Kitchen floor decision time!

[Moo]

I'm getting mild collywobbles about our (suspended) kitchen floor.
We've sort of decided to have engineered oak, and the sub-floor is all ready, but I'm getting a bit worried about its durability. We're not the most careful family, and whatever we put down is going to have a fair bit of punishment, and I don't want to be faced with heavy-duty maintenance every year or so.
Would we be better off with decent quality vinyl?

 

[jocelyn plummer]

I am very pleased with Rhino flooring-- have used it in all houses and it has had very hard wear with muddy feet, spillages etc. Sorry have long since lost the website, try google for Rhino flooring. Good luck, keep us posted!!!

 

[Moo]

Oh, bless you, Joss! I'll trot round to our local flooring place and suss it out this morning.

XXX

 

[dalivar]

I rented a house with oak flooring that had been down approx 10 years (not sure if it would have been engineered?). We had to rub floor wax into it every few months (which was quick and easy) and it did definately suffer with dents caused by stones in shoes and scratches from the dogs claws. It still looked good though and it seemed to cope ok with spillages. Maybe that will help a little?

 

[88v8]

We had one of Rhino flooring's imitation oak vinyls in a bedroom in our previous house. After 20 years, it still It looked very good. It's very tough, and I'd bet that with appropriately 'period' lighting in your kitchen, many people wouldn't notice that it's not the real thing.
The underfloor was carefully prepared, accurately covered with hardboard nailed down at 9" centres with ring nails.

Ivor

 

[LadyArowana]

We have Amtico? vinyl flooring in the kitchen, came with the house and has probably been down at least 10 years, likely closer to 20. I gave it a very good scrub and it really didn't look bad at all. The hallway has the same and even that was fine. We have oak elsewhere and it is vulnerable to dents if you drop something like a plug on it. Mostly that is covered with carpet though.

 

[middi]

Good engineered oak floor ( 6mm solid oak veneer glued to stabilized playwood ) is not cheap but it is very good, very stable and very long lasting.
The next best thing for authenticity is solid oak flooring ( usually not as stable as engineered oak though) and not as expensive.

Middi

 

[MdB]

We have solid oak throughout upstairs and are very happy with it. Paid £25 to £30/m^2 inc vat for it which I thought was rather good. No problems with warping or anything but then it was screwed down rather well - it took me ages... After 3 years, the only bit showing any wear is the section under my office desk and even that would be sorted with a quick sand and a new coat of Osmo.

 

[tobydog]

We have the thick engineered oak in our new kitchen extension. It's getting on for 3 years old now. Once or twice a year we give it a thorough clean (white vinegar and warm water) and then oil it with Sadolin floor oil. It still looks great but if you get up close you will see a multitude of scratch marks, mainly caused when the felt pads come off the bottom of the chairs. If you were casually passing through you wouldn't really see them so if you can get over knowing they're there then you should be fine. Our kitchen is effectively a 24' x 12' living space and gets quite heavy use. We knew the floor would have its knocks and bangs but we'll just call it character. When it comes to stains, we have a few but the floor is remarkably resilient around the oven and sink area. If you clean up quickly, and don't let liquids soak in, then you should be okay. One mistake we made was letting the floor dry out too much once before it was re-oiled and that can open it up to permanent marks. We have underfloor heating as well with makes the floor very pleasant to walk on. It all comes down to how tolerant you are with having a perfect floor forever.

 

[Moo]

It's the scratch marks from our dining chairs that are the major worry. They were part of a set in my parents' first home, which means that they probably qualify as antiques, and they weigh a ton, so lifting them gently isn't an option - they just get dragged about.

My trip to the flooring place this morning revealed another important factor - vinyl will be considerably cheaper (and Amtico would be way beyond our budget, lovely though it is).

Oh dear. This is the really difficult stage. Deciding which wall to knock down is an absolute doddle!

 

[Sonyaclegg]

Karndean is cheaper than Amtico. They are similar. I'm sure you have considered ceramic tiles, quarry or slate tiles. Easy to clean, wear well etc. I picked a large mottled limestone for all our heavy duty areas as, like your family, we are a bit crash bang wallop in every day life!

 

[Andrew Bodenham]

Moo,

It's a tricky decision, to be sure. We've got oak in our kitchen, and it's stood up to family wear. It probably needs recoating with Osmo Polyx every 5 years or so. It does collect dings and scrapes, though not as many as you might think - oak is pretty tough stuff. Any serious damage can be sanded or scraped out and retouched - such repairs are pretty much invisible with the Osmo coating. Not all finishes can be retouched so successfully.

Our chair legs etc. have had felt pads fitted to reduce scratching.

I reckon that minor wear and tear on the oak adds character; similar damage on vinyl would look like damage, and can't be refinished. Major damage may require replacement. So that makes vinyl less sustainable in my opinion.

Ultimately though it comes down to look you want, and budget.

 

[Moo]

Felt pads!
How thick? What are they stuck on with?

 

[DJH]

Felt pads available for furniture feet available from most DIY and hardware stores. Best things we've fitted Moo....

Doug

PS they're in sheets to cut out to the size you need or prepacked in different sizes and are self adhesive.

 

[jocelyn plummer]

Moo, vinyl (Rhino) is nice and warm and soft to stand on as well as being cheaper!

 

[JoceAndChris]

Is it to be a room where you spend a lot of time sitting? Or just in and out for cooking? I've never understood why people would want to live in their kitchens, they must be a lot tidier than I am. I'd go for vinyl and spend the budget on the drawing room. And if you go for vinyl now and find there's money left over (!) you could upgrade in the future.

Personally I think new boards aren't nice looking anyway, no matter what they are - sorry. It's only when they get to about 40 with all the evidence of that they start to look right, in my opinion.

 

[Moo]

Mmmmm. I suspect it's going to be vinyl, on grounds of comfort, cost, and easy maintenance.

Joce - it's a long narrow kitchen, half of which is what the agents call a dining area that opens out to the garden, and knowing us it'll be where we spend most of our time. For some reason we've always ended up with big kitchens, and social life has tended to gravitate there, even if it began in the drawing room!

 

[worms]

I've never understood why people would want to live in their kitchens, they must be a lot tidier than I am. I'd go for vinyl and spend the budget on the drawing room.

But Joce, the kitchen is where the warmth is and where the life is in most homes! Its also got the kettle, the fridge and the kit-kat cupboard! I guess the clue is also in the name of the (with)drawing room - fine if you want to withdraw for peace and quiet, but the kitchen's the place to put your feet up!

 

[JoceAndChris]

I guess it's because my habits have been formed at our previous home, where the kitchen was tiny, and here, where it's a Georgian layout with the kitchen at the end of an underground passageway in the bowels of the house. One sits in the Belvedere room with the view and the fire.

Moo - sounds good to me, as long as I could angle myself away from the washing up that needed doing and the floor all crumbs I'd be able to cope. (my kitchen, not yours!)You're going to make it lovely anyway, as you did your last home.

 

[jocelyn plummer]

Ignore the title, look at the oak effect Rhino floor!!!!