Hardwood floor backlash

[G. Viernes]

Was it in the 70s that people began to be crazy for hardwood floors?

Lately it seems like everyone I know is laying thick carpet over perfectly good hardwood floors. One woman told me she was doing it because she has chronic heel pain. Another said she just can’t stand chasing the dust bunnies around the floor anymore. Is sweeping really that much of a burden? Are we finally experiencing a hardwood floor backlash?

[joelpat]

Not me.

I won't have a scrap of carpet in my house. Any dust bunnies you have to chase around your hardwoods are just dust bunnies you don't see in your carpet.

[G. Viernes]

I know. It’s so much easier to take car of floors these days I can’t understand why anyone would complain. My thoughts are, if you’re too lazy to do it yourself, just get a Roomba for crying out loud. Although she’s not particularly a lazy woman.

[giddonah]

We're carpeting over our flooring in rentals. It provides for some sound deadening. It protects the floors. New carpet is more luxurious. Carpet is better for allergies (someone a few months ago posted this).

There are pros and cons to carpet/wood. I'm not sure I have a preference for all applications. I will agree quickly however to HW being much better than old dirty cheap carpet. When the carpet is taken care of though, it's not so cut and dry for me.

[joelpat]

No way. Carpet is far worse for allergies. Not only allergies to the off gassing that you can get, but allergies to all the stuff that accumulates in it. Then there is the flying dust gererated by vacuming.

A friends dad has severe allergies and asthma. He had all of the carpet in the house removed, and replaced with hardwood on Dr's orders.

[Sweep]

Same experience here with allergies and asthma, no carpets allowed.

My house was built in 1891 and has the most besutiful white oak flooring I have ever seen. I don't think hardwood flooring is ever going out of style.

[Dragon]

Another allergy sufferer chiming in, carpet is the devil.

[Tom R]

Besides, nothing, and I mean nothing, beats the beauty of hardwood floors, - - at least to me.

[montytx]

We tear out tacky carpet in all of our properties. I cant think of anything I hate more in a house than carpeting. It just says cheap to me, and always looks like crap after a year. Also have you ever torn up carpet and seen all the crap that is under it. IF you have you would not ever say that carpet helps with allergies. It is a cess pool for microbes.

[roger g]

Whatever happened to the hardwood flooring that you had to finish yourself? You had to install it, sand it and varnish it. Back then you only varnished the floor. I never heard of anyone staining it. If you had a maple floor it realy was maple or cherry real was cherry.
It just struck me that I haven't seen it years. I have noticed that there is a lot of cheaper 3/4 inch flooring on sale lately. It doesn't look as shiny as the stuff just a few years ago.



roger

[Dragon]

It is fairly common down this way.

Mostly oak and mostly stained after installation.

[montytx]

That is why I like old houses. nice quarter sawn pine or oak with beautiful long grain, just dont make it like than anymore.