Help with choosing hard surface flooring for bedroom

lewisburgbride

I usually just read posts on this board but have posted a few times.  Everyone is very helpful so hoping you can help me with chosing flooring for my bedroom. I am re-doing the room and it is almost complete but I need to chose flooring.   I have decided I want to go with a hard surface (hardwood, laminate, bamboo etc).  What are your experiences with these products? Can you recommend what you think is best (durability, appearance, keeping clean etc).  Or if you have had a bad experience, I would like to know that as well.  If you have pictures, that's even better.  We have a dog so I want to ensure that it won't scratch easy.  Thanks!

djdd4

I recently had porcelain tile installed in my livingroom and hallways. I love it so much I plan on putting it in the master bedroom as well. I got a 6x12 tile that looks like wood...its great!

 

MaineWifey

I have laminate in my bedroom, and have had hardwood in the past.  Hardwood is more durable, and longer lasting.  But laminate is a nice, less expensive alternative. 

TarHeels&Rebels

Those are very different products you listed, all of which will have different price points.

Hardwood comes in two levels: solid (the most expensive and would be over-improving for many homes) and engineered (ugly woods underneath with a thin layer of pretty wood on top). 

Laminate is plastic with a wood-like design printed on.  If you sell, appraisers may not give you credit for laminate because to them it has the same cost as carpet or tile.  (I'm not talking about appeal to buyers - of course if done well, it'll appeal to buyers.)

I'm not terribly knowledgeable about bamboo, but I believe its price is in between laminate (which you can get for under $1 sq ft) and engineered (up to $4 or so a sq ft).  Bamboo has a very distinct look, so be certain that you like it and that it's appropriate for the age of your house (ie, probably not a good fit in a Victorian).

Cork is another option I'd consider.  Be sure to go with a uniform color - ones with too much variation in the color are distracting.

+PuppyWuppy+

We just took out the carpet in our bedrooms and painted the concrete - not an option you listed but it should be one. For one thing, it cost us $100. For another, I LOVE how it looks and I don't have to worry about my pets destroying the floor. Third, it is great for my SD who has lots o'allergies. I would recommend looking into the concrete painting. It was cheap and easy.

LateToTheParty

+PuppyWuppy+:

We just took out the carpet in our bedrooms and painted the concrete - not an option you listed but it should be one. For one thing, it cost us $100. For another, I LOVE how it looks and I don't have to worry about my pets destroying the floor. Third, it is great for my SD who has lots o'allergies. I would recommend looking into the concrete painting. It was cheap and easy.

I've been seriously thinking about doing this. What color did you use? I think this is a great option but I've been kind of nervous on how it would turn out.

PurrBox

LateToTheParty:

+PuppyWuppy+:

We just took out the carpet in our bedrooms and painted the concrete - not an option you listed but it should be one. For one thing, it cost us $100. For another, I LOVE how it looks and I don't have to worry about my pets destroying the floor. Third, it is great for my SD who has lots o'allergies. I would recommend looking into the concrete painting. It was cheap and easy.

I've been seriously thinking about doing this. What color did you use? I think this is a great option but I've been kind of nervous on how it would turn out.

I've never considered this before, but with that price... that's awesome!

+PuppyWuppy+

When we painted our concrete floors a few weeks ago, I got the advice of the lovely D&R ladies.    Most recommended the Behr products, so I did a little googling around and found some great step by step instructions.  We pulled the carpet and padding and used this scrapper thing ($30 at HD) to scrap up the excess glue.  I used a shop vac to pick up the leftover nasty. Then, we used a cleaner (also Behr, from HD) and a big brush to clean the floor. It had to dry overnight.  Then, we used the Behr primer (seriously, all of this stuff is clearly marked at HD - Step 1, Step 2, Step 3, etc) which was stinky. It had to dry 8 hours and was very sticky. Then we painted.  We used a yellowy-beige paint.  Essentially, I just took a piece of the carpet with me to HD and did my best to match the paint to that color since I really like it.  The paint had to dry 24 hours, and then we added another coat.  We definitely needed two coats.  We moved the furniture in after 72 hours.  It looks great. I really, really love it. We added the carpet a year ago and regret having done so because this was such an easy and inexpensive alternative.  It was literally watching paint dry.  If you have a lot of holes and stuff, you will need to patch those up. We didn't do that in SD's room and I wish we would have but we were testing it out just to see what we thought.  We will definitely do more of a patch job when we work on the guest room this weekend.

LateToTheParty

+PuppyWuppy+:

When we painted our concrete floors a few weeks ago, I got the advice of the lovely D&R ladies.    Most recommended the Behr products, so I did a little googling around and found some great step by step instructions.  We pulled the carpet and padding and used this scrapper thing ($30 at HD) to scrap up the excess glue.  I used a shop vac to pick up the leftover nasty. Then, we used a cleaner (also Behr, from HD) and a big brush to clean the floor. It had to dry overnight.  Then, we used the Behr primer (seriously, all of this stuff is clearly marked at HD - Step 1, Step 2, Step 3, etc) which was stinky. It had to dry 8 hours and was very sticky. Then we painted.  We used a yellowy-beige paint.  Essentially, I just took a piece of the carpet with me to HD and did my best to match the paint to that color since I really like it.  The paint had to dry 24 hours, and then we added another coat.  We definitely needed two coats.  We moved the furniture in after 72 hours.  It looks great. I really, really love it. We added the carpet a year ago and regret having done so because this was such an easy and inexpensive alternative.  It was literally watching paint dry.  If you have a lot of holes and stuff, you will need to patch those up. We didn't do that in SD's room and I wish we would have but we were testing it out just to see what we thought.  We will definitely do more of a patch job when we work on the guest room this weekend.

 

Thanks for sharing! I will definitely look into this. I really can't stand the carpet we have right now.

Erin1911

Such fantastic ideas. We are in the same boat trying to find floor options for our living room and family room.  Theses really help!