What's the deal with hardwood floors?

Question

So I'm now hooked on watching all these design shows on HGTV, and I've noticed that almost every time they rip up the carpeting from these old houses that they have beautiful hardwood floors underneath. I'm curious....was it common practice when the were building these homes were built to cover up beautiful floors with carpeting, and if so, why were the hardwood floors installed in the first place.

I actually have a new construction home built about 5 years ago, and nobody ever said, "Hey with that cat and dog, you might wanna opt for hardwood floors instead of carpet." I'm at the point now where I'm gonna rip up the carpeting and put down hardwoods so I'm also curious that if hardwood was so prevelant back in the day, why is it so expensive now?

I live in the Raleigh NC area and I'm also looking to get rid of our laminate countertops in the kitchen for something more environmentally friendly (ie recycled glass countertop) but I actually want to look at it before buying it. The local chain stores only carry the typical granite, quartz, laminate stuff...any advice on where I can go?

Answer 1

Hardwood not only increases the value of your home, it is also non-allergenic and generally non-toxic (if the sealant is aired, etc.)

See the following pages on hardwood flooring:

http://www.building-your-green-home.com/...

http://www.building-your-green-home.com/...

There is also a page on reclaimed wood floors, and a great Green Flooring Guide - the link is in the resource box.

Hope this helps!

Answer 2

Originally homes had dirt floors, rich people had stone.

Then everyone had stone and the rich had to have wood.

Everyone got wood & the rich got carpet.  

Then everyone got carpet & the rich got traverteen.

Now the in thing is removing carpet and revealing those gorgeous old wood floors, if you don't have them, you rip up carpet & install wood.

It is all fad.  The fads have to change or the flooring companies will be out of business.  Right now it is hardwood, in the next couple of years, who knows.

I begin to think it is all a conspiricy just to get our money.

Answer 3

Most likely hardwood floors were fashionable when the home was first built.  (if you watch the same shows I do, this is usually the 50s or so.)

However, later on, hardwood floors fell became unhip/uncool/whatever, and carpet was all the rage.  Since it is easy to do, the carpet was installed directly on top of on the hardwood.

No clue about the 'green countertops'.   Not sure what is un-environmentally friendly about laminate countertops...

Answer 4

I don't know much about the flooring, but as for the countertops you will want to check with a local fabricator who works on natural stone like granite.  They usually have access to these products, even though they may not like to work on them.  I know that a lot of the "recycled glass" is a lot less environmentally friendly than you would think.  They are made up of glass of course, but also glues holding the glass.  These glues can be very toxic for the fabricators while they are fabricating the countertops.  My suggestion would be to go to a granite fabricator in your area, and discuss your options before making a decision.  

Answer 5

Hardwood flooring was normal for most homes built up until the mid 80s when carpet became more economical for builders to install.  Oak and maple were the most common wood for flooring and once the woods were depleted the cost got higher and higher.  Labor is another factor.  It takes a lot less labor to install carpet than flooring.

In an effort to modernize homes in the 70s and 80s many people put carpet over the wood floors.  It was cheaper and less messy than refinishing the hardwoods.

Now the cycle has moved on to again appreciate the beauty of wood floors.

Answer 6

Yeah, up to the fifties when "Wall To Wall Carpet" entered the scene. It use to be much cheaper when we had a lot of straight grained hardwood. Now almost everything is second growth but they are making floors out of laminated bamboo now too that are quite beautiful.