How to Choose the Perfect Flooring for Your Space

What’s Best for You?

Choosing a flooring material for your home may seem like a simple decision, however it’s actually quite complicated and requires a number of factors that need to be considered.

Firstly, it depends on whether it’s for a new home that you’re building or a renovation due to worn out carpets or old-fashioned vinyl.

The main types of flooring are:

• Hardwood 

• Carpets

• Vinyl – sheets, planks or tiles.

• Ceramic Tiles 

Each flooring option has pros and cons and how suitable they are depending on your budget, style preferences, maintenance requirements. 

From a style perspective, your floor is a key component of setting a ‘scene’ for your home. It’s one of the first things that gets noticed when entering a room, so it’s important to get the materials and colours right. Continue reading if you want expert advice on how to choose flooring for your home.

Hardwood

Hardwood floors are simply stunning and if you’re renovating, there’s a chance there may be hardwood floors lurking underneath. If that’s the case, polishing them up will add to your home’s character and add value in a cost-effective way.

Otherwise, laying new hardwood floor is also an option, and once they’re in place, it’s a low maintenance and easy to keep clean option. Just use a broom, mop or vacuum cleaner. This flooring option does require some care depending on how the hardwood is treated and how much traffic they receive. Prepare to sand and polish every 5-10 years. 

Hardwood is typically more expensive than other flooring options, so if you like the look and want to keep the cost down, you could opt for timber-look vinyl planks.

Or if you crave the look of timber and love the comfort of carpets, large rugs can offer the best of both worlds with texture and warmth!

Carpet

There’s a reason why carpet was laid over hardwood floors in decades gone by. It’s the most comfortable flooring option, adding instant warmth and texture to your home. It’s a great option for just about anyone, especially people with young kids. They’ll do little harm when tumbling and it helps us adults take to the ground and play with them, compared with harder surfaces. 

Compared with other options, choosing flooring such as carpet requires a higher level of maintenance, as spills and stains need more elbow grease. In some cases, trained carpet cleaning professionals are needed to get them back to looking like new. From a cost perspective, carpet can be more pricey than other options, however this can vary depending on the materials and quality you select. Often, with carpet you pay for what you get, so treat it as an investment. 

Vinyl – sheets, planks or tiles

Vinyl flooring comes in a wide range of forms from large sheets, wooden planks or tiles that replicate ceramic or slate tiles. In many cases it’s a low cost and low maintenance option for those wanting to emulate other materials without the price tag. It’s a popular choice for those with rental properties as they are easy to install and maintain. 

Traditional vinyl flooring has had a poor reputation for being synonymous with cheap and tacky, however in recent times, vinyl flooring options have become stylish and high quality. Some timber look vinyl tiles look real, and will fit right in with your new build or renovation. Similar to hardwood or traditional tiles, they are easy to keep clean with a broom, mop or vacuum cleaner and require less maintenance than hardwood. As they’re inexpensive and easy to install, you can easily freshen up the bathroom.

Ceramic Tiles

With a seemingly endless number of patterns, shapes and sizes, ceramic tiles are a perfect way to add style to your home. You can style it up further with a range of coloured grouting options. Tiles are a more permanent than their vinyl counterparts due to the cost and time involved in installation, however they are a more durable and last longer than vinyl.

High quality tiles that are professionally installed can last 20+ years, are as easy to keep clean as vinyl and hardwood, and much easier to keep clean than carpet. They’re heavy duty, requiring little maintenance over their lifespan, with the main risk being cracked tiles resulting from heavy items falling on them.

Maintaining Your Flooring

Deciding how to choose flooring is only the first step. Irrespective of choosing flooring materials, it’s important to consider quality, longevity, maintenance, style and the costs involved. In terms of maintenance this will involve cleaning, and each surface material has its own unique cleaning requirements. 

Hardwood should be swept regularly and when needed, mopped with a safe cleaning solution and just a small amount of warm water. Strong cleaning chemicals and excessive water is likely to lead to premature wear and damage. Steam mops should also be avoided as the heat can also cause damage to the wood and it’s coating. 

On the other hand, vinyl and ceramic tiles can be cleaned with steam mops and you won’t need to be as concerned with the level of water used. For grout within tiles, it’s always good to use PH neutral cleaning product and avoid harsh scrubbing as this can wear the grout away and lead to generating an environment that exposes the grout to attracting dirt and mould.

If you decide on carpet or rugs, you’ll need to take the most care with regular vacuuming and spot cleaning for any spills or stains. Also, don’t forget to consult with a carpet cleaning specialist for an annual carpet clean to ensure a healthy and clean home for your family. Vacuuming alone is important, however it doesn’t penetrate deep into the fibres. Carpet cleaning professionals on the other hand have the experience and equipment to help ensure the longevity of your carpets and keep them looking like new. With any flooring type, always refer to the manufacturer’s instructions and guidelines for cleaning instructions.

Choosing a flooring material is a big decision, however once you weigh each factor up, you’ll end up with a wonderful floor to suit your needs and to enjoy for years to come.