Ceramic Tile

Don talks about the advantages to using ceramic tile in your home, and goes through a few of the options for tile.

Hardwood Floors Magazine (Free Subscription)

Hardwood Floors is a must-read magazine for the wood-flooring professional. Hardwood Floors delivers the latest in the wood-flooring industry, from installation trends and techniques to managing your business. Stay on the cutting edge and subscribe today.

Get your FREE subscription!

Installing Stair Tread Pads

Mark Donovan of HomeAdditionPlus.com shows how to install Stair Tread Pads on a staircase.

Caring for Your Hardwood Floors This Winter

Homeowners with hardwood floors are often concerned about damaging their floors during the winter season. Without proper care, winter’s harsh elements -- slush, snow and salt -- can dull the varnish of hardwood floors and even cause warping and gapping.

It’s almost impossible to avoid winter elements. After all, what would the season be without building a snowman or sledding until you’re soaked? Rather than missing out on winter fun, here are a couple of simple steps you can take to protect your floors this winter.

Install Floor Mats

Catching slush and snow at the door is the best way to avoid damage. It is important to keep these mats as clean and dry as possible. You may even consider investing in an additional mat that you can use while drying the other. If your kids enjoy playing outside, encourage them to remove their wet snow apparel as soon as they come back inside to avoid trekking snow all over the house.

Get Creative with Everyday Household Materials

Placing a dish-drainer tray mat by the door with a towel underneath can be a nice place for shoes and boots to dry off. Kindly ask your guests to remove their shoes as they enter. Buy inexpensive or disposable slippers to make your guests feel more comfortable.

Train Your Pets

Pets are the number one offenders of tracking snow and slush into the house. Train your pets to patiently wait by the door while you dry their paws with a towel, and then reward them with a treat. Consider placing a bowl of treats by the door as a reminder.

Be Prepared

Always keep soft towels or a wet/dry vacuum on hand in case you need to get rid of water right away. While towels can clean up most of the mess, it’s best to invest in a quality floor care kit. Lumber Liquidators offers a Bellawood Floor Care Kit which comes with one 32-ounce bottle of Bellawood’s soy-based cleaner, one mop with a washable terry cloth mop head, and one tin with 100 felt furniture pads. The Bellawood Floor Care Kit can be found on the Lumber Liquidators Web site at www.lumberliquidators.com and at all store locations for $25 per kit.

Check the Warranty

Some companies offer warranties, should snow or other harmful elements damage your floors. Make sure to find out before you purchase your hardwood floors what type of product warranties the company offers. Lumber Liquidators offers warranties on most flooring options, which in turn helps protect you and your floors.

“Damage to hardwood floors in the winter is among the top concerns we hear from our customers,” says Tom Sullivan, founder of Lumber Liquidators. “Using our floor care kit on a fairly regular basis should do a thorough job of protecting your floors. While winter is a key season to be cautious, there are damaging factors all year long so we recommend the kit be used regularly.”

While winter can be a difficult time for hardwood floors, there is one benefit to this season: It’s one of the best times to install hardwood flooring. According to Sullivan, indoor moisture levels are at their lowest, which helps to prevent gapping.

For more information about installing hardwood flooring, call (800) FLOORING (356-6746) or visit www.lumberliquidators.com.

Courtesy of ARAcontent

Installing a Stair Runner

Mark Donovan, of HomeAdditionPlus.com installs a carpet stair runner on a straight hardwood staircase.

Easy Tile Entrance

Karen Schmidt shows you a tile to carpet transition for an entryway. If you're interested in tile, this is an easy first project.

Reclaimed Wood Floors Go Extreme

The reclaimed wood movement has been building momentum for years, and now it’s gone “extreme.” Once, old barns and dilapidated factories served as primary sources for reclaimed woods. Now, flooring manufacturers are ranging farther afield – in distance and time – to find exotic and exciting sources of wood.

Reclaimed wood appeals to homeowners on many levels. First, there is its unique beauty and character, imparted by its age and uses. Second, homeowners often feel they are saving living trees by reusing wood cut decades or centuries ago. And, in the latest trend, rescued wood draws devotees who want to feel they have a piece of history in their own homes.

“With so many choices now available in reclaimed wood floors, homeowners are looking at the history of the wood to really differentiate the product – and their homes – from the rest of the pack,” says Willie Drake, owner and chief buyer of Mountain Lumber, a company that has rescued more than 20 million board feet of pine and other woods.

Domestic sources of reclaimed lumber are now dwindling - and becoming almost routine in the eyes of buyers. A wealth of products can be found in regions like Asia, where ancient structures are commonplace and often viewed as standing in the way of modern progress. Drake’s Mountain Lumber is pioneering the exploration of overseas sources for rescued wood.

