Have you considered tile that looks just like hardwoods? You'd be amazed at the selection of colors, textures and sizes available these days.

I did and i have samples of ergo wood talk. Sorry i left that out of the story. I nearly placed an order for that too. Beautiful but my concern is reselling in a few years. There is a perception that "faux" is cheap and less desirable around here. All else being equal real wood would be chosen over tile that looks like wood. And when i told people of my tile that looks like wood plans i got all these weird or dissapointed looks like that i was getting something fake!

Trust this....some of it does NOT look "fake." I've done a couple of homes where their "wood guy" came in and commented, "Oh, nice looking wood floors!." I told him to look closer and he was amazed.

The big "upside" of this to perspective buyers is to mention, no scratching, no water damage, virtually zero maintenance, no staining, no refinishing...and the list goes on.....

Ok so if i go back to going with tile which ones are the most realistic that fool wood guys? I was going to go with ergon wood talk white smoke. That is the opposite of dark glossy exotic wood but of the tile i received samples of i liked it the best for my paint and decor. Is that a good one or is there better?

LVP is actually making its way around too. Looks like wood but is waterproof. Easy to install also. Some of the higher end LVP costs as much as hardwood. My wife and I personally don't like tile, super hard to walk on, and cold on the foot (its usually cold enough where we live). There are plenty that do like tile though, usually more southern states. Real wood looks amazing, but it has to be done right and there is maintenance to keep it great. Also real wood and high humidity could be a problem. Laminate and high humidity is a problem also. That is why they don't recommend installing real wood and laminate in a bathroom.

What is LVP?

Luxury vinyl plank

Ohhh thx!

Any suggestions on the most realistic wood tile? Is the ergon wood talk good? How do they look on stairs???

Yes, please, Stonetech! Could you please list some of these more realistic wood-look tiles?

Truthfully, this is more a matter of taste than anything else. I can tell you that HD and Lowe's offer some pretty reasonable products at a competitive price. The "Higher End" stores have some great stuff at two or three times the price....and that's fine.

The key is to find something that YOU like, buy a sample and put it down in YOUR area and live with it for a couple of days in your environment, in your light.

When comparing, look down the edge for excessive "bowing." Too much makes your installer work harder. Like something? Put two of them "face to face" and see if they spin freely.....an indication of bowing...something to avoid.

Getting ready to install a bunch of it from HD....and it looks pretty decent.

Best O' Luck!

Thank you, Stonetech, that's helpful. How does one go about getting multiple sample tiles for "testing" for bowing? Whenever I ask for a sample, I get one, and it is often very difficult to get that one.

I don't think that delamination of engineered flooring is prevalent. I have heard of the Indusparquet brand but don't personally know of it's quality. I have done quite a bit of Triangulo which is probably similar. In one instance I had some flooded and the damage was minor.

I'm not sure where you got the information leading you to conclude the product was prone to delaminate, but if you like the wood, I suggest you do some further research. Furthermore, manufacturer's construction warranties are in place to guard against such an occurrence. The only exception I can think of would occur when the flooring is installed in a very arid climate and shrinkage causes cracks, checking or delamination.

Hellytoast~ Depends on where you look. HD and Lowe's have boxes of the stuff on display and you can do your testing right there. "Specialty" stores....not so much, but you still oughta be able to ask for several tiles to do the comparison.

To get a sample of tile or flooring, buy a box, and take it home and inspect, lay it down in your place. Return it when done.

You forgot "Pay the 25% restocking fee." And many tiles aren't carried in stock, but rather have to be ordered. I guess you could try to order a few sq. ft., but I'm not sure that would give you an accurate look at the whole lot, and I'd want to be fairly certain that was the actual tile that I wanted. I woudn't want the experience to be like buying paint where you end up buying dozens of samples.

Buying a sample box or boxes of flooring is less costly than ending up with the wrong floor.

I am talking about in stock items. They wont charge restocking for returning those. If it was a special order item then yes there may be a fee.

I am in FL and have had engineered hardwood floors for five years so far with no problems at all. I have Ipe wood which is an exotic and the hardest wood you can get. Gorgeous and dark. I have not heard of anyone having a problem with their engineered wood floors. Just make sure you get a reputable brand.

We're talking about a "wood look" ceramic tile here.

Actually the OP initially mentioned wood.

True....but it gravitated toward using a "wood-look" ceramic...and that's what we were talking about.

