4.02 Floor Treatments

Floors Usually the first background treatment planned in a room Consider purpose of room, amount of traffic, does it fit into color scheme of the room, what is the appearance, comfort, durability, cost, and maintenance.

Soft Floor Coverings Known as carpets and rugs Advantages: Insulate cold floors Provide sound control and walking comfort Add color and texture to a room

Carpet Wall-to-wall: covers an entire floor. Makes room appear larger, can hide a poor quality floor. Cannot be moved and some parts will show wear faster (especially in high traffic areas) Most carpets are made from NYLON

Rugs Room size: exposes a border of floor, usually hardwoods. These rugs may be expensive to clean. Area rugs: vary in size, but do not cover the entire floor. Used to define specific areas of a room, can be a focal point, can moved to different parts of the home with ease. Some may be machine washed.

Padding Used under carpet and rugs to extend life Lessens wear and increases resilience Adds luxury and warmth Made of hair, jute, sponge, foam rubber Can be inexpensive or very expensive. High cost = high quality = longer life

WOOD Most popular flooring material. Looks good with all styles of furniture Adds beauty and warmth to a room Durable and resists dents Cost is moderate to high depending on quality and type

Hard Woods Typically more expensive Oak, hard maple, beech, birch, hickory, mahogany, cherry, teak Oak is the most common because of beauty, warmth and durability

Soft Woods Southern yellow pine, Douglas fir, hemlock Redwood, cedar, cypress, eastern white pine are also used. Usually softer and dent easily

Wood Floor Applications Most common method is STRIP flooring. Nail down thin strips of wood that are tongue and grooved to keep them close together. Decorative patterns (parquet)

Resilient Flooring Vinyl Resists stains, grease and bleach Durable and easy to clean Vast assortment of colors and patterns Most have no-wax finish Can have appearance of wood, stone, tile Sold in sheet form (no seams shown) or individual tiles (peel and stick)

Resilient Flooring Laminate- Manufactured Made from fiberboard that is covered with a photo reproduction of wood, stone, etc. Top layer of plastic provides protection from wear and tear. Durable, comfortable, resists dents and scratches Very inexpensive compared to real wood or stone

Tile Ceramic: available in wide range of sizes, colors, patterns Cool to touch, hard, durable Glazed tile is water and stain resistant Expensive to install Most commonly used in bathrooms, entryways, and can be used in any room in warmer climates (Florida, Southwestern states)

Calculations To determine the number of square yards of floor covering needed in a room: Multiply the length x width of room and divide by 9 ALWAYS ROUND UP to nearest whole number, cannot buy if a portion EX: 10 feet x 10 feet = 100 ft/9 = 11.111=12yds

Housing Decisions pages 310-316 Homes and Interiors pages 458, 555-558 Copyright ©2007, ABCD, All rights reserved