Drake has found wood from such exotic sources as:

* A Guinness brewery in Dublin, Ireland – Centuries-old oak Guinness brewery vats have yielded over 25,000 board feet of English Brown Oak. Drake plans to mill the wood into pre-finished European Cooper’s Oak Flooring. “This wood is beautifully preserved and exceptionally durable,” he says. “In the 1940s, Guinness switched to metal vats and many of these enormous wooden vats remained unused until now. They still bear the marks of their history, including the wedges coopers hammered into knots to strengthen them, and impressions left by the iron bands that once wrapped the vats.”

* French and Russian railroad cars – In France, railroad cars dating from the 1920s were scrapped and the lumber, mostly French Oak, recycled. Railcars that once carried passengers in turn-of-the-century St. Petersburg yielded Russian Oak.

* Ming Dynasty Chinese temples – China’s architectural and religious heritage is represented by the numerous temples throughout the country. Sadly, many have been torn down to make way for China’s modernization. “We couldn’t save these temples, but by reclaiming the lumber from them we are able to preserve a piece of their history and rich cultural heritage,” Drake says.

Drake’s company has collected wood from factories, mills, warehouses, barns, piers, cider vats and many other structures. The reclaimed wood has been used in the restoration of major historic sites, including Mount Vernon, home of George Washington; Monticello, home of Thomas Jefferson; and Blair House, the official guest residence for the President.

“Preserving the history of wood is as important as the environmental reasons for reclaiming it,” Drake says. “Every piece of rescued wood has a story to tell and many homeowners enjoy being a part of preserving those histories."

To learn more about reclaimed wood, visit www.mountainlumber.com.

Courtesy of ARAcontent

Installing carpet on stairs

Learn professional tips for installing carpet on stairs with this simple DIY guide.

How to Select Hardwood Flooring for Your Home

Hardwood floors are a timeless treasure. They can add beauty, character and value to any room of the house.

Traditionally, the living room and dining room were the areas of a home where you’d most often find hardwood floors. But as hardwood has become more available and versatile, and homeowners have become more creative about home improvements, hardwood floors are popping up in rooms all over the house where you’d usually find carpet. Carpet stains easily, wears out and ends up in a landfill at the end of its life, while hardwood flooring is timeless and versatile.

“With so many options available to homeowners these days, you could put a hardwood floor in any room of the home,” says Tom Sullivan, founder and chairman of Lumber Liquidators. “From solid hardwood, bamboo and cork, to engineered and laminate, you can install these floors in rooms where you might traditionally find carpet or tile.”

But before you go installing a hardwood floor in your basement or bathroom, make sure that the surface is appropriate for the location.

Solid Hardwood

Solid hardwood floors are known for their beauty and durability, making them perfect for any room of the home and a much more attractive choice than carpet. Because solid hardwood can be re-sanded over and over, it can last for 100 years, much longer than any carpeted floor. Plus, solid hardwood is easy to clean and maintain, making it a good flooring choice for allergy sufferers.

Enjoyable Engineered

Engineered hardwood floors make an excellent choice over concrete sub-floors, radiant heat or areas with high moisture. Engineered hardwood floors are usually offered in glue-down or nail-down and handscraped/antique options. Engineered hardwood flooring is produced by adhering a layer of real hardwood to a plywood backing. Since it is bonded together, this type of flooring is less likely to be affected by changes in humidity, making it perfect for areas with high moisture such as bathrooms and basements.

Beautiful Bamboo

Bamboo floors are also excellent choices for high-moisture areas like the bathroom or basement. When shopping for bamboo floors, look for solid bamboo that has also been engineered, giving it a very high-stability rating in a natural product; thus, it doesn’t move a lot, which is important in high moisture areas like a bathroom. Many bamboo options, such as Morning Star Bamboo Flooring available at Lumber Liquidators, are finished on both sides, sealing it from moisture.

Celebrate Cork

Cork is also a great choice for bathrooms and basements because it has a natural resistance to mold and deals well in high-moisture areas. Cork flooring combines the beauty of a natural material with the comfort of a cushioned surface.

Livable Laminate

If you want to install the look of hardwood flooring in high-traffic areas of your home like an indoor porch or a child’s playroom, laminate is an excellent choice because of its low-maintenance and durability. Plus, it is also nice for the homeowner on a budget as these floors mimic the look of hardwood at a lower price.

Because there are so many options available to homeowners these days, hardwood floors do not have to be restricted to just one or two rooms of the home. Any room can have a hardwood floor. Homeowners just need to know the room conditions and how much traffic the floor will receive before they install.

