9 Different Types of Flooring

Flooring possibilities have arrive a extended way in current many years, with new engineering generating items a lot more tough, far more varied, and easier to put in. If it has been a even though because you’ve shopped for new flooring, you could be amazed (or a tiny puzzled) by the extensive array of flooring constructions.

While it isn’t difficult to find high quality flooring, it’s simple to skip out on the ideal price if you really do not know the positive aspects and sensible employs of the various flooring types obtainable these days. We’ll make the selection less difficult with this breakdown of the 9 crucial types of flooring to take into account all through your house.

The 9 Different Types of Flooring

1. Hardwood

9 Different Types of Flooring
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Hardwood floors are some of the most beautiful, functional, and desirable varieties of flooring accessible. Potential homebuyers usually desire hardwood in excess of other flooring options in living and dining locations, so installing it is a excellent way to increase your house value.

Hardwood is resilient and prolonged-long lasting since boards consist of a solitary piece of wooden. As it develops scratches and other use, you can sand and refinish hardwood a great number of occasions to make it search refreshing for many years. In phrases of aesthetics, it is hard to conquer the wealthy warmth and authentic appeal of all-natural hardwoods.

The draw back to hardwood is that the normal content can alter from dampness and temperature fluctuations. Installation demands better consideration to detail to shield the ground from mildew, rot, and damage from growth and contraction.

Pros
  • Many wood species, colors, and grain patterns to choose from
  • Beautiful aesthetic
  • Long-lasting, can be refinished several times
  • Adds home value, high ROI
Cons
  • More expensive than most plank flooring options
  • More difficult to install than other flooring types except for tile and stone
  • Not suitable for high moisture/humidity areas like bathrooms and basements

2. Engineered Hardwood

9 Different Types of Flooring
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Engineered hardwood gives the authentic shade, grain, and texture of hardwood in a more reasonably priced bundle. A thin hardwood veneer is adhered to a durable engineered wood base, offering you the exact same search and truly feel of hardwood planks.

Veneers on prime of engineered boards make this type of flooring less inclined to harm and warping from dampness and temperature changes than hardwood. It has potential in locations the place hardwood can’t go, such as basements. Regrettably, the slender veneer also indicates that you can not refinish it a number of instances to restore it to a like-new surface area.

If you want the look of hardwood but are anxious about price, this is one more very good explanation to choose for engineered hardwood. Even though hardwood usually runs among $4–$8 per sq. foot, you can discover engineered hardwood starting below $three for each sq. foot.

Pros
  • Real wood character
  • Less expensive than solid hardwood
  • More resistant to warping from temperature and moisture
  • More eco-friendly than solid wood
Cons
  • Usually can’t be refinished more than once

3. Luxury Vinyl Plank

9 Different Types of Flooring

Luxurious vinyl plank (LVP) is a much less high-priced vinyl different to hardwood or engineered wooden. You can also get it in squares as a luxurious vinyl tile (LVT). LVP generally is composed of a few levels:

  • PVC core
  • Paper print with faux wood or tile design
  • Clear vinyl wear layer

Some LVP options appear with an attached underlayment for sound-dampening and ease and comfort. The included layer also lets you skip a phase in the installation.

LVP is drinking water-resistant, simple to sustain, and even easier to install. Subfloors want small preparation since LVP is adaptable, and you don’t need to have to use a noticed to minimize it for installation. With simply click-with each other planks, all you need to have is a tape evaluate and a utility knife. You can even uncover some choices with peel-and-stick backings for a far more easy software.

Pros
  • Durable, stain and scuff-resistant wear layer
  • Easy to install and maintain
  • Wide variety of colors and patterns
  • Inexpensive
  • Versatile
Cons
  • Not waterproof, can warp from prolonged moisture exposure
  • Can dent easily from heavy objects
  • Hard to repair, can’t be refinished
  • Poor ROI
  • Emits VOCs(volatile organic compounds)

4. Rigid Core Vinyl

9 Different Types of Flooring

Rigid core vinyl is comparable to LVP, but the core is not PVC. Alternatively, it is made up of possibly a wooden-plastic composite (WPC) or a stone-plastic composite (SPC). The rigid composite will take away some of the adaptability of LVP, but it generates a one hundred% watertight product that can go in any area.

