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Old 01-11-2023, 07:12 PM   #1089 (permalink)
JSH
AKA - Jason
 
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I'm a big fan of stranded bamboo flooring and tile.

We replaced all the flooring in our house in Alabama. The Kitchen, Dining, Bathrooms and Washer/Dryer area was a thick commercial tile. That turned out really good and we had no problem with the grout staining - but I also sealed it which many "professional" installers do not do. The Living Room, Hall, and Entry way were stranded bamboo that a professional did. That turned out really well too and was glued down. In our bedrooms I did cork flooring myself. It was just a simple floating floor that I had no issues with. Everything held up fine for years including our dog's nails.

For our house in Oregon I ripped up the carpet and new "premium vinyl plank" flooring and put down the same stranded bamboo I used in the Alabama house. Big mistake. The instructions said my floor was flat enough to do floating with a felt like sheet under it but even 7 years later it still creaks when the weather changes and the floating planks drift and show gaps around the baseboards that I have to fix. On a wooden subfloor I won't do anything except nail down again. That said it has been durable - no scratches. The bathroom just got "Premium" vinyl plank that looks like tile (complete with actual 3D fake grout lines). It looks OK now but I'm not sure it last like the bamboo or real tile.

If I lived in an area with a lot of concrete construction I wouldn't hesitate to go full tile flooring all through the house like I've seen in some areas of Europe and Latin America. Looks good and lasts basically forever.
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