Flooring is the most important material decision you are likely to make, as it impacts every single room, is the most expensive, and most difficult to alter. Thus, if you have to focus your resources and effort on just one part of home improvement, make it the floors.
The paint color and light fixtures can change from room to room with no repercussions, but the floor has to flow from the entrance to the kitchen to the hallway – and beyond – and it has to all harmonize. To that end, consider the following tips:
Start with the colors and other elements that aren’t going to change
Before you start looking at planks or tiles, take a look at your home, and write down what is already there in terms of trim color and other permanent features. This will help you select the floor, as the floor is going to provide the base for everything else in the room, and it is far easier to choose a floor that complements the cabinets in the kitchen rather than risk painting the entire house in neutral tones in order to showcase some floor tiles.
Most houses lean one way or the other, in terms of colors – warm (beige walls with wood trim) and cool (gray walls with white trim), featuring different fixtures in brass, chrome, or black. You can’t fight this, and you shouldn’t, as it is the easiest way to ruin your floor selection. Make sure to analyze the undertones of the existing color scheme in your house in order to select a floor that blends in with the room rather than stand out from it.
Address the open plan question before you proceed
In case of an open plan, you will most likely want to stick to one material when you place flooring in all of the common areas of your home (living room, dining room, kitchen, and so on). If your kitchen and living room are open to each other but not separated by a wall, it wouldn’t make sense to place different materials in them – the only meaningful place to make such a transition is when the two rooms are separated by a passage or an entry.
Save material variety for places where a change is warranted
If you have a tile entry leading to a wooden hallway separated by a door, or a carpeted bedroom, that is a great place to experiment with materials. However, the middle of the living room is definitely not one.
Define your moisture zones
The kitchens, bathrooms, or laundry rooms on the main floor of your home are all considered moisture zones. They require different materials compared to the rest of your home, so make sure to separate them. In addition to that, the difference between water-resistant and waterproof materials becomes relevant here. Water-resistant materials (laminate floors, some vinyl planks) will resist spills but will not withstand being constantly exposed to water.
Luxury vinyl planks and porcelain tiles, on the other hand, are waterproof and can resist standing water, which means they can endure being exposed to moisture without swelling, warping, or staining. In the case of moisture, don’t be tempted to choose the nicer-looking water-resistant materials over waterproof ones when the two are needed in the same room, as the consequences of such oversight can be financially damaging in the long run.
As a general rule, avoid solid hardwood in moisture zones. Solid hardwood planks are more durable but are very sensitive to moisture. A great alternative in the case of moisture is an engineered wood, which is less sensitive to temperature changes and is more durable, but it is usually unsuitable for a laundry room floor drain.
Give bedrooms more leeway when it comes to materials
You should be less restrictive when considering materials for your flooring in the bedroom, as bedrooms are usually subject to less traffic than the rest of the house. When choosing materials for the floors in your bedroom, prioritize comfort. One great option to consider is carpet. It warms up the room, reduces impact on joints when walking, and acts as a sound insulator, which is important when living in a multi-story building. If you are allergic to pet dander and/or dust, but you still want to have a soft floor, consider rugs.
Limit yourself to three types of materials and think of the transitions
Now that you have decided which flooring you are going to use in which room, you should be able to limit yourself to no more than three types of materials for the entire house. Say, hardwood in the common areas, waterproof LVP (luxury vinyl plank) in the kitchen and bathrooms, and carpet in your bedrooms. That can be considered a good variety for an entire house – a solid, classic look. If you choose more than three, you won’t be able to make a clear statement with your flooring, as five or six materials in one house will tell people that they are looking at a collage of ideas rather than a unified whole. It is a good idea to look at the materials side by side in order to see how they can coexist at a similar level. Some people will find that choosing one plank and one tile is all it takes, whereas others will want to explore all their options. Select Floors can help you compare the products side by side, which you might not be able to do on your own. That is why it is so important to visit their showroom.
