If you’re preparing for home remodeling in Naperville, IL, it’s extremely important to know your options. No matter what room you’re remodeling, you’ll want to understand the pros and cons of various flooring selections to enhance the success of your overall remodel. Today, we’ve assembled a list of the most popular flooring options and explained the mechanics and most common usages of each.

Hardwood Flooring

Hardwood flooring is probably one of the classiest and most coveted flooring options available. Hardwood offers unparalleled elegance, but it can also be expensive and harder to care for. Among the most popular types of hardwood flooring materials are oak, maple, pine, fir, hickory, birch, cherry, and walnut.

Engineering Hardwood

Engineered hardwood flooring is becoming an increasingly popular choice among homeowners. Engineered hardwood is made of plywood, high-density fiberboard, or hardwood. It is more affordable and durable than hardwood, and it can also be more easily manipulated than hardwood. For instance, you can design colors, grains, and widths to suit your taste. HGVT offers some excellent insights on when to use hardwood and when to use engineered wood.

Ceramic Tile

Ceramic tile is made from clay and various minerals that are heated and cooled repeatedly to produce a unique look and feel. It can come in a variety of colors and is widely used in kitchens, bathrooms, laundry rooms, and entryways.

Porcelain Tile

Porcelain tile is also made from clay, but unlike ceramic tile, it is made from highly refined clay and is heated to extreme temperatures to create a density that makes it suitable for indoor and outdoor use alike. It is often used in outdoor patio spaces.

Travertine Tile

Travertine is likely the least manipulated type of tile. Instead of being engineered to produce a specific color and feel, it is harvested and used in its natural form—as a naturally-occurring limestone byproduct near hot springs. Travertine tile is also used both indoors and outdoors.

Loop Pile Carpet

Loop pile carpets are ideal for high-traffic areas like mudrooms. They are extremely durable because their fibers are looped and then secured to the backing. Loop pile carpet comes in two types: Berber and level loop.

Berber carpet is made of olefin, nylon, or wool. It is very stain resistant, but it is not good for households with dogs and cats since their claws can easily catch in the uneven fibers. Level loop carpet is likely the smoothest and most durable of all carpets. It is, however rather firm and stiff, making it a better option for less formal and more trafficked areas.

Cut Pile Carpet

Cut pile carpet is made of fibrous ends that are unevenly cut. There are several types of cut pile carpet, including Textured, which is the most popular carpet option available because it is attractive, durable, soft, and tightly-twisted, making it resistant to mud and dirt; Frieze, which has short, long-lasting fibers often used in high-traffic areas; and Saxony, which is a popular, plush, refined, and formal carpet with a smooth surface.

Closing Thoughts

Oftentimes, a combination of various types of flooring is the most stylistically desirable choice. For instance, in rooms with fireplaces, tile is often used to trim the perimeter of the fireplace and floor directly beneath it since tile is the least flammable and easiest-to-clean flooring option, but it often looks best when paired with wood flooring in the remainder of the room, while carpet may be introduced to enhance comfort. Enjoy pairing flooring options for your home remodeling in Naperville, and be sure to view our portfolio for ideas on floor installations.