what kind of flooring?

qclabrat

qclabrat

Well-Known Member
looking for flooring options in the basement
no tile as it will be a place for kids to dance and exercise
and eventually a pool table

Considering stranded bamboo instead of hardwood (cost factor)
Basement is dry but concerned buckling and warping of engineered flooring
also prefer not to have a subfloor due to cost, put in a Dricore floor recently and it really jacked up the budget

basement is level, concrete and about a 350 sqft rectangle
also considering staining or epoxy as an option
 
I just went with paint which I will epoxy and flake. Girls still roller blading down there while disco lights and hits one blaring. Commercial carpet is another but the warmth of bamboo would be my choice...
 
qclabrat said:
looking for flooring options in the basement
no tile as it will be a place for kids to dance and exercise
and eventually a pool table

Considering stranded bamboo instead of hardwood (cost factor)
Basement is dry but concerned buckling and warping of engineered flooring
also prefer not to have a subfloor due to cost, put in a Dricore floor recently and it really jacked up the budget

basement is level, concrete and about a 350 sqft rectangle
also considering staining or epoxy as an option
Click to expand...

We did a floating bamboo floor in our kitchen/laundry area. Looks and feels nice but after a few years some gaps are developing. Probably just did a shitty job but an FYI
 
@mattybfat; is bamboo durable? some samples I could easily scratch with finger nails
but really like the look
for warmth, I put in cork in a listening room, it's unfinished, so visitors leave their shoe outside :rolleyes:
 
^what he said same with cork and there are inexpensive hardwoods out there. Surf Lumber Liquidators...
No sub floor do the glue down method...
 
mattybfat said:
^what he said same with cork and there are inexpensive hardwoods out there. Surf Lumber Liquidators...
No sub floor do the glue down method...
Click to expand...

Wow glue it directly to the concrete? Is that solid/hardwood bamboo like 3/4 inch tongue and groove or a manufactured product?
 
make sure it is rated for below grade installation....
it is an engineered product on a plywood back - and can not be refinished.

yes, it can be glued - there is a good article in Fine Homebuilding a few months back on doing this -
the floor needs to be perfectly flat (of course) which means pouring self leveler, and/or grinding.
I can't find it right now - but i think they like the floating version. Some people even suggest laying
rigid insulation down first.

personally, i think the hard bamboo thing is BS - it can resist scratching because of the finish, but it will
still dent easily (either a bowling ball type of dent, or the corner of something) - the edges are never really
waterproof, and will wick

personally, i wouldn't put wood in the basement - if you want the look, get some of that new tile that presents as
wood, use very small grout lines. the question is not if you'll get water, it is when.
 
If my project was on time I might have better info to give you, but for now I can only share my plans after a lot of research.

I'm planning to lay down vinyl plank flooring. I can't recall if this requires a subfloor or not, but I'm using one anyway for the thermal break. Subfloor is called Tyroc. Not the cheapest ($10 for 5 sq ft panel), but there's nothing organic to grow mold either. Same for the flooring. SUbfloor is floating, needs to be glued at the seams. The vinyl planks float on top of the subfloor.

My floor is concrete, not perfectly level but not terrible either. The subfloor has a runout tolerance that I believe I'm within. All told I'll be in about $2k for about 525 sq ft of flooring :eek:

Had my number wrong at first, editing to fix that
 
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I have a bi-level on a concrete slab. We did the family room, hall, and laundry room in the rubber backed vinyl planks. Looks great, doesn't scratch easily, and is water tight. A friend of mine did flooring, and we did it over a weekend. All he used was snips and a razor knife to make the cuts.

We didn't go crazy, this area is mostly for the kids, it's where the dog comes in and out, etc. We went to Worldwide for a presidents weekend sale, I think it was zero tax, zero interest, and 6 months no payments or something. Cost us just about $1000 to do the area, and if we ever get sick of it, it'll be another weekend to replace it.
 
rlb said:
Do you remember Sq ft? I'll have to check out this Worldwide joint.
Click to expand...

Not off the top of my head, but it wasn't a huge area. I think the room was 15x23 maybe, plus the small hall and laundry room.

Just checked the Worldwide site, no money down, no interest for 18 months now through April 30. I used the one in Edison, twice.
 
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