For more information about installing hardwood flooring, call (800) FLOORING or visit www.lumberliquidators.com.

Courtesy of ARAcontent

Eeeeck I Have Squeaks

As you delicately try to tiptoe past that familiar creak in the floor, your foot is inevitably drawn right to it and that terrible squeak is heard, loud as ever, throughout the house. It’s happened to everybody, and at times it wakes up the newborn (or anyone else who is asleep), interrupts home-office calls, and lets everyone in the house know about your midnight snack run to the fridge.

Sound familiar? If so, you probably assumed a squeaky floor was something you’d have to live with. Contrary to popular belief, however, a squeak in the floor is relatively easy to repair. One product that makes this home improvement so simple is Squeeeeek No More, a squeaky floor elimination kit that works on carpeted, vinyl and hardwood floors.

It used to be that home improvement experts advised only going underneath a floor to fix a creaky floorboard. However, second floors cannot be repaired this way, due to the first floor ceiling. Your grandparents probably advised using talcum powder, liquid wax or powdered soap between the floorboards of that hardwood floor to stop it from squeaking.

With new products like Squeeeeek No more, all of these old-fashioned remedies can be forgotten. There is no need to lift up any carpet or floorboards and the task can be performed on top of the flooring. All it takes is a power drill and the provided hardware from the kit.

Squeaks occur when shrinks and gaps develop around different flooring elements. For example, in most creaky floors, a nail that was used to fasten the floor has become loose and a squeak happens as a result of the nail rubbing on the sub floor. Or it’s a possibility that wooden planks have loosened from the joist below them and are rubbing against one another.

Squeeeeek No More works on carpeted floors by using a tool that will find the location of the floor joists from above the floor. After locating the joists, an alignment and depth control fixture allows you to drill through the carpet with one of the provided screws into the joist where the squeak exists. The screw will tighten the floor planks back onto the joist without ruining the floor or having to go underneath it.

The alignment fixture has a screw gripper on one side that will snap off the screw head. The screw will break off below the surface of the floor, leaving no visible hardware. The squeak is gone and there are no dangerous nails or screws sticking out of the carpet.

Squeeeeek No More will also work on stairs and thick carpet, and is safe to use in new homes where new builders are constantly called back to remedy creaky floors. Doing away with creaky floors can also be a big aid when it comes time to sell a home. There is nothing more unattractive to prospective homebuyers than noisy squeaks and creaks coming from the floor.

Squeeeeek No More is a good choice for nurseries and bedrooms. Parents with babies or small children will appreciate giving their little ones a good night’s rest, free from loud creaks. More importantly, hungry members of the household will finally be able to reach the refrigerator at midnight without waking up the entire household!

For more information about Squeeeeek No More, call (800) 459-8428 or visit http://www.squeaknomore.com/.

Courtesy of ARAcontent

Cutting Cement Board

Tim Carter, of http://AsktheBuilder.com, demonstrates a simple way to cut cement backer board using an inexpensive carbide-tipped tool.

How to Install Wide Plank Wood Floors over Concrete

Wood over concrete? Yes, it can be done! For the longest time, homeowners were warned that wide plank wood floors installed over concrete would result in moisture problems. But that’s not so anymore. A concrete sub-floor is no reason to deny yourself beautiful wood floors. Nowadays, they can go virtually anywhere.

It is true that wood is affected by climate change: wood fibers expand and contract with fluctuations in relative humidity. However, this movement and the resulting moisture problems can be controlled with proper installation techniques and the use of high quality wood products. “If you’re going to be installing over concrete, it becomes even more critical that you understand what part of the tree the boards are cut from and the manner in which the boards were processed; both of these factors are vital to your overall satisfaction with the floor,” says Chris Sy from Carlisle Wide Plank Flooring. He explains that wood cut from the center of a tree contains a higher percentage of vertical grain which makes it less susceptible to movement and thus a higher quality material.

Before you embark on this installation process, Carlisle recommends certain rules of thumb to manage moisture and ensure the stability of the wood:

1. Be sure the wood supplier has properly dried the wood. (Carlisle recommends 12 month air drying.)
2. Let the wood acclimate in the home or business for 24 hours.
3. During acclimation in your home or business, keep relative humidity at 45 percent.
4. Make sure the wood flooring has proper stress reliefs. (These ridges on the underside of the wood relieve tension in wood, reduce board movement, and provide a greater glue surface.)

There are two options for installation of wide plank wood floors. Both options are driven by the height allowance between the slab and door. To determine height, measure the distance from the top of slab to the bottom of the exterior door or measure the transition to other flooring surfaces. Check accuracy by swinging door completely in both directions.

