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Your vision
Home renovation has become the biggest thing in America. Cable home renovation shows tell us how to upgrade our homes, what materials to use, and where to use them. All we have to do is obtain a permit, establish a budget, and we're off.
What they don't tell us is the factors outside materials and permits that go into a renovation. We don't see the rains making everything damp so that mold forms. We don't see the humidity that makes hardwood floors warp and paint peel. Nor do we see the cold that makes pretty much everything shrink including us.
Therefore, the first thing we need to do is to find materials that will stand up to the weather. Huntsville isn't ground zero for blizzards, nor is it in the path of hurricanes or other natural disasters. It is, however, a hot, humid place that knows the biting cold of winter. We should plan our materials accordingly.
Why Tile Flooring is The Answer
The next time you have an hour of free time, step into a flooring showroom. Now, pick your jaw up off the floor, and head for the tile portion of the showroom. There will be so much diversity there that you might not recognize anything resembling the tile with which you grew up.
Today's flooring is manufactured to resemble hardwood and natural stone, with all their different types. The plain white ceramic tile floors you remember have given way to granite, marble, travertine, limestone, mosaic, cement, and glass, to name just a few.
If hardwood is your thing, remember that tiling made to look like hardwood will not warp. You'll never have to have it stripped and resealed. It won't suffer the damages water does to wood, even if you have the bathroom, laundry room, kitchen, or basement tiled in it.
Certain types of tile should be used in high-traffic areas of a home. Other types should be used in wet areas, lower traffic areas, a fireplace surround, and hearth, or as a kitchen backsplash. While it's less costly to do it yourself, there are some instances in which a contractor is necessary.
Call us today at
256-858-7365
Types Of Tile Flooring
Natural Stone
Natural stone isn't just for pool surrounds, walkways, and garden paths anymore. It's used throughout a house due to its textured nature, which makes it good for non-slip and falls. However, these are porous materials and require sealing frequently to prevent staining. This is especially true in natural stone kitchen counters and floors. The exception to this is non-porous granite and slate.
Natural stone is best used on walls, where it won't become stained or etched. Limestone, travertine, quarry tiles, and marble tiling require sealing on a regular basis to maintain its stain-proof capability. These should be used in low-traffic areas as flooring or as walls in kitchens and baths.
Glass, Porcelain, Mosaic, And Ceramic
Ceramic tile is what most of us have had in our homes growing up. Mostly white tile decorated the bathroom floor and walls. Porcelain tile quickly became popular due to its mimicry of stone, wood, and even brick. Glass and mosaic tile made their appearance with all their colors and patterns. Homeowners renovating their homes had a difficult choice before them.
The snag to all these is that they chip easily, and some stain easily.
Experts agree that the best uses for these are as fireplace surrounds, the kitchen backsplash, as well as tops for tables, desks, and bathroom walls.
Not convinced yet?
Here are some of the additional benefits of tile floors
- Durability. Tile stands up well to high traffic areas. With proper maintenance, tile floors could very well last the life of the house
- Ease of maintenance. Just run a damp mop over a tile floor to clean it. If the floor is properly sealed, wiping up spills or acidic substances is a simple matter of a cloth and warm water
- Adds value to a home. Flooring is one of the first things buyers look for in a house. If the flooring adds to the good air quality in the home, and the flooring has a long life and looks pretty, then that house could very well sell quickly.
Why Tile Shouldn't Be A DIY Project
The reason most of us do our own
home improvement projects is to save time and money. Generally, small projects do just that. However, when it comes to the wiring and plumbing it takes to renovate a kitchen or bathroom, the whole thing is best left to the professionals.
Saving Time
Without a formal education in flooring, plumbing, and wiring, the DIYer has recourse to Google, YouTube, and manuals from the library. It takes time to read them all, get all the details into your head, and build up the confidence to begin. A professional would have known what he was doing, finished the project in a few hours, and cleaned up after himself in record time.
Saving Money
You've got numerous boxes of flooring materials, the adhesive to attach them to the subfloor, and the sealant necessary to finish them. Unknown to you was the fact that that brand of flooring was discontinued, and you need more to finish the project. It will take two more weeks to ship extra materials you found on the Internet to you at quite some cost. A professional would have known these details and steered you toward a similar product that would have worked well, saving you a bundle.
To take advantage of these benefits, call us today at 256-858-7365.