One of the biggest questions people encounter when choosing the flooring for their homes is to either go with hardwood or carpeting. There are pros and cons to both, however, if you are going to be staying in your house for a while or intend to sell it, hardwood might be the better option. Traditional hardwood usually cannot be installed in every room of your house. The good news is that advances in engineered hardwood can now allow you to have wood flooring in most rooms where traditional hardwood can’t be installed. With the popularity of hardwood at an all-time high, now might be the perfect time to switch from carpet to wood flooring.
Appearance
When it comes to traditional hardwood or engineered wood flooring, the appearance of real wood is a big benefit over the carpet. The neutral look of wood flooring allows for multiple options. When decorating a room with carpeting, you are limited. You can’t change the color of your carpet and this color often dictates how you can decorate your room. With wood, even if the color doesn’t match the idea of what you want your room to look like, you can either re-sand it and change the color or simply add an area rug.
Maintenance
Both hardwood and engineered flooring are easier to maintain than carpet. A minor spill or accident can greatly damage your carpet, whereas that same spill can easily be whipped up off your hardwood floors. Also, you will never have to worry about hiring someone to clean your carpets or need to rent a carpet cleaning machine to do it yourself. With wood floors, you can simply sweep or vacuum the floor. You can also use a floor cleaner and polish once a month to protect your finish and make your wood shine.
Hardwood flooring also lasts much longer than the carpet, because it can be easily replaced. Unlike carpet, once damaged or worn, you must replace your entire carpet which may not make much financial sense. Unlike carpet, you can sand and refinish your wood multiple times without having to replace it.
