It keeps the house looking consistent If you have a color scheme or style that you love, having the same flooring flow from room to room will allow you to extend that feel throughout your entire home. Using the same flooring material ensures your home will have an elevated and cohesive design.
One of the most common questions we get is “Should flooring be the same throughout the house?” While the answer to that depends on the design of your home and your tastes. It's not unusual for a home to have different types of flooring.
That means homeowners can use any type of flooring in the kitchen area as long as it complements the design of the home. Whether your kitchen flooring should just be an extension to what you are already using throughout your home or if you should choose something different, depends on your personal taste.
Match your upstairs and downstairs with your stairs by choosing the same type of flooring, so the transition will be smooth. However, if the floors are of different styles and designs, go for one that spells neutral territory. This allows you to incorporate elements from both floor levels for a more seamless look.
For odd-shaped rooms, your contractor may suggest that you change the direction of the floors and use a transition piece or threshold in the doorway. However, the more you can keep your floors running in the same direction, the better the final product.
3) Parallel or diagonal flooring
Believe it or not, the way flooring is installed can help make a room look bigger than it is. As a general trick of the trade, installing flooring such as boards running parallel to the longest wall in the room instantly makes a room appear more spacious.
So, yes, they could be dangerous, especially for people with mobility issues. However, the real problem is whatever caused the differential settlement that led to the floor becoming uneven. If differential settlement isn't fixed, it could lead to structural damage.
In some cases, a slight slope may be normal and not cause for concern. However, if the slope is severe or getting worse over time, it could be a sign of a serious problem that requires immediate attention. One potential risk of sloping floors is damage to the structural integrity of the home.
As mentioned above, it's common to find slanted floors in a house more than 15 years old due to the home's foundation shifting over time. However, the uneven floor may be an indicator of a larger, unseen problem with the house.
Keeping that extra flooring from your project ensures that when it's time to make a repair and replace a plank or two, you'll have the same perfectly-matched material on hand.
If your floor will be more than two inches high, it is recommended that you install it before putting in the appliances and cabinets. This will ensure that the height of the work surface of the countertops, cabinets, and appliances is at the right level - 36 inches.
So if you're in the kitchen, you might see tile and as you look into the living room, there might be wood flooring and as your eye travels to the bedroom, you might see carpet, but nothing else. You shouldn't see more than three flooring types at once, or else the home starts to look cluttered and eclectic.
Transitioning between Floors of Different Heights
Floor transition strips can come in vinyl or hardwood –the latter of which can be stained to match the color of the adjoining floor. There are also transition strips designed to provide a seamless transition from laminate flooring to tile flooring.
Typically, your flooring will be made up of four different layers. Each of these layers plays a distinct part in keeping your flooring in tact. In some cases, only three flooring layers are necessary. Likewise, in other, more rare cases, you'll see more than four layers.
No subfloor is perfectly level, but any signs of unevenness and high or low spots must be remedied. Please follow these requirements: Subfloor unevenness cannot be greater than 3/16 of an inch over a 10-foot span or 1/8 inch over a 6-foot span. Subfloors must not slope more than ½ inch per 6 feet (25 mm per 1.8 m)
Uneven floors are most common in old homes because the home's foundation shifts over time. For example, it may take about 15-20 years for a foundation to shift and the floors to become uneven.
Uneven floors are rarely caused by problems with the floor itself. The cause is usually settling or shifting of the foundation underneath the floors. If the floor beams and joists are made from wood, like the ones above a crawl space, they will usually bend rather than crack.
The best flooring for uneven floors due to its attractiveness and durability is epoxy, which can also be designed to mimic a wide variety of appearances. Not only will epoxy finish out the floor, but it'll also even it out.
Both vinyl and laminate floors are versatile and durable options that can be installed over slightly uneven surfaces. They are relatively inexpensive, easy to clean and maintain, and come in a wide range of patterns and colors so you don't have to sacrifice style for function.
However, using matching flooring is ultimately a personal choice, and there is no right or wrong answer. With hardwood flooring, you can mix and match by using different colored hardwood floors in adjacent rooms. These color variations in your hardwood can be as subtle or drastic as you want.
If you have a color scheme or style that you love, having the same flooring flow from room to room will allow you to extend that feel throughout your entire home. Using the same flooring material ensures your home will have an elevated and cohesive design.
There are many things that DO make a room look smaller. Dark walls can. Large furniture definitely does. But dark floors add a richness to the décor and if played right, can actually make a room look more spacious.