It is the transition that makes the material change even more interesting. A transition strip, as well as blocks and the height difference between one type of flooring and the other, are going to help you put together a material palette that works for your house. You can decide on the changes to your flooring as you go, but it is better to think about them before you commit to any project, as transitioning flooring is far more difficult in retrofitting than it might seem at first. Once you have a flooring palette, think about transitions to make sure that you’ve chosen the right materials for a seamless change.
Remember that scale, color temperature, and grain are far more important than the material itself
The width of the planks and the color of them, in most cases, are arguably more important than the material itself. The most common type of wide plank is the five-inch plank, while some manufacturers can go even wider. Wide plank is known for being trendy and modern, as well as for making the room feel larger. Planks of this width also give room to the natural beauty of the wood grain to come out. A narrow strip of wood, as a general rule, runs between 2-1/2” and 3-1/4” in width, and it is a great option if you want a traditional look. The benefits of such a material include a straightforward installation and a traditional appearance, as well as an appropriate scale for smaller rooms.
Most of the rules that you’ve learned for hardwood apply to tile as well, which is relevant, given the rising popularity of both large format tile and wide plank. The large-format tile, in particular, will enable you to create a look that is both cohesive and aesthetically pleasing, using as few tiles as possible. The large tiles will also give the illusion of extra space, as less grouting will be required, and the lines will be less noticeable.
The color temperature is the hidden detail that can ruin even the best project, and it is relevant for both tile and wood. A warm oak, placed on walls with cool gray tones, will turn yellowy-brown after a year, no matter the level of quality. A gray-toned vinyl plank will wash away the warmth of white trim, making it look less bright. Pick one color temperature (warm or cool) and stick to it, both in your trim and in your wall color.
Think about what is underneath
Subfloor and underlayment are always the weakest link in an otherwise strong flooring project – both in terms of cost and timing. That is why you want to pay specific attention to the state of the subfloor during your project. The underlayment is the unsung hero when it comes to soundproofing, especially in multi-story buildings, and it provides a stable surface for you to finish your project. An inexpensive vinyl plank on a good underlayment over a properly prepared subfloor will often sound and look better than an expensive hardwood option over an unprepared subfloor. Think about the underlayment as you consider the rest of your flooring materials.
Test your samples at home
Showroom lighting can be a blessing and a curse at the same time, because it is designed to highlight the best characteristics of your flooring and to conceal the ones that aren’t so great. That is why it is a great idea to request samples and to bring them to your home in order to see how the material will look under your lighting. This step is far more important than you might think – after all, a floor seen in a showroom under bright white lights may feel cool and welcoming in the middle of the day, but it also has the potential to appear gray in the living room or even orange in the hallway. Make sure to examine the sample in different parts of the house, and during different times of the day. This way, you will also be able to see if there are any undertones that are worth double-checking before you invest in more samples or the entire project itself.
This is also the time when you will double-check to see if some samples might not match your cabinets. It is easier to say that you like the sample in your kitchen on a random Tuesday than it is to return a four-hundred-square-foot floor, once you’ve already placed it.
Why hardwood still anchors the common areas
Hardwood is the obvious choice for the common areas in your house, as it is durable and lasts long. But there is another reason why it should be your first option, every time – because it is one of the few home improvement projects that will hold its value or even raise the value of your home. According to the Cost vs. Value Report by the National Association of Realtors, refinishing hardwood floors has a 118 percent return on investment at the time of resale. That means that you are likely to recoup a significant portion of the costs, or even all of them, when it comes time to sell rather than simply walk away from the renovation as an expense with nothing to show for it. This makes hardwood a great candidate to serve as the anchor material for your common area in the house in order to maximize the value of what you’ve invested. It doesn’t necessarily mean that you should put it everywhere, even in all common areas, as you may want to balance it with a more affordable option here and there in order to enjoy the look without breaking your budget, but it should definitely be your go-to option. It is the longevity, the value, and the overall look that it gives to the house, once you finish, that set hardwood apart in this category.
A house is only as good as its floors, but it is also as good as your ability to make the right decisions when you are considering which materials to invest in. Put those decisions in order, and your home with its floors will speak for itself.
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