That doesn't mean you get to control the conversation. Do you want someone following you around chiding you when you suggest wood look ceramic when the question is about wood? cpartist had a valid comment based on personal experience..

Not trying to "control" anything. This was mentioned as an option....and I responded as such. You wanna use wood? Great. Go for it. You have water problems, wood is a poor choice. Porcelain eliminates that problem. Do you dispute that?

Well it sure felt like you were steering the whole conversation to tile. And why do you assume the OP will have water problems? Like I said, I'm in a high humidity area too (south Fl) and have had no problems in the five years my floors have been down. Engineered hardwood. I've seen 100 year old floors here that are in perfect condition too.

I am right across the street from the water Sophie so please tell me and all my Fl friends with our engineered wood floors why it isn't conducive for engineered wood. None of us have had a problem and most have floors older than mine. Maybe in the past it was true but engineered woods have come a long way since then

80% humidity with no humidity control that results in wide swings, dogs, kids, dark color wanted. All are a recipe for problems with a dark wood floor. Tile will not be bothered with humidity, can stand up to dog nails and kid abuse, as well as not have any scratches at all that show horribly on a dark surface. Porcelain tile doesn't scratch. Wood floor warranties require that the environment have around 30% humidity. Year round. AC in the summer, and a humidifier in the winter. You don't do that, your warranty is toast.

This has nothing to do with the quality of engineered flooring, which is quite good if you buy good quality flooring. Crappy engineered is a problem no matter what, no matter where. This has to do with the OP wanting wood to stand up to conditions where it won't perform at it's best. Whereas tile will give her the performance characteristics that she seeks. When you set yourself up for disappointment by expecting a product to not behave as it's nature has it behave, that's just not the smart product choice. Look at all of the marble threads wanting marble to behave like plastic or engineered stone and being disappointed when it behaves like marble. People can avoid that letdown if they actually pick a product that performs correctly for the usage in question. And skip all of the vanity choices for appearance's sake.

She didn't say whether or not she had humidity control. Only that outside it was very humid. Just like here. I have a dog too btw and am in and out all day long.

Agreed that crappy engineered is a problem no matter what. I used good quality.

You have a point with your comments about people avoiding letdowns because products behave as they were meant to. I was just trying to say that depending on the engineered wood (I used Ipe) you can have your cake and eat it too. No scratches, no cupping, warping, etc here.

The OP never said they have water problems. They said they have high humidity. Quite likely they're referring to outdoor humidity. I live in south Florida so I'm familiar with high humidity. Most homes here are climate controlled all year long. Many houses visible from my desk have solid wood flooring that was installed in houses here that are largely uninsulated and were built before air conditioning became prevalent and they're largely in good shape.

Some solid exotics are problematic in regards to humidity swings but engineered floors only have issues when subjected to extremely low humidity or flooding. Wood seems a feasible option in this case of this poster. Even the least expensive items I have seen are reasonably stable. The effect of low cost is generally manifested in lower grade veneer or shorter lengths.

I have nothing against wood look ceramic but it will never will never give you the board lengths, color depth and variety of a product like Triangulo 1/2" x 5-1/4" engineered plank.

Additionally, one needs to consider the leveling aspect of using wood look ceramics. From what I've heard and read, the subfloor has to be very level before installation of square edged wood look tiles.

All that said, I've often advised people that they'd be better off with carpet, vinyl, tile or another hard surface floor, when it was obvious that their situation was problematic for wood, even though I only sell wood.

I've seen some very real looking wood tile. I have some that I love in a small bathroom. However, I also have been in a home that had it installed throughout the living areas. It is a rock-hard surface -- and for that reason, not a surface I'd ever want to live on. There is no give, at all. Hard on joints, hard on a dog, for sure.

I just wanted to post and say thank you all so much for all of your opinions, and all opinions are welcome! I was considering both options and wanted a opinions from all sides..my heart wanted wood, but think I've decided that wood is too impractical for my situation.

I'll post the link to the delamination thread I found that had me worried for those who were wondering.

To bring some closure on this topic, I think I just can't get behind the tile that looks like wood because for some reason, inside of me, I feel like the material and the look are too discordant with each other, I don't know.. it's a mental thing for me, I guess!

So now I'm looking at stone and porcelain that looks like stone...I'll be posting a new thread on that shortly!

I know this is bumping up an old post but thought I would post a picture of my Ergon Woodtalk in Grey Pepper. It looks very realistic. We are impressed with the quality and look. Our installer was raving about how nice the tile is and how consistent the dimensions are.