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feedback wanted....thinking of putting wooden floors in kitchen and living room combo area...have cats and wondering about spills on floors and it's effect on the wood, etc
I prefer the hardwood floors for my pets. Clean up is a breeze with them. I have Spanish tile in my kitchen now. I had hardwoods in the kitchen in my last house. I prefer the durability of the tile in my kitchen despite it being a harder surface. The hardwoods are sealed so that makes a big difference.
feedback wanted....thinking of putting wooden floors in kitchen and living room combo area...have cats and wondering about spills on floors and it's effect on the wood, etc
Well, cat urine will ruin wood floors. Regular spills: drinks, splashing from washing dishes, a melted ice cube etc., that stuff won't harm the floors, or at least it hasn't in my experience. I have hardwood flooring in every room of my house and we have parties with spills all the time. The former owner of our house had dogs and their claws did scratch the floors in some places. We could refinish them to hide the wear but we haven't yet.
Hardwood's fine with cats -- very easy to clean. Better not to put their food/water dishes directly on the wood floor, though; get some sort of a tray.
we've had hardwood floors exclusively throughout our houses for over 40 years ... and with all the pets, it's never been a problem.
We have a few throw rugs in high traffic areas to protect them, but we don't use any in the kitchen area.
the key is to use appropriate floor finishes and renew them if they wear thin in any locations. Modern urethanes will easily protect a properly installed wood floor, although it's important to apply enough coats to protect beyond the minimum needed to achieve a cosmetic finish. These coatings will withstand acid food stains, harsh cleaning chemicals, bleach, beverage stains, and pet accidents. (They are routinely used in manufacturing plants and food processing plants to protect floors against far more aggressive chemicals and wear than you'll encounter in your home. I've had excellent success with the S-W Commercial water base urethane; this is not the stuff that the box stores carry nor most S-W retail stores. You'll need to get this from their Contractor store outlet in your area. Mine, for example, doesn't stock this stuff because it's got a short shelf life and not too many contractors will use it because there are (slightly) less expensive consumer retail products; I have to special order it for my projects. For me, the slight upcharge is more than offset by the better application qualities, no odor, and an exceptionally durable surface that is easy to clean ... damp mop takes care of most cleaning)
The office I'm sitting in right now has a 100-year old T&G wood floor, white oak. Looks gorgeous today, last refinished by the prior owners of this house 30 years ago. It does not yet need refinishing. Pretty durable stuff, the solvent based urethanes of that era. The slight yellowing through the years is complimentary to the wood floor. The only place that gets extra protection is the mat under my office chair casters. And yes ... the house has had pets in here all those years.
I have an open floor plan on my main floor - all one big room for kitchen, dining room and living room. I put down hardwood on the whole floor. I think mixing flooring in an open plan looks choppy and makes it looks smaller. These days, the available finishes are very strong and will continue to look good if you keep the floor clean, and wipe up spills and dirt as they occur.
Hardwood flooring is very easy to maintain and clean because stains and dirt don't stick to it. This flooring really looks beautiful, classic and also very effective in making a home warm. But, they are prone to scratches. Scratch and scuff marks can be pricey to fix and usually require refinishing of the floors.
We have very dark bamboo in our kitchen/TV room combo. We do see scratch marks from the chairs, but we don't mind as it adds character. No problems with the cat (all this talk of cat urine - WHO has cats that pee directly on the floor? In all my years having cats (16 years), I've never had one pee on the floor EVER). We keep our dogs' nails trimmed so we don't get scratches from them either.
We have very dark bamboo in our kitchen/TV room combo. We do see scratch marks from the chairs, but we don't mind as it adds character. No problems with the cat (all this talk of cat urine - WHO has cats that pee directly on the floor? In all my years having cats (16 years), I've never had one pee on the floor EVER). We keep our dogs' nails trimmed so we don't get scratches from them either.
My cats don't normally go anywhere other than their box, but.... I just had to get one of my cats treated for a bladder infection. The symptom that got my attention was that he started peeing on the floor in front of the box, instead of in it. (He's back to his normal habits now after a round of antibiotics.) Also, some years ago had a very old cat (19 years) who became incontinent in the last few months before she died. So, my experience is that accidents do happen. Hardwood's definitely easier to clean than carpet, but I'm glad I have nonporous tile floors in the litterbox areas.
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