Home Improvement Flooring

Most homes have at least one concrete floor that looks rather unsightly. Whether it’s in the garage or the basement, or even throughout the home, concrete floors can make an otherwise fabulous home look a bit drab.

Nothing screams 1960s design quite like linoleum floors — and not in a good way. Adding new floors is likely on your list of top to-dos if you’re updating your home. And luckily for you, you might be able to install vinyl plank flooring over linoleum without a lot of hassle.

Laminate flooring is one of the most popular flooring choices that homeowners make, as it is incredibly versatile and affordable. Though, if you’re more accustomed to real hardwood floors you may be disappointed by the aesthetics of laminate flooring. Or, perhaps you would simply prefer the look and feel of carpeting in your living spaces. If this is the case, you may find yourself wondering: “can you put carpet over laminate flooring?”

If you are anticipating installing new hard flooring in your home, you face a critical decision. Hard flooring requires an underlayment material for comfort and sound control properties. Two of the most popular options are cork and rubber underlayment products. Deciding which is the best option can be challenging.

Hardwood floors can make a room look elegant, rustic, historic and quite expensive. They are often selling points for home buyers and can potentially increase the value of your home. This, of course, is assuming that the floors are in great condition. If you notice scratch marks on your otherwise lovely hardwood floor, you will want to find a way to get rid of these unsightly marks as quickly as possible. 

Is there anything more annoying than quietly tip-toeing through your home and the floor beneath your carpet starts making loud squeaking sounds? The floors in your home can alter and shift a bit over time. In many cases, this causes no issues. But sometimes you are left with floors that squeak underneath your carpet.

Hardwood floors can elevate a room, and they often increase the value of your home. When you have hardwood floors, you want to make sure you keep them looking sparkling clean and looking fresh. Wood floors, however, inevitably show wear and tear. As you look down at your less than perfect floors, you may find yourself wondering how often you should recoat your hardwood floors.

Cabinets can be a centerpiece and eye-catcher of your kitchen, so finding a floor that complements it is key. Fortunately, there are plenty of options for which color hardwood floors go with maple cabinets. Whether you prefer dark or light flooring, you can find something that matches.  

Tile flooring has become a popular option for kitchens and bathrooms across the country. Even a basic renovation of these rooms that includes tile flooring or walls can result in a homeowner  recouping 50 percent or more of their renovation cost when their home goes up for sale. With the rise of do-it-yourself tutorials in the past several years, many homeowners choose to complete tile installations on their own rather than pay a higher price to have a professional do the job.

You might think it’s a ridiculously simple question. Who cares what direction you choose? Is there a wrong way? (Unfortunately, there is…)

For many years, laminate flooring has been one of the most popular alternatives for hardwood used by homeowners. It is designed to mimic real wood, but is more affordable, DIY friendly, relatively easy to clean and maintain, and scratch-resistant than traditional hardwood.

Accurately installed wood flooring is gorgeous. Each polished slat fits together perfectly to create a smooth, shiny finish. But how many square feet come in each box? And how many is it going to take to finish this job?

Hardwood flooring is undeniably stylish and timeless. Gone are the days of carpeted kitchens, dining rooms, and entryways. Many homebuyers are looking for wood floors in areas of high traffic throughout a home.

Installing flooring is hard work! Many people don’t have the time to take to do the job. Therefore, they look for someone to hire. Lowes has flooring materials as well as professionals so that you can get both in one place. But how much does it cost for Lowes to install your flooring?

Laminate is a commonly used synthetic flooring option for homeowners. It’s popular among professionals as well as avid DIYers. But, how long does it take to install laminate flooring?

Laminate flooring is stunning and designed to have a long lifespan, but it cannot stand up to water. Whether your sink sprung a leak, or you were a victim of a flood, when your laminate floor gets wet, it can become ruined quickly.

Painting your home yourself is a great DIY project to help you save some money. But even when you take all the precautions, it is still possible to get paint on places where you don’t want it. In many cases, paint is easy to wipe up without leaving a trace. But when you notice paint on your laminate floor that won’t come out, you will want to find an easy way to make the paint disappear.

Choosing the right finish can ultimately determine how good a particular surface looks. A finish can make floors, cabinets, and crafts look better than before, but only if you choose the right one. So, what is the difference between polycrylic and polyurethane?

Ask any professional tile installer which tool is the most important, and you will learn here about the trowel. The importance of applying the right depth and quantity of mastic under the Tile is the key to a solid and secure flooring installation. Different Tile and adhesive require different trowels to ensure that the underlayment bods correctly with the tile. Finding the right size trowel for your materials and situations can be challenging.