Here are some step-by-step installation guidelines once you know the height allowance:

Option One: Gluing directly to concrete -- 1/2 to 3/4 inch height allowance

Using either Bostik’s Best or Sika adhesive product, spread one layer of adhesive onto the concrete per manufacturer’s instructions and place your Carlisle planks, milled to 1/2 to 3/4 inch thickness directly onto the adhesive. Allow 12 hours drying time before finishing your floors.

Option Two-A: Concrete slab with plywood sub-floor -- 1 inch height allowance

Place a layer of 6mm polyethylene onto the concrete as your moisture barrier. Using a Hilti Direct fastening tool, shoot concrete nails into 1/2 inch plywood to apply directly onto concrete. Install Carlisle Wide Plank Floors, milled to 1/2 inch thickness by blind nailing and gluing.

Option Two-B: Concrete slab with plywood sub-floor --1 1/2 inches or more height allowance

Lay down 3/4 inch plywood and then follow the directions above.

The cost associated with both options for installing wood over concrete is similar. However, due to the cost of the adhesives, it can be slightly cheaper to use the plywood method.

It’s also possible to install Carlisle floors over concrete slabs with radiant heat. The installation process calls for using a floating plywood sub-floor.

Proof that this method of installation has gained industry acceptance is its prevalence in high end commercial applications. For instance, the Park Hyatt Hotel in Washington, D.C., used Carlisle White Oak wide plank wood flooring over concrete in the public space of their main level. Given the resources for high quality wood, like Carlisle Wide Plank Floors, and the variety of mastic adhesives available today, you too can install wood floors over concrete in your home.

For more information about Carlisle floors, or to access their step-by-step instruction book for more specific directions, log on to www.wideplankflooring.com or call (800) 595-9663.

Courtesy of ARAcontent

How to Install a Floating Floor

This video provides quick tips for installing a floating floor.

Ceramic Tile Repair Options

Tim Carter, of AsktheBuilder.com, demonstrates a clever trick to repair a cracked ceramic floor tile.

Create a Floor Pattern

TipVision host Charlie Stone and home improvement expert Jeff Wilson create an easy and stylish floor pattern to match any room in your home.

Hometime: How-To Guide to Ceramic Tile

Hometime's Dean Johnson takes you through the steps of installing tile floors, walls, and countertops. He also gives recommendations on underlayment, adhesives, and tools.

In addition, you'll get detailed guidelines for how to layout tile, how to mix mortars and grouts, and how to finish and protect tile.

Topics Coved on the DVD include:

• Prepping Floors
• Underlayment
• Floor Layout
• Setting Floors
• Cuts and Trim
• Grouting
• Tub Underlayment
• Setting Tub Tile
• Countertops

Available at Amazon.com.

Add Luster to Worn Floors

TipVision host Charlie Stone and Minwax spokesperson Bruce Johnson make old wooden floors shine like new.

The Complete Guide to Flooring

The Complete Guide to Flooring is the only truly comprehensive flooring book available, combining information on using flooring as a design element with complete step-by-step instructions for installing virtually any type of flooring-classic standards to the newest materials. The book covers ceramic tile, terrazo, natural stone, terra cotta, hardwood, wood laminate, floating plank, carpet, vinyl sheet, resilient tiles, cork, carpet tiles, leather, and the new plastic laminates. In addition, readers will learn how to repair problems with all types of flooring, how to soundproof and insulate floors, how to refinish hardwood floors, and how to create decorative paint finishes on wood floors. Flooring is one of the most visible finish surfaces in a home, and serves to unify the entire interior design. With this in mind, The Complete Guide to Flooring opens with an exciting idea section that shows the many ways in which flooring can enhance the appearance and function of a home. Following this is a chapter that introduces all types of flooring, discussing their merits and limitations. Next, a planning section shows all the preliminary steps-measuring, removing old flooring, evaluating and repairing the subfloor, estimating and ordering flooring. Then comes the heart of the book-complete instructions on how to install all types of flooring, with complete, easy-to-understand, step-by-step details. With no aspect of home flooring left unexamined, The Complete Guide to Flooring is destined to become a home improvement classic.

Available at Amazon.com.

Tile Design

Tile design can be complicated and difficult, but with these tips from AsktheDecorator.com host Meghan Carter, you'll produce stunning tile designs. Toss out your pencil and paper, this tile design method is done at actual size to eliminate errors and miscalculations due to grout lines. The time you spend creating your tile patterns and tile designs will be well worth it if you follow Meghan's advice.

Hardwood Floor Tiles

Hardwood floor tiles add a contemporary twist to traditional hardwood floors. AsktheDecorator.com host Meghan Carter shows different ways to use hardwood floor tiles in your home and how easy they are to install.