Can we talk about tile and grout and wood....please

tuesday_2008

13 years ago

I didn't want to hi-jack jillinnj's post about cleaning grout, but have some major concerns I need "counseling" with. I guess I just need some hand-holding through this.

I will be starting a BR and laundry upgrade soon and can't decide on flooring. In fact - it is driving me crazy! This will be my final upgrade and I so want to get it right.

History: I currently have HW floord thoughout my entire house (including DH's BR) but have linoleum in the LR and my BR. Have been planning the BR reno for a few years, but the laundry room got lumped in because (you are not going to believe this one), DH is going to put a huge, heavy, honking gunsafe in there! Told you! We don't have an attached heated garage nor basement, so it is the only room it will work in. It weights about 1000 lbs. That is not negotiable - we (I) are/am compromising on this and we have the room for it in there. WE also will have to tear out a wall to install an acrylic shower unit in the bath which is back to back to the LR. So this is my window of opportunity to get the laundry room done.

We live in the country; we don't enter the house through a garage; we have paved driveway and bricked patio, but you still carry in dirt; DH is in the excavation business; he is in and out of the house a lot with dirty boots; he uses the LR as his entrance so the floor get dirty.

My Plans:

Put the best quality linoleum I can find in the LR - one that looks like grouted tile, but will clean easily. This also includes a short hall-way that brings you into the main part of the house. Remember, this is not our main entrance - just DH's. My main entrance is off a brick patio through french doors into my family room. I have wood floors there. So I don't worry about guests seeing linoleum in the laundry/mud area.

I really want to put HW flooring in my bath. I know - many frown on wood floors in the BR, but I don't. It has worked for years in the other bath and kitchen - I am not afraid of water and wood floors if done properly. Water emergencies can happen - you deal with it. And it will flow easily with the rest of my house.

I am being encouraged by family to go with tile in the LR and bath. I love the look; it will lighten up my bathroom; I will have lots of choices; it will make it easier to pick out vanities and cabinets.

Problem: I really, really don't think our lifestyle can deal with keeping tile and grout clean. I want EASY! We are nearing retirement age and I have nightmares that my new floors will look dirty and grungy in a few years and I will have to deal with how to maintain grout when I am 70 years old. I have reasearched and researched - many say tile and grout is easy to maintain; many say it is a nightmare. That also goes back to why I am installing this huge honking acrylic (but nice) tub/shower unit. As much as I love the gorgeous tiled showers, I just don't want to deal with cleaning/maintaining tile and grout in my older years.

Please, please share your experiences, suggestions, and thoughts on this.

Tuesday

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (6)

deeinohio
13 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
Tuesday: We have black and white tile in the entry, with black grout, and beige porcelain tile in the sunroom with cement colored grout (dark gray). The sunroom is the door through which our 2 Aussies come through many, many, many times a day. It still looks like new, and I've never had it cleaned.

My dad warned us before we put down any ceramic tile to make sure we picked a dark color, and it worked for us.
Dee
0
graywings123
13 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
I don't think you need any counseling at all. I think your decisions are perfect for you. But one question: when you say linoleum, do you really mean linoleum or are you considering sheet vinyl? Either is fine. Good linoleum will last forever.

