Carpet vs Laminate and Vinyl vs Ceramic

Kaminberry · 02-22-2007, 11:58 PM

We have a house that is in a neighborhood where new housing is being built and costs the same as what we are told our 12 year old home is worth. I doubt if we sell it in a couple of years that we'll be able to recoup big renovation costs but we are in dire need of new flooring in the whole house. When we bought it 8 years ago the carpet and vinyl was in bad shape and we got rooked basically - long story we are smarter now - we walked out of the closing to find that things had to be done that lowered the value of the home significantly - one of those being the flooring.

Anyway, we are already in big time debt but need to do something about these floors. Home Depot can do laminate (livingroom and two of the three bedrooms) and ceramic (kitchen and two baths) but it will cost us almost 7k. Any suggestions on if we should go with that or if we could go with carpet with a good pad and vinyl in a nice pattern and still have the home look current and comfortable.

Any advice, suggestions, etc appreciated.

Confused in GA

PS We are not do it yourselfers so that's where the majority of the cost comes from.

Darylh · 02-23-2007, 09:05 AM

I would go with the Laminate and Ceramic (that is all I have in my house now and just love it) but I am not a carpet fan by a long shot but you get a quote on vinyl and carpet just to compare. Carpet it still being used but as you know can be a real pain to clean and no carpet ever comes completely clean so going with a Material that is healthier and easy to clean is the way to go in my books.

**AtlanticWBConst.** · 02-23-2007, 10:43 AM

If you are saying that Home Depot gave you a price to do the installations.....You really NEED TO get other estimates...

Please do it and compare the costs....

The following is just my personal opinion:
I too hate carpet. I think Hardwood, tile is the way to go. If you can't afford hardwood, try a quality laminate...

Another suggestion is to consider installing the floor materials yourself to save money. Do one area per weekend. Read up on how to do installs yourself ....

billinak · 02-23-2007, 12:01 PM

I am also more a fan of the laminate and tile, but carpet and vinyl will likely be less expensive. Whatever you choose, get several estimates as the cost will likely vary. Simply decide what types of materials you want to use, the more specific the better, measure the square footage of each, put it on a fax, and send it to 5 or 6 contractors in your area. You'll probably be surprised by the difference in cost. Keep in mind floor prep and cleanup and any other activities that might add to the cost.

p.s. installing laminate is really very easy. Maybe you have a friend or relative who could help you. We did our livingroom/diningroom in a weekend and it turned out great

dante · 02-26-2007, 04:09 PM

I on the other hand am a certified carpet installer with 14 yrs experience and LOVE carpet. It’s great on the feet, great with children and half the cost of all those solid surfaces. I’m from N.J. and most of our framing is wood framing with suspended flooring (multi-levels). My point is that if you have concrete floors you need to make sure that they aren’t like a roller coaster which depending on how out of whack, could be COSTLY. Tile’s just too hard. Engineered wood is to thin and you can’t refinish them because of their thickness. ¾” hardwood, in my opinion, is the best solid surface you could buy but expensive. Laminate is a good poor man’s wood floor, meaning inexpensive and definitely a DYI. However I would suggest a certified installer. The downfalls: If you live by a lot of sand and large bodies of water you will have to worry about wear and humidity. If you have hard sun exposure it could fade. It is NOT scratch proof, it’s scratch resistant, there is a difference. Repairing a damaged board is not a DYI repair unless you pick up all the flooring leading up to the board. Most manufactures will have at least a 10/15 warranty on fade and wear but I guarantee after 2 or three years you would have wished you made a different decision. Carpet on the other hand covers out of whack concrete and is relatively inexpensive. The secrets to carpet is the best pad, proper installation and TLC. You can get carpet that’s $6/yd Home Depot garbage and put a minimum of an 8 pound pad underneath. 6 pound and less is commonly used but no good. Every and all carpets installed over pad should be power stretched. If they use a kicker to install, they are not skilled installers and the manufacture will not warranty the material. A power stretched carpet allows whatever dirt that wants to sit in the carpet come out when vacuumed and will eliminate buckling. Dirt between carpet and pad breaks down the primary and secondary backing which in time will cause delaminating of the backing and the “fuzzy” side. I won’t bore you with carpet knowledge unless you want to know more. Do your homework. I hope I answered some of your questions.

Dante

Kaminberry · 02-26-2007, 08:03 PM

Thank you all for your responses. I am going to take all the advice and make a decision after talking to several sources closeby.

Again, many thanks for your time!