Hardwood or Tile for entry and kitchen? (hardwood floors, vinyl, heating)

[Hattrick]

I am considering hardwood floors for the kitchen, halls, dining area, and entry. I was told hardwood floors though look great will mare or dent with high heal shoes. The wood I am considering is either hickory or koa. Both are considered very hard. Anyone experiencing dents or marring from high heal shoes?

[freshjiv]

I definitely probably in the minority when I say that I think hardwood looks much better than tile in a kitchen, plus, tile grout gets dirty as hell, especially in high traffic areas like the kitchen. I would go hardwood over tile. I think it looks tacky alot when you have hardwood in all the other rooms, then break it up with tile in the kitchen, sorta gawdy looking.

[K'ledgeBldr]

By your other posts- I'll assume you're in UT.
If you were in FL- I might go with tile. Go with hardwood. And if you want to upgrade your heating requirements- now would be the time to consider it. As in, radiant floor heating.
As far as the heels- maybe stillettos. But they're only on in the b...
Oh, never mind- keep the brass po...

[samstersmom]

I have hardwoods in my entry and kitchen and haven't had a problem with heels scratching or denting it. My husband did pull out the fridge and it came off of its runner which caused a dent in the floor though.

[Threerun]

We've had hardwood in the kitchen before. Our last house we took out terra-cota tile and installed random width red-oak. It was very durable, and not as COLD as tile. We used area rugs in high traffic areas and it worked just fine for us.

Right now in our current house I'm in the process of ripping out layers of vinyl in the kitchen and 40 year old linoleum in the entry and hallways to make way for- 3/4" hardwood.

Here's our old house after install and finishing to match the great room

[DKVA]

We have have had hardwoods in our kitchen and all the rest of the main living areas in our past 3 homes. No problems. This has been in the east,mid atlantic and now the midwest.

I think it probably depends on what area of the country you are living. I would think if you are in a very warm climate then ceramic tile is the the way to go.

[Hattrick]

Cool, Thanks for all the input. The consenses is to go with HW for entry, halls, stairs, kitchen, dinning, and office. Carpet for living room, bedrooms and maybe stairs as well.

[texdav]

he only problem with hardwood in kitchens is when and ofif you have a water leak in a refigerator or dishwaher or other line. Its is expensive to rapair and a slow lkeak can go undetected for quite awhile. It just deoends on the amount of risk and possible cost you are willing to take.Many times insurance will not cover anyhting but sudden leaks now dfays unless to pay for m9old coverage which is increrasingly costly.

[rubytue]

I'd go with tile in the entry, with hardwood everywhere else. Mud, snow, salt, rain, etc are much kinder to tile than hardwood. But, FWIW, I also wouldn't carpet the living room

[JayCT]

We did hardwood in the kitchen and entry 15 years ago and I must say I still love it. It is warm and comfortable on the feet. After 15 years of kids and dogs our floors need refinishing. It is nice to know that it is not going to cost us a fortune to replace them. All they need is a sanding and a couple of coats of finish and they will look as good as new. They are timeless. Jay