Expert advice from Bob Vila, the most trusted name in home improvement, home remodeling, home repair, and DIY.

Family Flooring Myths Dispelled

Myths about certain types of flooring being better than others confuse a lot of homeowners who are struggling to make the right choice. The truth is that the right type of flooring for you depends on your home and your lifestyle. Here is a handy guide to choosing the right floor for your family.

Consider your surroundings. Does your home have little or no yard, or is your backyard mostly filled with grass and mud? The environment right outside your door makes a big difference when it comes to choosing the most suitable type of flooring for your home. You also need to consider the structural floors in your home: are they mostly concrete, or do you have floorboards in some or all of the rooms?

Let's take a look at the different types of flooring and their suitability for your home.

Carpet

Carpet is a cozy and comfortable flooring choice. It is soft on your children's feet and makes your home slightly quieter by muffling noise. However, carpet might not be a suitable choice if your yard is covered in grass and mud. Children love playing in the yard and you will have a hard time preventing them from bringing mud into the house on their shoes. Carpet quickly becomes stained, so you might want to avoid using it in your entrance hall and kitchen.

A common myth about carpet is that it is unhygienic. Some people think that carpet should not be used in the homes of asthma sufferers because it traps dust. However, by immobilizing dust particles, carpet fibers actually stop dust from circulating in the air of your home. These allergy-triggering particles can be removed completely from the home by vacuuming your carpets regularly.

 Ceramic flooring

Ceramic tiles are a good option if the ground floor of your house is an uneven concrete slab, since they will cover up any irregularities on the surface. However, ceramic tiles are very hard and brittle, which means glass tumblers that your children drop on the floor are likely to shatter.

Vinyl flooring and linoleum can be used to create the look of a tiled floor without the safety risked posed by hard ceramic tiles. There is a misconception that linoleum is no longer fashionable, but in fact you can buy linoleum flooring in a wide range of contemporary designs and patterns. Vinyl and linoleum floors are very easy to clean.

Wood flooring 

Wood flooring is a good option for families as it is durable and easy to keep clean. Choose from solid hardwood flooring, which is expensive but can last for decades or even centuries with the proper care, or engineered wood flooring, which consists of plywood or MDF with a hardwood veneer. Be warned that solid wood floors can warp if they are exposed to water or extremes of temperature.

Flooring is a very personal choice. To choose the right flooring for your family, you need to consider your priorities: is it more important to you to have a floor that is durable, comfortable, or easy to clean? By asking yourself these questions, you can make the most suitable choice for your family.

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Guest post contributed by Lucy Massey, for Empire carpet s.