Engineered Hardwood, Luxury Vinyl Plank, or Luxury Vinyl Tile/Stone?

2 years ago

last modified: 2 years ago

We are Building a house in central Florida. What type of flooring do you recommend- engineered hardwood, luxury vinyl plank, or luxury vinyl tile/ stone? I don’t like tile because it is cold/ hard and I don’t want to clean grout. No kids yet but plan to soon and we have a lab. The flooring would be in main living areas like kitchen, living room, dining, laundry room, and powder room.

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SJ McCarthy

2 years ago

Sorry cpartist...humidity control is a real requirement for wood. My posts have to do with the 'general public'. Many of whom do not know about the strict requirements for hardwoods. How many Houzz threads have ended with homeowners stating, "I didn't know. No one told me."

Installation on concrete is TOTALLY POSSIBLE. It takes extra effort. And that means money. Hardwoods in Florida are POSSIBLE but they take extra effort and that means more money.

Some areas of Florida have humidity that is too high for A/C to take care of completely. It takes more effort in those areas to keep hardwood happy. More effort means more money.

All of these issues are out there. Not everyone faces them....but enough people do to make a statement like mine. Forewarned is fore armed. No one has been hurt with 'too much information'.

As a wood flooring professional/cork flooring expert I am aware of many of these issues. I've seen the fall out. I've been on the phone with people who DID NOT KNOW. I've had to deny warranty because of house hold environments being OUTSIDE the manufacturer's requirements.

What was the owner's biggest complaint? "I didn't know! No one told me." My response was to ensure homeowners look to the environment as a whole...not just the want for 'wood'. It my response helps ONE PERSON realize the steps needed to REALIZE their dreams of owning hardwoods then I am happy.

I wish you well.

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Comments (9)

kculbers
2 years ago
Hi. I had pergo wood laminate installed in my kitchen and extended it to the bathroom that is adjacent to the kitchen for a seamless look. I have had it about 8 years now. Still looks new. I have dropped all kinds of things on that flooring. And NO dents or dings or anything. You can not tell it’s not real wood. Even my brother thought it was wood and he is a high end real a state appeaser in Manhattan.
I have porcelain wood look tile for my hallway and two other bathrooms.
The Pergo cleans with vinegar and water. Nothing sticks to it
The porcelain is also easy to clean with vinegar and water.
I like to use healthy cleaning products.
Best of luck in your choices❣️
SJ McCarthy
2 years ago
Installing hardwood in Florida takes extra effort. The first part of that effort is having EXCELLENT humidity control in the home. In hot, humid climates that means the A/C might not be enough. It might require an additional whole-home dehumidifier. It can also rule out an 'open window' type of home. Again, it depends on the location and the humidity levels.

Hardwoods must be kept in a 'happy humidity' range between 45% - 60%. At all times. Every minute of every day. For ever and ever. And ever and ever. That means you will spend more on your HVAC system to have that type of 'push button' control (whole home humidifier/dehumidifier).

And then the type of build also dictates the best practice for installation of hardwoods. A concrete slab takes extra effort to glue down wood. A high-end adhesives must be used and those add $2-$3/sf...just for the glue. The hardwood and labour are on top of that.

In Florida, the most appropriate floors are stone, tile, terrazzo or concrete. All of which are hard and cold. Of course a cool floor in a hot climate is a BENEFIT...not a drawback. Part of the cold flooring is it helps keep the house feeling cool.

Vinyl is then the next option. The difference between the 'wood look' or the stone/tile look is simply aesthetics. If you LIKE the look of wood, then go for it. If you LIKE the look of stone/tile, then go for it.

