Like most homes, the bedrooms in my homes have carpet. Ever since we moved into our house, I've hated our carpet. I think the color is dirty and the carpet seems cheap to me, so I have always wanted to get rid of it. It was finally my time. Check out what my floors looked like before I tore them up.
When we decided to turn our extra bedroom into an office and guest room combo, the first thing I wanted to do was replace the floors. We have dogs - they are big, muddy, and messy, so I had my heart set on luxury vinyl planks from the get go because they are durable and do not scratch easily. That was the easy decision.
The hard decision was color. Where I don't have carpet, I have either wood or tile in my house. I needed to decide whether I was going to find a vinyl plank that came close to the color of my existing wood floors or go with a completely different color. So the search began.
I ordered probably 30 different samples of floors from all different kinds of websites to find the floors I was looking for. I tested the color by seeing how it looked with my existing floors, and I tested the durability by running a key over them to see how they would do with dogs. If anyone in Dallas is looking to put in new floors and is looking for samples, I have 30 of them in my garage. Call me.
I finally landed on a vinyl plank that matched my floors and was durable enough for my three crazy dogs. Even better about this choice was that I could order it online, pick it up at my local Home Depot and install it myself. I was sold. I chose TrafficMaster Allure in High Point Chestnut (it also has great reviews which helped with my decision). This is what the floor looks like on the Home Depot website.
Looks good right? So let's move on to how to make your floors look like this.
Supplies Needed:
Miter Saw or Circular Saw (only if you need a transition strip)
How to Install Vinyl Planks:
1. Get rid of your existing floor. Depending on what type of floor you have will depend on how difficult it will be to remove the floor. Carpet is the easiest to remove. First you have to pull up the carpet. It is easiest to do this by cutting the carpet into sections. Once the carpet is removed you will have to pull up the carpet strips and nails using a crow bar. This is the most tedious part
2. Clean the subfloor and make sure it is even. If your subfloor is not clean and if it is uneven, the floor will be uneven when you install it. This is part is important.
4. If you have areas of your floor that need transitions, measure the area of the transition strip, cut the transition strip to the right size using a saw, and place on the floor using the mounting tape. It's that easy y'all! These can also be cut using a utility knife. DIYers rejoice! You will need to measure your planks as they get closer to the wall to make sure they fit. But that is the easy part.
4. If you have areas of your floor that need transitions, measure the area of the transition trip, cut the transition strip to the right size using a saw, and place on the floor using the mounting tape. It's that easy y'all!
This is what our floors looked like after they are installed:
Doesn't this look so much better? I loved the way this turned out. I can't wait to continue working on this room, and start putting this floor in other rooms in my house. I love it and my dogs love it, too.
