Jane, have you checked Home Depot? They often have special purchases of great looking tile for excellent prices. We've gotten marble for as low as $1.99 sq ft there. I'd look into that before I used laminate. But then I've not seen laminate that I really liked.
~Becky

Justgottabme you have bought REAL marble from Home Depot for 1.99 a square foot? If that's true I need to look into that myself.
Just, do you have any pictures of your marble?

.....Jane

I like laminate made to look like stone, so I think you are on the right track. I realize you are on a budget, but don't get low quality laminate. If you can't afford at least a mid-level of laminate, get a high quality vinyl.

Whatever you choose, don't just pick something out in the store. Bring pieces home and see how they work in the light in the room.

If the sunroom is prone to getting accidentaly wet (plants, windows left open during a rain, etc), I am not sure you will be happy with laminate. I am in the same delima as you. My sunroom is 14' x 47' and I know the sunroom will be a major gathering place for my family. Between spilled drinks, kids craft projects, plants, occasional window left open, pets, an avairy for finches, wet boots coming in from outside, etc. laminate is not the best floor for me even though it was my first choice. I decided to get a high grade sheet vinyl instead.

We bought our fireplace surround marble at HD for $1.99 sq. ft. However, I think it was just a special, but you can check to see if they have some more in.

Sorry, I don't have a close up photo of the surround grouted and finished. You can't really see the beautiful shine in the photo, but it does shine beautifully. They had this in a green also.

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jane, I think laminate would be beautiful. My only suggestion is to make sure the one you buy won't fade with sun shining on it. The one I have is fade proof, but it's not a stone look, it's a wood look.

Patsy you say it's a wood look? You are talking about the marble surrounding the fireplace, right? I'm not sure I understand when you say a wood look. I love the color of the marble. Did you and your husband do it yourself's?
I would love to have that in my upstairs bathroom floor. One more question Brutuses. Could you use that marble on countertops?

Your house is really coming along and looks wonderful Patsy.

.....Jane

Oh you were talking to the other Jane, duh!

Still your house looks wonderful.

....Jane 2

I was talking to the OP about the laminate flooring about the wood look.

Yes, DH put the marble up himself. If you use marble for the bathroom floor you have to remember it stains very easily. If it's just a guest bath it might be OK.

To get some expert opinions about marble bath flooring you need to post a message on the bathroom forum where some tile and flooring experts hang out.

We were going to put marble in the foyer and the guest bath, but decided against it because marble will not hold up as well as ceramic or porcelain.

We just put a porcelain (we bought at a local flooring place) in the foyer area and it looks like marble to us, anyway. Here's are photo's.

Brutuses, I love the shiny tiles that look like Marble and the contrast with your dark furniture and doors is wonderful and makes the foyer rich looking. One day I would love a entrance foyer your size but for now, I am happy I have a foyer in my entrance(despite how small it is) so people enter an area to wipe their feet.

Thanks, but ours is not that large. It's only 8 x 8, I believe. The angle and size of the tile make it look larger than it is. That's why we tiled it that way. We are grateful to have a foyer also.

Thanks all. I'm the OP! Can't afford tile because we'd have to hire a tile-man and they are expensive in NY. Also, this porch is part of an enclosed deck and I would worry about weight - cement, tile. I would only do top quality laminate but am curious why sheet vinyl is better than tile-vinyl?

The room is full of plants and spills would be a reality. It is not heated, but well insulated and I will use a space heater.

Could someone recommend brands? I don't know a thing about laminate. My other option would be carpet, but with spills it would have to be some sort of commercial grade.

Thanks again,
Jane (OP)

I suggest you get on line and look at the Armstrong and other name brand flooring sites. There they will give you all the specifics on each variety and there are plenty. LOL Since you will have water spilling they will recommend a specific glue be used for installation between each tile that will prevent the water from getting in between the tiles. That's where laminate fails. I can tell you though, the newer and heavy duty laminate can hold up to spills that are readily cleaned up. The tongue and groove is designed now so that the water doesn't go straight down, but is cupped. You'd have to see it in person I suppose to understand what I'm trying to explain. I know a lady on the flooring forum just installed the same laminate I have in all my dry areas, in her kitchen. So that tells you how confident she is. LOL I wanted it in the kitchen but DH was just too nervous, so we put tile instead. Good luck.

Jane_ny, what type of floor is in there now?

This room was gutted and rebuilt because Carpenter Ants ate the beams. The floor is just ply-wood subfloor,

{{!gwi}}

I need to decide on a floor before painting and hanging the ceiling fan. At a total loss...

It is next to my kitchen as the photo shows.

{{!gwi}}

Jane

That's a wonderful room. It's going to be lovely.

Question, why are you putting the flooring down before painting? Painting first is usually the easiest way and that way you don't have to worry about your new flooring getting ruined.

I would also do the flooring first. When we built, we made the mistake of painting first and you should have seen the marks on some of the walls where the guys laid my floors, apparently when you are down on your knees, close to a wall, said wall is an excellent place for your feet! Floors can be covered.

My hubby does all our painting and being the perfectionist he is, he was not at all happy about the marks on the walls.

Jane, your room is going to be beautiful! Our sunroom gets alot of use.

tina

I can see if you have outsiders doing work how they would not have consideration for their surroundings. My DH did everything so that was the difference.

Oh, decisions, decisions.....at this point I'm not even thinking of what goes first - I was told to do the floor first. But, I don't know what to put on the floor! Would you do laminate tiles, sheet vinyl or carpet? You can see my old kitchen from the photo, whatever I do in the sun-room, needs to coordinate with the kitchen. I was thinking possibly a soft blue or grey-blue on the walls and dark slate look on the floors?

