What type of flooring would you suggest in a cabin in a environment where it will be cold and then get warmed up quickly? I want some type of hard style flooring (I.e. laminate, hardwood or equivalent). I'm concerned about floating floors buckling if subjected to warming up quickly when we warm up the cabin during cold weather. Give me my options as we have no clue if this is a concern or not. Start with the basics. Anything other than carpet is "on the table" as far as I am concered for the living room/kitchen area. Sent from my SCH-I500 using Tapatalk
Laminate will not buckle if installed correctly, it needs room to expand and contract. Ceramic tile is the most durable and would be my first choice. I would not do hardwood because of the sudden change in temperature since it is fastened down and does not have room to move, wood needs time to acclimate and drastic temperature shifts may cause it to buckle.
What kind of foundation are you looking at? Square footage too? Will you have electric? our cabin in WI sits on a slab. It's cold (which in the summer is great), but after a full 24 hrs of heating the cabin with the woods stove, the logs and slab act as a great heat sink in the cold WI Rifle season.
Floating interlocking laminate in a wood finish of your choice. Looks almost just like the real thing. I soaked a piece in a bucket of water, let it freeze in the back of my truck, then let it thaw out and sit for another 2 weeks and when I removed it, I couldn't tell it had ever been wet. Amazing stuff!!!
The floor plan is here. http://forums.bowhunting.com/showthread.php?p=432730 My 80 acres of hunting land thre Its a slab on grade. 2" foam insulation under the floor. Electric is not on the grid but will have a propane generator. Wood heat. Sent from my SCH-I500 using Tapatalk
We are doing carpet in the bed rooms and hallway as well. Dan I've heard laminate is very sensative to water if you don't wipe it up. Like if you have a little snow on your shoes and the water sits overnight. That concerns me. Sent from my SCH-I500 using Tapatalk
All of our cabins are rentals. People treat them like ****. As long as you don't leave huge puddles around for long periods of time, you'll be alright. Another option that we were going to start exploring is vinyl plank flooring. I moved back here before I did any more floors and never got to try it out, but I definitely would give it a look. http://www.builddirect.com/Luxury-Vinyl-Tile.aspx
Like others have said, laminate can hold up real well. Do a little research on the different brands though. My dad's laminate hasn't held up well to their dog's claws. It also did not hold up well to a water leak they had. Replacing a couple pieces was a PITA. (though most flooring repairs are) We have a little bit of everything here at the resort. I have to say my favorite by far is a good hardwood floor. Two falls ago, there was a chimney fire in one of the old log cabins. Smoke & water damage galore. Sanded and re-finished the floors and they are more gorgeous than they were before the fire. Here's a few shots of the after: Now, our owner got a 'deal' on some 'hard pine' wood flooring, and it's fit, finish & wear sucks! I wanted to re-finish it after 1 year. Our lodge has a heated slab and the concrete guys did a fantastic job on the finish, so we'll most-likely stain or paint the slab to 'finish' it. I hate all the vinyl flooring we have. It's cheap, but is impossible to replace and a PITA to rip out. I don't like carpet, but I never have. It can be nice in a bedroom, but I'd rather wear slippers or have and electronic heated floor. Now, if I were to build my own cabin or house today, and the footage was reasonable or cost wasn't as big of a factor, I'd be looking here : http://www.wideplankflooring.com/
Laminate worked great in my place like others have said. For heating up that place quickly with no heat at all I don't think it will happen that quickly. That's a lot of mass to heat up. Are you going to run coils in the floor? For a outdoor wood box. if not I would suggest going over the floor with the 2x2 square sub floor first. Even with the insulation under the concrete.
We have been specifying a lot of vinyl plank flooring at work (public housing) in the last couple of years instead of VCT. It holds up to abuse very well. I don't think the temperature swings will have much effect on it. It is much easier to change out a single plank than a laminate floor. Like anything else you get what you pay for. Don't expect much out of the stuff that Home Depot carries that runs about $1.00/sf.
Doesn't the plank flooring glue down? I can't imagine it taking temp swings well. I could be wrong. Great info and discussion so far. Sent from my SCH-I500 using Tapatalk
do tile inside the door where you'd take your boots off and then laminate the rest. Like previously stated, done correctly it will bear the temp changes just fine.
We talked about staining the concrete and just felt wood looking and feeling flooring was what we wanted. Heated flooring takes constant electricity. We only have the generator running when someone is in the cabin and awake. At night or when we are out hunting there will be no power. We will be having a ceramic tile entryway and under the wood stove and the entryway. Sent from my SCH-I500 using Tapatalk
If you're having a concrete slab put in, its easier to have the pipes put in now, even if you don't think you want it. There may come a time when you do want it and wish you had put the pipes in. We have infloor heat in our cabin and its extremely nice. Who knows, maybe someday you'll have a wood boiler.
I understand wanting wood flooring. I just think that the initial cost savings from staining the concrete would help in other areas, and you can always go back and add wood flooring later if you do not like the stained concrete.