When it comes to kitchen flooring, you have tens of options, including hardwood, natural stone, ceramic tile, laminate, vinyl, linoleum, and cork. Most homeowners end up narrowing down to tile and hardwood, but then, deciding between the two is often difficult. This decision will only be easy if you understand the  benefits and drawbacks of the two flooring materials.

When it comes to pre-finishing wood flooring, there are essentially two different methods that stem from taking two different approaches to wood – oil finishing vs. urethane finishing. While oil finish penetrates the wood to fortify and seal each individual fiber, urethane protects the wood by forming a plastic-like barrier over the wood.

Perhaps the best way to tie a design together is with the flooring. Distressed hardwood flooring is the perfect complement to the ever-popular country-chic aesthetic. For a rustic and authentically antique look, distressed floors are a must.

The smell of a clean home after the floors are freshly mopped is the smell of a job well done. Cleaning your laminate floors is a task best done on a regular basis. This helps keep your home clean and also preserves the quality of the laminate floors themselves.

Choosing between wood finishing products is not as easy as it seems. It doesn’t help the matter that there are so many great options out there to choose from. Between Varathane and Minwax alone, there are countless options to choose from to stain just about any kind of wood style or color in your home. But, which one is best for wood finishing? 

When people first walk into your home, one of the first things they’ll notice is your flooring and your trim. However, if there’s a gap between the trim and the floor, it’s going to stand out like a sore thumb. If this happens, you likely didn’t use shoe molding or quarter round to finish your trim or flooring project.

Laminate flooring is composed of particleboard, resin, and a print on top that mimics wood. It’s popular among homeowners for its ability to resist scratches, fading, stains, and other cosmetic imperfections.

Vinyl plank flooring is an excellent way to get the look of hardwood floors at an affordable price. They’re also durable, many types of vinyl floors are waterproof, and they’re easy to maintain. But if you don’t take care of them, they can get dull over time. Luckily, it’s easy to make vinyl plank floors shine like new.

Flooring can make or break a room. You have a picture in your head of what you want, but you also have to consider its practicality. So many people choose hardwood floors not only for their beauty but because they are a durable option.

You’re probably pretty familiar with plywood, an engineered wood product used for many different projects. But when it comes to the underlayment, things are a little more complex. Is underlayment plywood the same as the subfloor, and when should it be used?

You spend a lot of time modeling your kitchen. You have decided on natural hickory cabinets, but now you are wondering what color floor would go well with them. 

Are you laying out new tiling in your home? Flooring installation can be costly, time consuming, and downright overwhelming. There are so many materials, colors, and styles to choose from. If you’ve decided to use wood look tile for your home, you’ll want to make it strong and looking seamless. This is where grout comes in. 

Vinyl plank floors in homes are a cost-effective, attractive, and low-maintenance option that has recently grown in popularity.  The floors in your house make a huge impact on the design, so you want to make sure you make the right choices regarding installation. Therefore, in addition to choosing the best color and pattern, you also need to know which direction to lay vinyl plank flooring. 

Open up any interior design magazine, and you’ll see that birch is in. It’s mentioned in almost every new home layout spread, not to mention added to every home that is made for a remodeling show. It’s hot. Like, super hot. Though birch is trendy as can be, you still need to know the ins and outs of this wood flooring. Is it really all it’s cracked up to be?

When a hardwood floor is freshly cleaned, it can leave a natural shine. Properly cleaning and maintaining your hardwood floors is critical to ensure they stay looking great for many years. This makes finding the right floor cleaning routine all the more important. You might even wonder if you can use your steam mop to clean your hardwood floors.

Installing wood floors is an exciting but complex process. Not only are wood floors expensive, but there are significantly more variables involved when working with real wood versus synthetic materials. One of the main concerns when it comes to installing wood floors is moisture content. Wood absorbs moisture, which is why it is so important you allow your wood to acclimate to its surroundings. 

When it comes to laminate flooring installations, underlayment is a thin, flexible piece of material that is placed on top of the subfloor to serve as a base layer for the laminate tiles or planks that are to be installed. While the subfloor gives the room structural support, the underlayment is responsible for supporting the laminate flooring itself.

If you just installed a floating floor, you might be wondering: Can a floating floor be glued down? If you find that the pieces are shifting after installation, it can feel tempting to just grab a glue or nail gun and put an end to the shifting.

Maple hardwood flooring has been around since Colonial times. As a part of the all-American aesthetic, maple flooring remains popular throughout the United States. Of course, part of the reason it’s so common is that maple was one of the only hardwoods Colonial folk had available to them. However, things have changed. So, is it worth getting your flooring done in this wood style anymore?

