Beach house flooring:type, and upkeep

[Cil]

For cleaning the hardwoods and tile, the best thing is vinegar and water solution. You can mix 50:50 for a normal cleaning, but if there is more buildup, add greater mix of vinegar.

I always used vinegar and water on my tile, but when we replaced our oak floors, the floor guy warned me off using vinegar on the wood, he said it yellowed it, and when I looked at our old floor versus the new, he did appear to be correct--but maybe this was partly age....I did start using a simple water-based wood floor cleaner.

I can see how sand could scratch a wood floor.
I can also see how the travertine could be a good thing.
I have had both wood and tile kitchen floors, and preferred wood, but we are exploring all options--will look at Pergo, too.
I think tile might be nice in the entry way (that is, if we end up having any kind of mudroom). Yes, a beach house is in some ways, very different.

Right now, where we are renting, the floors are tile and carpet, with plain wood porch. During the winter, carpet felt pretty good on my tootsies, but yes, getting dog hair out of it can be futile.

 

[DBOldford]

We have stone tile (18 X 18-in.) on our ground floor, hardwood oak floors on the main level, and wall-to-wall carpet in the top floor and main floor bedrooms. White square tiles in all bathrooms. In general, we are not unhappy with that mix. The stone tile on the ground floor is a medium grayish color (mushroom) and has an abstract brush pattern---perfect for beach and pool and cleans up very easily. The hardwood floor was custom laid instead of Pergo, so it does take wear and tear from sand and furniture being pulled across it, needs an occasional buffing. (But it will last forever.) The carpet takes a beating, especially the stairwells. However, a good nylon carpet will clean up and looks like new after cleaning.

What would we do if we were building the house today? Absolutely, the stone tiles on the ground floor, which get a lot of sandy, wet feet from the beach and pool area. Then I would otherwise do Pergo throughout, including (and especially) on the stairs. Pergo is virtually indestructible. Although custom-laid hardwood floor will last forever, it does suffer scratches (which are generally scratches in the polyethelene sealer, not the wood) and scuffs, and if you have a repair job it isn't nearly as easy as with Pergo. We would use large area rugs in the bedrooms, because they can be sent out for cleaning (or our carpet cleaner will come to the house and do them for $50 each) or just taken up between our visits or those of renters. We would tile bathrooms, but would use something larger and darker than our white tile. The problem is the grout, which you want to match but which darkens with age and use and moisture. Darker grout and larger-size tiles would be the ticket. Also important to seal the grout as soon as it sets, because this will help prevent darkening.

 

[beachmouse]

Right now, we've got tile in the kitchen, bathrooms, and laundry room, and carpet every place else. As soon as we've got the cars paid off, we're tearing out the carpet and putting down real hardwoods that will be covered in spots by area rugs. Here's the asian rug we've got for the living room (and yeah, the place is a mess)

http://members.cox.net/selkie/carpet1.jpg

When we're coming in from the beach/yardwork/working out, we can come in through the laundry room and decontaminate and drop anything sandy there without contaminating the rest of the house, which I really appreciate.

 

[Cil]

hee
"decontaminate"
Yes, sealing tile is important.
Donna, your stone tile sounds interesting, and beachmouse, your asian rug is lovely--very warm. We have a humungous asian rug that was my grandma's, but it is this weird green color and I am just not sure if it will work anymore, but who knows.
Mostly I just think about sand and dog hair and the endless hassle of trying to keep clean, but I can see how wet feet could also be a safety issue.

 

[ShallowsNole]

Not a beach house, but three dogs, two cats, a teenager (and teenager's friends), and two sloppy adults - tile in the foyer, kitchen, eating area, bathrooms, our walk-in closet, and laundry room. Due to budget we had to put carpet in the living room and bedrooms. Said carpet is only 2.5 years old, but three dogs have been housebroken on it...and the last two are only four months old , so the saga continues. Carpet WILL be pulled up soon; we are trying to decide what to put down. I like wood laminate (Pergo, Alloc, etc), but am scared because I live in a flood zone. We built "up," but after Katrina, I don't count on everything being OK after a storm anymore.

On the other hand, if we get a storm surge severe enough to bring the bay four feet up into the house, chances are flooring will be the last thing on my mind.

 

[Mermaid]

Cil, do I take it that you and your husband are going to build? What did you decide to do about a house?

 

[Beach Runner]

We're happy with our choices:

First floor: Stained concrete (in a Coca-Cola color) in the foyer and in the kids' bedroom, bunk room, and bath. Carpet in the twin bedroom (so adults don't have to step out on a cold floor) and white ceramic tile on its bathroom's floor and walls (which has stayed very clean).

Second floor: Unstained hardwood (so no scratch marks show) in the living room, dining room, kitchen, foyer, half-bath, and master bedroom. Black and white drugstore tiles in the master bath because that's what my daughter wanted! And it looks great.

Third floor: carpet in the sitting room and master bedroom - it's cozier. Travertine on the floor, walls, and ceiling of the master bath.

The way I always clean non-carpeted floors is vacuum first (that way I don't just swish around the sand and other debris on the floors when I mop), then mop with a mild floor cleaner in water . The way I clean carpeted floors is with Capture. I keep up with frequent spot cleaning so it never gets bad. Over spring break I cleaned all three carpeted rooms on my hands and knees with a brush and Capture. The Capture machines for applying it are only available commercially, but it only took me 30 minutes to brush it by hand.

 

[Cil]

Oh, Mermaid, it changes every day.
There is a lot of inventory out there, but we haven't seen anything that said "Buy Me."
I think we are going to build--still not sure where, but we are leaning towards the bay area. If we did the modular thing, it would not take as long, still, we're not sure about that.
Anyway, we haven't sold our Denver house yet! Had a couple nibbles, and we hope as we head into spring that things will pick up.
I am just sort of daydreaming about what we will do when we are finally able to build. Even though it's been a pain in the rear end moving from place to place (we're in our 3rd house now), it's been good for comparison and figuring out what works.
Beach Runner
Is your unstained hardwood polyurethaned?

 

[beachmouse]

Our house doesn't get a ton of natural light inside, so we kind of have to use some brighter colors to keep it from seeming too dark. We ended up getting the red carpet because we thought it would contrast nicely with a couple of rather royal blue walls. Walls, my pulp science fiction collection, and a highly decorative cat here:

http://members.cox.net/selkie/fiveshelf.jpg

 

[Cil]

Your kitty is indeed decorative! Like a piece of statuary.
Looks like your house gets more natural light than the one we are renting now. Kinda gloomy here.
We had bookshelves a lot like yours in our old house--had 'em built in.
That is one thing I might like to repeat.
My husband has this Beach House vision, he wants brand new everything, but some elements of our old house really worked for me, and I am loathe to give them up.