Does laminate flooring look real?

Thanks for any advice,
Jane

Love your sunroom! So much potential! Personally, as a gardener, I'd use it as an indoor/outdoor room, but everyone is different and will put to use their own way. There for, I'd go with a floor able to take water spilled or tracked in and I would not go with laminate. That's what we invested in through out our whole house, to look uniform for resale.......NOT, it looks ok in low light, but in sunny room, shows EVERYTHING!!!!! Also, our ALOC has proved to be very moisture fragile. We got a better price for a sellout lot of crystaline marble which we used in the baths and fireplace surrounds. I now wish we had done the marble (well sealed) throughout our home and used carpet remnants, rugs, and runners for soft comfort. There are so many low cost effective bargain materials available out there, I would now deffinately go with and industructable floor material and piece thick padding for cushy comfort in specific places.

Thanks, bodica. I am an avid gardner and that room was always filled with plants. The entire room was glass sliding doors and it was filled with light/sun. After the ants did their job, we replaced most of the sliders with windows to save money. We are planning to sell the house so I want something which looks nice but without screaming vinyl! Having to pay someone to do all the work becomes expensive. I could get tile cheap, but the installers are expensive. I'm tempted to try laying vinyl tile myself to cut costs.

I need to move my plants back in there. I bought a space heater to keep the temps up over winter.

Thanks again,
Jane

I would paint first and then do the flooring. I think Bruce Park Avenue Makore Laminate would look wonderful in your sun room (unless you do not like high gloss floors) or a laminate tile. I base this one what I see in the kitchen next to the sun room.

The vinyls today are very nice and you sure could do it your self. I might just lay it to fit and look pretty but not glue in case buyers have something else in mind. You might find a 12x18 remnant you like for even less$. For example, a vinyl with a brick or stone pattern with your plants arranged would be lovely. I wouldn't want to invest in laminate either, and new owners might like picking their own style.

Thanks, that's a good idea looking for a remnant. I have no idea where you look for this. Maybe Home Depot or Lowes.

Jane

jane ny, I was in a similar situation last year. For me the sequence was paint first, then flooring, then baseboards, But it looks like you may have baseboards already installed. Painting first worked for me because I did it myself and there were spatters on the subloor before I was finished.

You might want to check on whether your subfloor is indeed covered with plywood, because you may need an underlayment before installing your floor, depending on what you choose. Best to check where you buy the flooring. With some help from a friend who knew what he was doing and owns a Skill Saw, I installed a plywood underlayment in less than two hours.

I too wanted tile with a slate or similar look, but the room was already over budget (long story) and I chose to spend my money on high end French doors because the floor could always be changed later. I got some advice from the flooring forum while deciding. You can always post a message there before you proceed. We narrowed floor choices down to either loose-laid sheet vinyl or vinyl tiles. My friend chose the tiles because the color and pattern seemed to fit well in the sunroom/porch. The original intention was to keep those tiles for about a year while I shop for tile and find a good tile installer. But the floor has held up well, despite some abuse like beach sand, rain coming in when some airhead (

My post seems to have been cut off a bit. Let me try to post the rest of the message:

The original intention was to keep those tiles for about a year while I shop for tile and find a good tile installer. But the floor has held up well, despite some abuse like beach sand, rain coming in when some airhead (

In a previous home I had commercial grade solid vinyl tile that looked like quarry tile throughout my entry,kitchen and family room. It was fabulous! No wear issues, looked great, and more comfortable than authentic tile. Mine was a medium tan but it came in several shades. Something like that would work in a sun room. Another option could be good quality vinyl planks that look like wood. I have Adura planks in a lake home and they look good and can take some moisture also.

I'll try to find some pics and post them for you.

Thank you all. I'd love to see pictures. I'm heading over to Lowes to see what this stuff looks like. I need to paint the ceiling soon because they can't hang the ceiling fan until then. I was thinking sheet vinyl (not glued) and maybe an area rug over part of the floor to make it look more cozy.

I'm putting the house up for sale in the Spring and want it to look fresh.

Thanks for so many good ideas,

Jane

Went to Lowes tonight and couldn't bring myself to order even though it was quite inexpensive. I looked at sheet vinyl because it was recommended when moisture is present. I will have lots of plants in this room and no matter how careful, I know I will spill water. The sheet vinyl is just to reminiscent of old I Love Lucy kitchens. I did see some outdoor carpeting which looked like real Berber. I was amazed and might go in that direction. It feels like carpet fiber, not plastic.

Jane

Jane, that's a great idea. I didn't even think of that. We looked at it awhile ago for our home gym room. Haven't done it yet, but we think that's the way we'll go in there.
~Becky

Went to a carpet store yesterday, and for a commercial-grade rug, no padding, with the edges bound they wanted $475.00. I think that's way too much.

I'm going to look at Flor tiles. I'm not sure how hard they are to cut, but I think it would be a lot cheaper. I'm planning to sell the house and just want to make the room look fresh.

Jane

jane, if you're looking at peal and stick, they are very easy to cut. That is an option that would be inexpensive, look nice and be very easy to install.

Have you thought about the Novalis Vinyl wood planks - I have seen some pics on here and they look amazing.. There is also the peel and stick tiles that are 18x18 - so they are much bigger with less seams. The only thing I am not sure of is the expansion and contraction of the planks with the heat in the summer and coolness of the winter. Is it a four season area??

Just a thought.

The room is 3 season although I have a space heater out there for my plants. I had the room well insulated. I'm not sure what to do now, everything is so expensive. If I could find a large area rug, I'd do that. But to buy a remnant and have it bound costs more than having it tacked down. The room is 11 1/2 X 18 1/2.