Flooring is one of the most basic parts of your home’s build and design. Choosing the right kind of flooring can make or break you’re home’s look, feel, and durability. That’s why more people than ever before are getting picky about the wood they choose for their flooring. Pecan wood is one of the many flooring types available to you, but is it really worth the money you’d pay for it?

For the majority of sunrooms, the temperature of the space is determined by, well, the sun. Some building owners opt for heated sunrooms, while others go with unheated and instead choose a flooring to compliment it. So, if you choose unheated, then what exactly would be the best type of flooring for an unheated sunroom?

Are you looking for a creative and affordable way to revamp your wood floors? Painting is always an option! But before you dive into the renovation process, there are plenty of pros and cons to consider.

Slippery floors are hazards, but they have nothing on slippery stairs. One wrong step on a slippery staircase can land you in the emergency room. You need to watch out for those slick stairs and save yourself from potential injury. If you have laminate flooring over your staircase, you may have dealt with grip-related issues in the past. Addressing that should be your priority as a homeowner.

Red oak and white oak are trendy hardwood flooring options for oak wood floors. They’re both beautiful and add some character to your home. While both are wonderful, people typically wonder if one may be better than the other.

Radiant floor heating is a luxurious feature to have in the home and a current popular trend in new constructions. While it’s hard to deny that underfloor heating is the most comfortable way to warm your home, many folks find themselves wondering if it’s worth the hassle and associated costs. There are a number of radiant heating systems to choose from, with Warmboard being one of the best on the market.

The beauty of wood flooring is something many homeowners pine for. While it can be expensive, attractive and affordable wood flooring is also attainable. But what about attractive, affordable, and eco-friendly wood flooring?

Ceramic floors have the potential to last a lifetime. Sometimes this is a blessing and a lifesaver. Other times, like when you decide you want a different type of flooring, this can be a real pain in the neck.

Choosing the right flooring is a big commitment that affects your home’s character, and it is also a financial commitment. It is expensive to buy and install new flooring, so it is ideal to get the best selection and deal possible. So, what is the best time to buy flooring?

Whether your goal is to protect your newly installed floors or you’re refinishing ones that are several years old, the first step is to choose the right topcoat. Regardless of the specific hardwood species, your floors need a finish coating to keep them looking their best and lasting as long as possible. With so many options, choosing the correct topcoat can be an overwhelming process.

Laminate floors have long been a cost-effective way to get the same look as wood for a fraction of the price. There are many things you can put over laminate floors if you get sick of them, but there is a right and a wrong way to go about it.

For many homes, vinyl flooring is a fantastic alternative. It is elegant, enduring, and simple to clean. However, any adhesive that was used during installation might still be visible. It is simple to remove the adhesive from vinyl flooring without harming the surface, but you must know how to do it right.

Handscraped hardwood flooring is a favorite in many homes, offering a warm and distinctive look to a room. Hand scraping can provide you with unique-looking floors–at a price. But, for a more affordable version, engineered hardwood also offers styles with a hand-scraped look.

Mahogany is one of those woods that oozes class, sophistication, and old-world British flair. Having cabinetry that’s done up in a rich mahogany stain doesn’t just add a beautiful touch of burgundy red to your home. It also is a subtle way of saying, “I’m totally loaded, dude.” But, what kind of flooring works with mahogany cabinets?

Vinyl plank flooring has been all the rage in the home improvement industry for a while now. It’s gorgeous, cost-effective, durable, and comes in a huge variety of designs. But what many people want to know about vinyl plank flooring is whether or not it is waterproof.

Are you planning a DIY project to remove linoleum flooring and glue from a concrete subfloor? If you are, is the issue of extracting stubborn glue buildup making you procrastinate? You can actually forget your worries and complete this task with confidence by using some simple steps for glue removal.

Undeniably, hardwood floors can add appeal, style, warmth, and value to your home. Not to mention, they come in a wide array of options and can complement virtually any décor style. Hardwood flooring is also easier to maintain than carpeting, more durable, harbors fewer allergens, and can be refinished as needed.

Updating your home’s tile flooring can cost a pretty penny, even if you can lay your new floor over existing tile. On top of the costs of the new floors, you also have to pay for installation. If your tile floor is in good shape, painting tile floors can give you the fresh look you want.

A couple of summers ago, my husband and I completely remodeled our kitchen. It was quite a project, and we learned a lot. One thing we spent a lot of time talking about was tile.

If your slippery floor problem seems to have developed out of nowhere, then your cleaning products may be to blame. Some cleaning products claim to be universal, but when it comes to cleaning floors, there are specific products you should and should not use.

When you decide what type of flooring to put on top of concrete slab in your home you are essentially working with a blank slate. There are several types of material you can choose from. All of them have pros and cons, but some types are definitely more appealing to most homeowners than others.