Are you going to put the flooring around the gun case or the gun case on the flooring?
0
Related Discussions
can we talk about floor outlets?
Q
Comments (26)
The front table lamps look like they are "lit" by an off-camera studio light, although perhaps only partially. Notice the shadows on the floor and the lack of hot spot. Whereas the floor lamp and wall sconce in the background appear to be wired in. This being a movie set, it's quite possible that the cords are running through holes drilled in the furniture and down to a raised stage floor where there's a mass of wiring underneath. Channeling cable through furniture and wiring stuff to a main lighting board is a heck of a lot cheaper than losing an actress for months, throwing off your shooting schedule and putting investors and an entire crew on hold while a broken leg heals well enough to finish filming. An overzealous art director with Photoshop *should* have fixed all the shadows on the floor when there's no bright light source in the room coming from right about where that loft is. So I'm guessing it's not retouched, at least not heavily.
...See More
As long as we're talking about brooms....
Q
Comments (2)
I use strictly Bona HW Floor Cleaner too. I like to use the large gathered washable cotton pads that fit over a large push/pull mop. This allows me to cover more surface area fast. I do find going with the grain of the wood is easier, than against. Ha. That looks like a nice one though. Getting my floors redone on Monday-second time with Bona waterborne products: first time they used Pacific Strong (not good). This time using Traffic HD (high durable) in semi-gloss. Can't wait to see the kitchen floor!
...See More
Can we talk about New Venetian Gold granite, please?
Q
Comments (33)
WendyB Do not paint those beautiful cabinets!!!!! Interestingly, they are very similar in color to my cabinets, I also have new Venetian Gold, and a natural hardwood floor. (My rugs are similar in color to yours also! However I will need new ones soon. Where did you find yours?) I love the look of the countertop with the cabinets. I do not have a tile backsplash, but when I was considering one I looked at a white crackle tile. (Not stark white, more of a biscuit. It was a 6" square but I have also seen it in a subway tile) I think it would have looked beautiful. I didn't do it because of the way my kitchen is laid out. There's only one section where I could have had the tile backsplash installed. I thought if I had put the tile backsplash in that one section, it would have made the other places where there are cabinets and countertops look unfinished. My kitchen is painted "blonde," from Sherman Williams/Duron. Restrained Gold is the color below blonde (darker) on the paint swatch, and that would look very nice also. You could also go with a milky coffee color (beige like), darker than the current color your walls appear to be currently. I preferred to pull out the gold in the countertop and compliment the red hues in my cherry cabinets. I think your kitchen looks beautiful.
...See More
Can we talk about Corelle?
Q
Comments (77)
Shortly after we moved into our old house 24 years ago I bought a set of Corelle. My sister and MIL had it and raved about how it never breaks. My kids were little, almost two and four years old, so I bought two sets of eight. Very pretty fluted pattern with flowers. I was unloading the dishwater one day with my DD, not quite two, in her high chair in the kitchen. I had the entire stack of 16 plated in both hands but just bumped the frame of the cabinet and I swear those dishes leaped out of my hands onto the vinyl floor and EXPLODED!!! All 16 -- unrecognizable as anything but shards of glass on the floor. All over the kitchen. I was barefoot and my DD started screaming, crying, and trying to get out of her high chair. I couldn't get to her because of the glass. She was scared to death. She is 26 and still remembers that day "mommy boke the dises" I had to climb on the counters to get to the dining room doorway and run get shoes to get her out of the highchair. So I called Corelle. They replaced all of the plates and I packed them up in a box and never used again. I replaced with cheap white fruit embossed stoneware - some from the dollar store and still have that set. I do have and use Corelle soup bowls and berry bowls. Plain white rimmed in black. But one of my weaknesses is dishes, maybe 12 sets.... But I'm saving that Corelle set for my daughter when she gets married.
...See More
callie25
13 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
We had vinyl in our kitchen & laundry (it yellowed over the years & looked dingy even though it was just moped). It was probably installed for about 10 yrs before we decided to install tile. I knew I didn't want ceramic as its more brittle, so we installed porcelain tile. I love it! Easy to clean (in fact I don't mop it as much as I did the vinyl). The dirt/sand scratches vinyl and thus far not a problem with the tile. The key is neutral to darker colors with somewhat darker grout; and don't forget to seal really well. We purchased the 20 yr sealer from Home Depot and used it both on the shower grout & floor. The shower grout has yet to mold (installation & sealing was about 1 1/2 yrs ago). The sealer was well worth the money. But you're right, the acrylic does clean easily.
However, it all depends on what YOU like and what will be easy maintenance for you. That said, I'd install porcelain tile again without hesitation.
0
mahatmacat1
13 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
There's no such thing as "tile and grout" per se. There are worlds of different tile *and* grout now so that you have to make sure you're comparing apples to apples.

Grey grout is a wonderful thing. In the 90s, I spent way too much time on my hands and knees cleaning white grout between the cheap white ceramic tiles in the bathrooms of our last house. HATED it. We also had less than 10-year-old vinyl in the kitchen (I didn't choose it--the PO did) that had yellowed.

Fast forward to our new house: we have put gold/beige throughbody (same color all the way through -- great in case of chipping, which hasn't happened) porcelain tile with either Laticrete natural grey or TEC standard grey grout in the baths and laundry/mud room (it gets muddy in Oregon, esp. with an outdoorsy family) and it's practically bulletproof. If you want even more bulletproof, get your installer to use epoxy grout (not in changes of plane, though! caulk only there!) and dirt won't have the slightest chance of sticking.

The only thing that would move me in the direction of a 'resilient floor' would be the softness underfoot. If that is important, and it's a nice feature as we age and our knees hurt more, I'd go with that. Vinyl has also improved its technology such that the higher end ones are much more durable in terms of color and puncture. You could underfloor-heat wood or tile, but not vinyl, as I understand the current technology.

So I'm throwing some other factors in there, and trying to make sure you are judging on specifics.
0
Stacey Collins
13 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
I'll second what flyleft said... Grouts have come a long way. I just installed my bathroom floor tile with epoxy grout. This is totally stain-free... impervious; unlike regular grouts which a very porous and actually absorb dirt and stains. Epoxy grout cleans up just as easily as the tile itself. Sure, the lines might introduce a slight bit more texture than a linoleum floor would have, but they won't get stained...
0
tuesday_2008
Original Author
13 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
Sorry for posting and running - got tied up over the weekend and didn't make it back to the computer.

Thanks to everyone for sharing your experiences and suggestions.

Dee - if your tile can handle two dogs, surely it can handle a husband. Will definitely go dark enough to hide dirt.

Southerngal - I will definitely be going with the acrylic unit in bath - I know I can maintain this.

Gray - The safe will be on the flooring. That is something else I need to research - whether tile can handle the weight?? I am looking at vinyl (I think) - thickestI can get. Tell me about the difference in vinyl and linoleum.

Stacy and Flyleft - I will check out the epoxy grout.

I have a lot to think about.

Tuesday
0

Can we talk about tile and grout and wood....please

Comments (6)

deeinohio

graywings123

Related Discussions

callie25

mahatmacat1

Stacey Collins

tuesday_2008
Original Author

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US

Can we talk about tile and grout and wood....please

Comments (6)

deeinohio

graywings123

Related Discussions

callie25

mahatmacat1

Stacey Collins

tuesday_2008Original Author

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US

tuesday_2008
Original Author