3 Low-Maintenance, Affordable Flooring Options

I have lived in quite a few home spaces in my life, and I’ve seen lots of changes in design style over the decades. As a senior citizen, my tastes have changed and adapted to my stage in life too. Fads come and go which makes me tend to prefer more classic elements of design when updating my home.

Some of you who have visited me for a few years, may remember when I updated my small house with tile floors. It was something I had wanted from the day I bought the house. Wall to wall carpet was the latest thing in the 1950’s, but a lifetime of dealing with its maintenance had greatly diminished my pleasure. The new expensive blue berber carpet had been chosen by the previous owner. Below is the carpet next to the kitchen tile. Oh, I hated it!

I chose a wood-look tile and loved its look and maintenance. I think it helped sell the house too.

When I purchased my condo almost a year and a half ago, I was looking for beautiful, low-maintenance floors. Really floors set the stage for your home’s environment with your furniture and decorations. I saw condos with part rug, part tile, and part LVP. I saw old tiled condos, old rugged condos, and the one I chose with all luxury viny plank except for the 2 tiled bathrooms. Design professionals suggest no more than two types of flooring in your home like tile and wood. When you have a smaller space, the same flooring makes a home or apartment look larger. A different floor in every space makes it look smaller and chopped up.

Flooring can make or break your living space, but you want to choose something that not only looks nice but has an air of practicality about it. Ideally, you want flooring that’s super easy to maintain and isn’t a pain in the neck. With so many options out there, it’s hard to know the right ones to pick – so here’s a breakdown of the top three best and worst flooring types for a low-maintenance home. I am considering the floors for maintenance.

I. Tiles

Ceramic and porcelain tiles are both phenomenal flooring types to have in your home. They suit bathrooms and kitchen areas because they’re exceptionally durable and water resistant. You also don’t need to do anything other than casual sweeping and cleaning to keep them in good condition. Plus, if a tile cracks or breaks, then you can replace it with tile repair services, rather than needing to rip up and reinstall the entire floor. 

II. Laminate Flooring

Laminate flooring looks like wood (which is a great plus), but is way easier to manage. It’s resistant to scratches and won’t fade, but it also has wonderful durability to deal with high foot traffic. Granted, it’s not the best for bathrooms or kitchens, but it makes a fantastic carpet alternative in living rooms, bedrooms, and hallways. 

III. LVP (Luxury Vinyl Plank)

Made using the latest vinyl materials, LVP is the ultimate flooring affordable option for a house that doesn’t cause stress. It hits all the right spots: resistant to moisture, easy to clean, scratchproof, and durable. It’s the type of flooring you can put in any room and don’t have to worry about maintenance; just vacuum it, clean it with a mop now and then, and you’re all good. 

Higher-Maintenance Flooring Options

Picking any of the three flooring options above will mean you don’t have to worry about your floors or conduct extensive maintenance tasks. Does that mean certain flooring types will require these demands?  If you have a large budget and want luxury, then the higher maintenance of real stone and wood should not deter you. Just have a realistic budget for maintenance.

Here’s a quick look at the three higher-maintenance flooring options: 

A. Carpet

Carpet can be a good choice for homes, particularly in bedrooms, nurseries, and dens, due to its comfort, warmth, and noise reduction. However, it’s important to consider factors like allergens, cleaning ease, and durability, especially in areas with moisture or for individuals with allergies or asthma. Then you have a home that causes stress. When I ripped up the carpet in my last home, there were piles of sand and dirt under the carpet next to the walls in each room. No carpet cleaning machine could remove that!

II. Hardwood

A proper hardwood floor is luxurious and looks brilliant, but it requires higher maintenance. You need to use a real wood cleaner on it with regular recoating to keep it in good condition. It may look nice, but the effort required to maintain it may make you question its worth. My sister’s home has all original hardwood from the 1940’s except the bathrooms. She has wool rugs in each room of her home with hardwoods. They protect the wood, but the carpets need regular cleaning with the vacuum. Every few years, the rugs are removed in the summer and taken to a professional cleaner for cleaning. It’s a great look, but again lots of maintenance.

III. Natural Stone

Again, any type of natural stone flooring looks amazing, yet requires more maintenance. Maintaining a stone floor involves regular cleaning with a pH-neutral cleaner and water, sweeping or vacuuming to remove debris, and re-sealing every 12-24 months to protect against stains and moisture. It’s crucial to avoid harsh chemicals and acidic cleaners that can damage the stone. 

Hopefully, this discussion should make it easier to pick the right flooring options when decorating your home. There’s nothing “wrong” with high-maintenance flooring; it just makes your home harder to care for. If you are going for luxury, then maintenance of all of your home should be in your budget. If you’d rather relax while enjoying a beautiful abode with fewer maintenance demands, then the first three options make the most sense.

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