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Carpet versus Hardwood Flooring When remodeling a home, flooring will become an integral part of the remodeling process. The options for flooring today are plentiful, but the most heated debate for homeowners remains between hardwood flooring and carpeting. When deciding on a choice between hardwood flooring and carpeting in a home, homeowners must take into consideration the cost of the flooring, the upkeep involved with each selection, the replacement time frames and the added value to a home.
Sleek and elegant, hardwood floors add a touch of class to your home.
When remodeling a home, flooring will become an integral part of the remodeling process. The options for flooring today are plentiful, but the most heated debate for homeowners remains between hardwood flooring and carpeting. When deciding on a choice between hardwood flooring and carpeting in a home, homeowners must take into consideration the cost of the flooring, the upkeep involved with each selection, the replacement time frames and the added value to a home.
When comparing hardwood flooring with carpeting, the cost of each will be the first issue a homeowner will have to contend with. Carpeting, depending on the material from which the carpeting is made, can cost anywhere from $3.00 per square foot installed for a nylon carpeting to $15.00 per square foot installed for wool carpeting. Nylon carpeting and wool carpeting are two of the most common carpeting materials chosen by homeowners. Hardwood floors, on the other hand, will cost a homeowner around $8.00 to $10.00 per square foot installed. These prices will differ tremendously depending upon the area in which your home is located and the availability of the chosen flooring. The standard upkeep of carpet flooring material is often one of the reasons hardwood flooring is chosen over carpeting by homeowners. Carpeting requires vacuuming, shampooing and stain removal as daily and monthly maintenance chores. Repair for carpeting can be a tedious and sometimes impossible task as well. Rips and tears will require removing a section of the carpeting and replacing the removed section. Homeowners may find the carpeting they have loved for years is now off the market and be forced to replace the entire room. Hardwood flooring requires little or no maintenance for the homeowner. Aside from daily sweeping and mopping there are no troublesome stains to scrub or tears and rips to mend. Even scratches and dents simply add to the overall character of hardwood flooring. And, unlike carpeting, if a homeowner prefers perfection, hardwood flooring can always be refinished. Along the same lines with upkeep, homeowners will need to take into consideration the fact that hardwood flooring is hypoallergenic, while carpeting can and will hold dirt, debris and dust. Even though carpeting can be shampooed, all of the mold and dander compressed into the carpet can never be completely removed. And, getting carpets wet will actually make the problems for an allergy sufferer worse. Overall cost of carpeting and hardwood flooring should always take into account the replacement time frame. While even the best kept carpeting will need to be replaced every 8-10 years, hardwood flooring will last more than 25 years. This reassurance of long lasting value to the homeowner is an important factor when comparing carpeting to hardwood flooring. In the end, a homeowner must look at the monetary bottom line. Hardwood flooring is what homeowners and buyers are looking for in a home. Whether the home is a new construction or a remodel project, hardwood flooring is in and carpeting is out. This popularity will weigh many homeowners on the side of hardwood flooring for the simple fact that if a time arises when they may need to sell the home, the market preferences will drive the home's sale. The actual amount of added value to a home will need to be figured depending on the total square footage of the home, total number of rooms with hardwood flooring installed and the type of hardwood flooring installed. Many realtors estimate the added home value for hardwood flooring to be between $10,000 and $50,000, while carpeting may actually decrease a home's value depending on the buyer! When choosing the perfect flooring material for your home, the final competition will certainly be between carpeting and hardwood flooring. While carpeting can be less expensive initially over the long term, maintenance and replacement may render carpeting more expense than hardwood flooring.
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