hardwood floors or tile?

[nancy679]

We are extending our kitchen by adding on an eating area. We currently have tile floor in the kitchen and the new eating area would be off the main kitchen area.

We are deciding on either tile or hardwood floors (which I prefer). What are some pros and cons on either, and the costs?

Thanks!!

 

[minniecarousel]

I LOVE my hardwood floors. They are throughout the main floor of the house (entryway, living room, dining room, kitchen, hallways, bathroom & laundry room). Only the family room and the downstairs bedroom are carpeted. They are so easy to keep clean - I use Murphy's for hardwood floors & have a a spray cleaner for little spills. I "swiff" almost every day. I do have large rugs in the entyway, living room & dining room. Not sure of the cost versus tile. But I can walk barefoot and not freeze!

 

[BrerMom]

Our hardwood floors are so easy to take care of. I love them!

 

[judi]

I love our hardwood floors. The only thing I don't like is we have to paste wax them every 6 months.

 

[Pin Wizard]

Tile! It's so easy to spot clean with a sponge and water. And the heavy duty cleaning is a breeze with vinegar and water. I have NO carpeting in my house!

 

[Otimon]

I suppose it depends on where you are. When we had our home here in Fla. built we put in tile floors throughout, with the exception of our daughter's room as she wanted carpet (berber).

It was the best decision we made regarding our home!

 

[Doctor P]

Unless it is a formal eating area, I gotta go with tile due to the amount of wet cleanups you might need to do in a kitchen eating area and the amount of traffic. I love wooden floors, but we have real ceramic tile in our kitchen and it seems more durable than a wooden floor would be (though not as easy to mop/clean due to the grout and texture--but you can be a little rougher with it).

 

[DixieDreamer]

We are in the process of installing wood flooring in most areas of our house - replacing the existing carpeting. Love how much easier it is to clean and it does not trap dust and dirt like a carpet does (ewww!). However, we chose NOT to put the wood flooring in our kitchen and mud room areas... but to leave the existing tile... as we felt these areas have a much higher degree of being "wet" and "spilled on" then the other living areas... and the tile can be wet mopped. DH is installing the flooring in our computer room this week.

 

[RUDisney]

We are having hardwood installed in our kitchen this week. The last time we updated the kitchen was 8 years ago and we had linoleum put down. We have regretted doing that since it was installed. We have tile in the two upstairs bathrooms and I hate cleaning them. Tile is so hard to keep clean. We'll have HW floors in all of our first floor rooms by the end of the week. We've also done HW in our master BR and upstairs hallway.

We have area rugs in some places and not in others and the wood cleans with vinegar and water.

The kids are looking forward to eventually having wood floors in their rooms, too, when their rugs are shot.

 

[Jeafl]

I've got hardwood in most of my main floor, but ceramic in the kitchen. If you do put tile in, can you get the same tile you already have in the connecting area? 2 different tiles may not look that great. Also, if you put wood in, put felt bottoms on the legs of your chairs and tables. My next door neighbor has terrible wear patterns under her table from the chairs sliding in and out. Make sure you wipe up any spills right away too.

Pin Wizard, I have had 2 different tile installers tell me that they no longer recommend using vinegar on ceramic. Apparantly over time it etches the grout and makes it crack. They recommeded a tiny amount of Orange Clean or something like that.

 

[Pin Wizard]

Originally posted by Jeafl
Pin Wizard, I have had 2 different tile installers tell me that they no longer recommend using vinegar on ceramic. Apparantly over time it etches the grout and makes it crack. They recommeded a tiny amount of Orange Clean or something like that.

Really? I've never had a problem with vinegar. Maybe I'll call the company I bought them from and ask. I remember in my old house when I had the tile put in, they told me to use vinegar and water with a squirt of dish soap! That put a film on the tile that I could never get rid of. I don't know about Orange Clean. If it wasn't that I used on my cabinets, then it was Orange something or other by the same company. All I can remember is how greasy my hands felt. Yuck!

 

[pumba]

we have regular tile in kitchen and ceramic tile in the bathroom.....now let me tell you the bathroom in the winter is the coldest area I have in this house.....we have heat in here but when you get up and walk barefoot in the bathroom....forget it........freeze .......if I had to do it over I would do just regular tile and not the hard ceramic

 

[FINFAN]

We have tile in the foyer, HW thru rest of 1st floor.....HW all the way! Much warmer, less hard on my feet/legs...and pretty much matches any style decor you might want. Tile I scrub on my knees HW I just spray cleaner and mop up We, too, have rugs at various places which did add to the total bill, but I would have those if tile were there as well. I also think that a dent or ding in wood looks less noticable than a crack or chip in tile.

 

[Jeafl]

Pin Wizard, There are several kinds of Orange Clean. You probably used the wood polish on your cabinets. They also make a liquid cleaner/degreaser.

I would be interested in hearing what your tile people think about the vinegar. I used vinegar for a couple of years without a problem, and then my grout started getting cracks. When I called the installers to look at it, they told me to stop using the vinegar. I'd be curious to see what others think.