With vinyl you will require very good UV block on your windows. Ask your builder what level you have on your windows right now. You will want to find something with UV block ABOVE 50%. I prefer to see 70% - 75%. That keeps the vinyl and the house cool. But it also makes growing indoor plants a difficulty. Plants struggle with UV blocking windows at 70% or higher.
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Yes, I have had three experiences with vinyl plank flooring, as follows: My father installed Konecto in his addition- a woodworking shop, bathroom workout room (with treadmill) and wine cellar (including stairs). The floor has been in for over two years and looks fantastic. Any scratches disappear with the same vinyl spray you use on your car's dashboard. I installed Konecto in the bathroom of my home that has now become a rental. The floor was so uneven that the tile installed, most likely just prior to sale, cracked and the grout fell out within a week of my moving in. Wet towels and puddles of water have sat on the year-old vinyl plank, with no problems. My father owns a working farm that he rents; Allure was installed in the kitchen and held up to the mud-and-gravel-encrusted boots that slog through the kitchen. It has been in for almost a year and looks great. These experiences drew me to vinyl plank flooring in the house I "inherited" when I got married; however, I still researched other options such as hardwoods and laminates. While it is a personal choice, I have found the following in my particular case: The house, in its present condition, needs so much work that we are upside down already (purchased from a family member, you know how it goes...) and have major expenses such as plumbing, electric, flooring and a kitchen- the current kitchen is gutted. For my neighborhood, I will never recoup the costs, even at bargain-basement prices. This is something all remodelers should consider- are you creating a $300,000 home in a $150,000 neighborhood? Also, with the way that folks love to remodel these days and put their own stamp on their homes, who is to say that the next owners won't cover your beautiful hardwoods with carpet? Finally, practicality: we have 2 dogs and 3 cats and plan for children soon. In our shotgun house we don't want to break up the visual aesthetic of openness by having different types of flooring in the living room, dining room, kitchen and bath, we wanted a unified, seamless look For water resistance, vinyl is the way to go. Not to mention the logistics of installation- in our situation the thickness of the vinyl works best with our current flooring/trim combination. If my situation were different, I might choose a different floor, but when looking at the whole picture, vinyl seemed the way to go for us! We also plan on staying here for some time, so resale is less of a concern, but it is in our minds (though I have never bought a house I didn't change, so your potential buyer might too!). If you would like pictures of the three aforementioned vinyl plank "experiences" I can ask family members/tenants to send some. Also, check out your local commercial joints. For example, my grocery store has vinyl plank floors that look great after 5 years of squeaky, wobbly cart wheels running over them. Hope this helps and good luck with your remodel!!
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One Devoted Dame
2 years ago
Awhile back, I had an in-home consultation with a mom-and-pop flooring shop, and the son of the owner strongly suggested that I abandon the idea of LVP, largely because I want a dark floor. He said that by "pet-proof, kid-proof, and waterproof" the manufacturers really just mean "waterproof." He said I'd notice every single scratch every morning (my living/dining/kitchen all face south), and that it would drive me nuts. One of the samples I brought home actually had a huge scratch across it, so that was the final nail in the coffin for me.

I have a lot of kids and a fondness for large/giant dogs. The color of the LVP might make a difference; dark colors tend to show damage more readily. My husband and I are now debating between wood-look tile (I was assured of very tight grout lines) or engineered hardwood. We're in hot and humid Central Texas. :-)
Ken Fisher
2 years ago
"Every minute of every day. For ever and ever. And ever and ever. "

Slow down SJ. I know Florida. Every minute? I guess I'm the lucky one that includes Hurricane Irma that shutdown power for 14 days. No effect on my engineered floor.

Folks it's not as complicated as some say. Just follow proper specs with someone that knows what they're doing and not a handyman.

more on engineered floors in Florida
PRO
Oak & Broad
2 years ago
We ship a TON of Engineered floors to FLA. Its just important to make sure you keep the humidity levels within product specs. Most AC units will do this no problem.
cpartist
2 years ago
SJ if you don't know what you're talking about please don't respond. I've had engineered hardwood on concrete first in my condo and now throughout the downstairs of my house. Upstairs the engineered hardwood is on top of whatever they put on the second floor.

I've never had a problem with my engineered hardwood floors. We have something here called air conditioning. It's amazing in that it helps keep the humidity levels low enough to not create problems.
One Devoted Dame
2 years ago
Some areas of Florida have humidity that is too high for A/C to take care of completely.

I totally believe this.

My husband just bought a portable dehumidifier for the kitchen/dining/family room, less than a week ago. We have it set at 45%-50% humidity. When it turns itself off (after the bucket is full of water, which takes our particular unit 10 hours or less), I don't always have time *right then and there* to empty the bucket. If I wait even an hour, then the unit registers 70% humidity, and has to work harder to bring the humidity back down.

I never realized how much water was in our air. I'm able to water all of my trees, shrubs, and perennials with all of the water extracted from the air. It's crazy. :-O
Jackson Dean
2 years ago
last modified: 2 years ago
I had Coretec Hayes Oak installed in my house; it would be a bright and airy color LVP and perfect for FL. Sometimes I look at it and think it looks like the color of sand! I love it. It cleans up very easy, the color goes with all wood tones. It is wide planked -- 8.98" x 72.05" x 8 mm -- the width and length cut down on that patterny look. My photos on are this thread (as are some from other members).

https://www.houzz.com/discussions/5750480/coretec-hayes-oak-photos#25331096

Engineered Hardwood, Luxury Vinyl Plank, or Luxury Vinyl Tile/Stone?

SJ McCarthy

Comments (9)

kculbers

SJ McCarthy

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