How to Choose the Right Flooring for Your Home

Choosing new flooring can be an intimidating job. There are numerous materials to select from and every kind has a range of choices that comes with it. As well, there is a diversity of considerations to be made, depending on such factors as traffic, room size and the like.

Here are the top flooring materials available today:

Hardwood

Thanks to hardwood's toughness and warm, homey feel, it is still one of the most popular flooring options for plenty of homeowners. Among the hardwoods, oak is also still among the most common choices, along with cherry.

Laminate

Laminate is easier to install compared to solid wood hardwood floors and is a lot cheaper too. Laminate floors got their name from their components, which are basically different wood-based materials piled and laminated together, before being topped with a wood grain imprint at the surface.

Bamboo

As opposed to hardwood floors, bamboo floors aren't made with a tree, but ratter a type of woody, fast-regenerating grass with the tensile strength of steel. This is what gives bamboo its durability and its ability to resist humidity-related contraction and swelling. Learn more about flooring at https://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-flooring.html.

Cork

As with bamboo, cork is an environment-friendly alternative with a honeycomb-like cellular structure, making it cushiony against the foot. This unique property of the wood enables it to bounce back when dimpled, as well as absorb sound and vibrations.

Linoleum

Linoleum is known as an eco-friendly alternative, being made from all natural components. That means it does not contribute to forest depletion. It is mainly constructed from linseed oil, wood flour and rosins and has bactericidal properties.

Tile

There are different types of tiles, but porcelain, terra cotta and natural stone, like slate, travertine, granite and marble, are the most popular. When choosing tiles on a tight budget, porcelain is the cheapest choice. It is both beautiful and tough, but is significantly more cost-effective compared to marble, which requires regular resealing due to its porous nature. Read about the best hardwood flooring installation cost.

Vinyl

Vinyl is among the most value-conscious flooring materials nowadays. It is very popular for rooms with moisture issues, like kitchens and bathrooms, is easy to clean and feels much softer against the foot compared to tile from the floors company.

Concrete

Lastly, concrete is one of the trendiest flooring options these days. With a whole variety of sealers and stylish stains, plain concrete an be easily stamped and made to look like marble, brick pavers or even tiles. Any look you want can be reproduced, and that is the most appreciated feature of concrete floors.