Flooring be Damned!

Long time no post!  If anyone out there is still in the selection / design phase of the Milan or similar Ryan homes design, this post is for you.

When we walked through the model, we were impressed by the open floorplan.  There is a hidden price to pay for this design.  It takes some explaining so bear with me.

The only way to get from the kitchen to the front & or stairs is to walk through a small section of the family room.  This causes a high traffic area which is devastating to the carpeting in the area.  Even with a steam vac there was a wear track from the kitchen (tile) to the hardwood in the foyer.  We also spent money upgrading the carpet in this area so we were especially disappointed in how fast it wore out.  We have been in our house for less than 3 years.  Several of our neighbors (even some in the Florence) have expressed the same issue and have either replaced carpet already or are considering doing hardwood as well.

Because we have pets, we were looking to get a high durability stain-resistant carpet such as Stain-Guard or Pet-Protect.  We'd be looking about $1,400 to put a high quality carpet in the area.  The sales rep told me no carpet would last in the high-traffic areas, and no manufacturer will warrant that area of carpet.  When I asked the sales consultant what could we do to avoid replacing the carpet every couple of years, he gave us good suggestions:

1. Plastic or Carpet Runner - The old plastic style runners don't look attractive at all.  Also, being this isn't a perfect square between the doorways, any runner would look awkward.
2. Hardwood just the section - More economical but creates an awkward connection between the rooms.  Didn't feel this would look good.
3. Hardwood Entire family room - Most expensive option, but should hold up the best and require the least maintenance.  While up-front cost is higher, over the course of years, it will be cheaper than replacing carpet every 3-4 years

We were able to find the same material, color & texture hardwood at Lumber Liquidators for $3.79 sq/ft.  The room is 320 sq/ft and contractor labor was under $1,000.  I have to say, it came out wonderfully.

There will be an area rug around between the TV, fireplace & couch area but that isn't ready yet.

Some of the Family Room carpet was salvageable.  I was able to replace the basement stairs carpet with 'like new'.  The dogs seem excited about it!

You can also see the flooring in the basement.  I'm not going to blame the destruction of the carpet on the floor-plan.  Here it was simply the dogs and their many issues.  (Don't let them near a 500-ct bottle of chew-able Vitamin C, the orange colored vomit piles doesn't come out).  

Since we have pets, we fear they would find ways to ruin new basement carpet as well.  We decided to put in the tiles that look like hardwood.  They have texture to them and look amazing.  Most people don't realize it's tile unless they look close or are barefoot.  The tile will be much easier to maintain from a pet standpoint as well as durable in case there is ever a water issue.