Commencing about $one for every sq. foot, LVP is a cheaper expense than rigid core, which commences at about $three per sq. foot. But because of its additional sturdiness and a hundred% water-resistant character, rigid core is typically a much better value.

Pros
  • Less expensive than hardwood or engineered wood
  • More durable than LVP
  • Several design and color options
  • 100% waterproof
  • Easier to install than wood flooring
  • Realistic wood or stone print
Cons
  • More expensive than LVP
  • Hard to repair
  • Emits VOCs

5. Laminate

9 Different Types of Flooring
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Laminate is a action down from LVP, although the two are similar in layout. The layering is the same apart from for the main. Rather of employing a PVC foundation, laminate involves an engineered higher-density fiberboard.

Starting at considerably less than $1 for each square foot, laminate is some of the most inexpensive flooring materials you can get, and it is remarkably tough for the price tag. The plastic use layer and picture print on laminate planks are equivalent to LVP, so you get a comparable water resistance and toughness towards scuffs, scratches, and stains. But due to the fact the core is created of a wood product, it’s far more susceptible to dampness damage.

Pros
  • Less expensive than LVP
  • Easy to install
  • Durable wear layer
  • Variety of available designs and colors
  • Resists warping and wear from temperature changes
Cons
  • Not 100% waterproof
  • Poor ROI
  • Hard to repair
  • Emits VOCs

6. Vinyl Sheet

9 Different Types of Flooring

The present day-working day improve to linoleum flooring, vinyl sheet flooring is a slender roll, generally possibly six ft or 12 ft vast, that lays out to blanket a area. It is the fastest and easiest flooring to set up, necessitating practically nothing much more than a utility knife in most circumstances. And due to the fact it is 1 single piece of polymerized vinyl, it provides an impenetrable moisture barrier.

The primary disadvantage of vinyl sheet flooring when compared to LVP is toughness. It can’t have the same use layer thickness or sturdy core materials, so it takes considerably significantly less work to scratch or irreparably harm it. Whilst it may be a excellent decision in a bathroom, you shouldn’t use it in high-visitors areas exactly where children and animals roam.

Pros
  • Inexpensive
  • Easy to install
  • 100% waterproof
  • Available in various colors and designs
Cons
  • Weaker than LVP
  • Poor ROI
  • Not eco-friendly
  • Emits VOCs

7. Porcelain or Ceramic Tile

9 Different Types of Flooring
Image Credit: Boris Rabtsevich, Shutterstock

Tile is to bogs and laundry rooms as hardwood is to kitchens and dwelling rooms. The authentic truly feel of porcelain or ceramic tile is unmistakable, as are the distinctive designs.

Resistant to h2o injury, impacts, and scratches, tile is the hardiest of all flooring materials. Good quality tile can final more than fifty years with correct care.

Regardless of the positive aspects in soaked locations, the chilly touch of tile and the price make it impractical in numerous situations. It is also the most challenging to set down, and there is a high potential for irreversible errors if you’re trying a Do it yourself installation.

Pros
  • Long-lasting and durable
  • Easy to maintain
  • Beautiful, authentic look
  • Waterproof
  • Available in wood-look planks and a variety of colors and designs
Cons
  • More expensive than vinyl alternatives
  • Not as versatile as most other flooring options
  • Difficult to install
  • Cold and hard underfoot
  • Hard to repair if cracked

8. Stone

9 Different Types of Flooring
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Unlike many other flooring varieties, organic stone can make feeling in equally indoor and outdoor places, introducing unrivaled elegance and attractiveness to a patio or lavatory. You can use stone cut into uniform tiles or produce natural designs with all-natural designs. Like tile, it’s stout towards abrasions and scratches, and it handles dampness properly.

