mat for under my feet where living room chair sits on wood. i need it for warmth because my floor is in an apt. over a garage. do you think these would help with warmth. thanks.

@Lyban zone 4...the latest look...and it's VERY warm...is to throw a real sheepskin pelt over your chair or ottoman or as a rug....then nuzzle into it. :0) I put my feet under the rug, toasty!

" do you think these would help with warmth. thanks. "

They're essentially yoga mats, so they'll help a little, but probably less than a rug. If you can borrow a yoga mat, try one out.

About half of U.S. households have dogs. Housetraining issues aside, many dogs love to roll in the grass outdoors and of course most don't wear shoes so can track outdoor debris indoors. And some have a doggy smell unless frequently bathed. Of course they can be kept out of a carpeted room, just saying that pets should be taken into account when you make decisions about rugs/carpeting.

“Stark. They have hand loomed silk! WOW!”

Misleading. Per your link it’s ”100% silky nylon.”

They do have silk carpets broadloom though.

TA DA....it's done! the room is 16' x 16'.

The Handscraped Solid Acacia wood, next to the Brazilian cherry in the sitting room. It can't be seen from the rest of the house. It's in an isolated area. The wood tones are the same. Notice, the cherry is VERY stripey....no cohesion. It's an artful accent! Better than carpet!

I'll eventually get a nice rug to throw over it.....:0)

Note: It won't wear out like carpet.

THIS Bokara rug is pretty....