Replacing bedroom carpet with wood - CLICK-FLOORING or REAL WOOD?
by
Trudy K
+5
Our bedroom is rectangle. 12 feet wide x 20 feet long. Carpet comes out, but we have no idea about wood floors. Almost everyone I know has replaced their carpet with click-flooring, but for some reason my husband feels that hard wood, such as bamboo, is the only way to go? Please tell me what is the difference - if any - thank you
8 answers
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Trudy, there are others who are far more knowledgeable on these matters than I am, but to me there is no comparison between the look and feel of a real hardwood floor and laminate. And, if resale value is any consideration to you, hardwood is the way to go. I could not count the number of real estate shows I have watched where the potential buyer asks, "Are these hardwood floors?" only to look crestfallen when they get the response, "No, they're laminate."
Douglas Hunt
on Jan 20, 2013
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Go with real hadwood. BTW Bamboo is a poor choice, it is not a "hardwood" but made from grass ( the botanical base of bamboo). Bamboo also is a highly greenwashed product. http://kmswoodworks.wordpress.com/2010/04/18/the-great-green-washing-of-bamboo-flooring/ Real wood will cost a bit more than laminate but will have a far better cost to lifetime ratio. I have yet seen a laminate floor that looks decent after 4 or 5 years. While I have refinished many floors that were 80 to 100 years old and still had tons of life left in them. When I did a big addtion on my place I installed about 650 feet of Jatoba (Brazilian Cherry) it has a very high Janka rating and looks awesome.
KMS Woodworks
on Jan 20, 2013
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If you do not have hardwoods anywhere else - laminate would be acceptable in a bedroom, IMO. Home value should be a part of this equation :)
Designs by BSB
on Jan 20, 2013
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Laminates are plastic and have no warmth or feel of real wood. You have 3 choices of wood flooring. 3/4 inch solid hardwood which is nailed down (unless the subfloor is particle board), engineered 3/8 inch wood floor which is glued in place and the latest engineered wood flooring which is made with a "click-lock" tong and grove and can be floated. Solid hardwood can be refinished by sanding and re-staining several times if needed, engineered flooring can be screened twice with damage to the surface layers to repair any damage you may want to correct. Laminates cannot be repaired Good luck with new floors....Gary
LandlightS
on Jan 20, 2013
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Call me a wood snob, but I'm with Douglas, Kevin and Gary on my choice in flooring. We have 3/4 solid oak through out most of our main level, all but kitchen and bathroom, and are looking to someday change our bedroom carpets to wood. We have looked at some of the woven bamboo since it's stronger than the standard, but we now agree Kevin, it's not really green when you think of it's manufacturing process and transport. You're better off sticking with locally (American) grown woods. If you like Oak watch HoDe, they often have great deals on solid oak. They do in our area right now. Less than three dollars a sq ft prefinished.
Z
on Jan 20, 2013
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I got my 5" Jatoba for 20 cents less per foot than what HD was selling there unfinished oak...to me that was a no brainier.
KMS Woodworks
on Jan 22, 2013
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There is absolutely NOTHING like real hardwood! However, it is a matter of cost as well as upkeep and installation. Real hardwood takes a lot more skill to sand and refinish than does the laminate...I know, we have both. Hardwood is also more apt to be damaged. I absolutely LOVE my laminate. With the housing bust, we did not go all out for hardwood because in older homes there is going to be a redo anyway...we just wanted something clean and easy to keep downstairs that we did not have to worry about pet claws scratching or water dripping off our lab causing a mess...so laminate worked for us. In the formal areas, we have real wood!
Jeanette S
on Jan 22, 2013
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@KT, you might get better results if you start your own thread. You can do that from any page by clicking on the red "Post/Ask" button at the top right.
Z
on Jan 22, 2013
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