For many people, renovation is one of the first things they tackle when they buy a new home. There are a number of popular renovation projects ranging from landscaping and bathroom to kitchens and flooring. After that first round of renovations, though, the remodeling bug often takes a back seat to other concerns, such as jobs or child-rearing.
Yet, your home accumulates wear and tear from daily activities. Your floors, in particular, take a lot of abuse. So, how do you know when it’s time for a floor replacement project. If you’ve been eyeing your floors recently, keep reading for some key signs you need a new floor.
Wear and Tear
Every floor will pick up some flaw over time. Your carpet has a lingering stain from the infamous “red wine incident.” The pets take a toll on the finish of that engineered hardwood.
These kinds of wear and tear go hand-in-hand with living somewhere. When you start seeing deep scratches or stains that won’t come out, it’s time for a new floor installation.
Structural Damage
Wood floors are often beautiful and give a lot of character to a home. In cases where the floors saw a lot of extended neglect, however, a floor repair won’t always do the trick. If there is structural damage to the wood, it’s often more practical to replace it.
Water Damage
Nothing destroys flooring like a flood in the home. Saturated carpeting is almost always a total loss. Wood flooring might or might survive.
It’s anyone’s guess what might grow underneath that vinyl or linoleum after a flood. After water damage, you should expect that you’ll need new flooring in all of the affected areas. If you need a quick fix until you can replace it with something similar, there are cheap flooring options available.
End of Life
One of the big selling points for hardwood flooring is that you can sand and refinish it over and over again. At a certain point, though, you can’t sand and refinish again. If you reach that point, it’s time for you to install a floor.
You Want Something Else
Your particular tastes can change over time. That tile you loved 15 years ago may not seem quite so spectacular now. That carpeting in the bedroom may just look like a lot of vacuuming five years on.
If you want something else, that’s a valid sign it’s time for new flooring.
Floor Replacement and You
People will often put off a floor replacement because they’re an expensive renovation and wildly disruptive to your home. Sometimes, though, you can’t or at least shouldn’t put it off.
If you see serious damage such as scratches, cracks, or staining that you can’t resolve, that’s a strong sign a replacement is due. If you find evidence of structural damage or experience water damage, that almost always means you need a floor replacement.
Looking for more tips on when you should renovate? You can check out the posts over in our Home Improvement section.