Stone can be high-priced and tough to keep, based on the stone sort and finishing approach. Many cleaners are too abrasive, so you want to be gentle with stone to avoid breakdown.

Pros
  • Beautiful and unique aesthetic
  • Durable against abrasion and pressure
  • Water-resistant
Cons
  • Expensive
  • Can be difficult to install and maintain
  • Cold and hard underfoot

9. Carpet

9 Different Types of Flooring
Image Credit: Chastity Cortijo, Unsplash

Carpet is arguably the most comfy flooring choice, and it can be a easy venture for a DIYer. Peel-and-stick tiles allow for a uncomplicated, equipment-free set up, and there’s small subfloor prep function required.

In contrast to hard flooring, carpet is challenging to thoroughly clean if there is a spill or grime mark. New carpet fiber technological innovation is top to a lot more stain-resistant alternatives, but carpet even now has less longevity and sturdiness than tough flooring choices.

Pros
  • Soft, safer for kids
  • Warm and plush underfoot
  • Easy to install
  • Inexpensive
Cons
  • Difficult to clean
  • Poor durability and longevity
  • Traps dust and allergens

What Is the Most Popular Type of Flooring?

In accordance to Statista, hardwood is the most well-liked flooring option for house owners doing a kitchen area renovation, adopted by vinyl plank and then tile. The extra benefit of sound hardwood along with its prolonged-lasting attractiveness and comfy truly feel are excellent causes to choose for hardwood throughout the property.

What Is the Best Type of Flooring for My Room?

As adaptable as hardwood may possibly be, it isn’t ideal for every single space, specifically in places inclined to dampness. Hardwood is best for living rooms, hallways, dining rooms, kitchens, and bedrooms. Although you may possibly be able to get it to function in loos, basements, or laundry rooms, the added cash and hard work to waterproof it are seldom well worth it.

Bathroom and Laundry Rooms

Tile or rigid core vinyl is suggested in the rest room and laundry room. Stone and vinyl sheets are very good alternatives right here as properly, but they really don't have the identical blend of toughness and dampness resistance as tile and rigid core possibilities.

Bedrooms

In the bed room, decide on cozy flooring. Carpet is a excellent low-value selection below, but you can also use reliable hardwoods, engineered wooden, or LVP. With an region rug under the bed, you give your bare feet a comfortable landing to start off the day.

9 Different Types of Flooring
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Basements

Depending on dampness stages in the basement, LVP and rigid main are the greatest options. If you offer with flooding, large humidity, or considerations about burst pipes, use a waterproof set up like rigid main vinyl planks. They won’t fail from humidity penetration, and they’re adaptable enough to offer with basis settling—an excellent function if you are ending a basement on a new house.

Living and Dining Areas

The best floor for dwelling and dining places depends on who life in the house. Carpets and hardwoods function fantastic in these spaces, but if you have animals and little ones, you may want to go an low-cost however sturdy route with LVP. It will resist scratches, and it is simple to thoroughly clean spills and messes with no problem. And if it does get damaged outside of restore, it’s low cost and efficient to swap out.

Kitchens

There’s a delicate danger of dampness from spills and water leaks in the kitchen area, but it is usually effortless to get hardwood to work in this region. Outside the house of carpet, you can use any flooring materials in the kitchen.

The strongest and most sensible alternative in the kitchen is tile, but for aesthetics, you might want to decide on a plank alternative. If you have an open up notion, making use of hardwoods or vinyl plank through the kitchen, dwelling space, eating area, and hallways will make the area look larger.

Final Thoughts

Several variables can decide the ideal flooring for your space. Consider about who uses it, what variety of hurt it could experience, and what your ultimate objectives are for your home. Once you know your priorities and requirements, this listing of the nine flooring sorts will assist you discover quality flooring you’ll be sure to get pleasure from.

See Also: nine Distinct Varieties of Flooring Molding (With Pictures)


Featured Picture Credit history: Artem Bruk, Shutterstock

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