Got rid of refrig that was causing water to stand in floor. I know that I will have to get floor level, and I have a sheet plywood in the way in my woodshop, so that should take care of the leveling problem. What I haven't been able to do is to settle on what type of flooring to use in the kitchen. I personally like the click and lock, but was told that it's not suitable for a kitchen. What should I use? I don't want to spend a lot of money, but I want it to be a good quality product. Thanks!

Edited November 20, 20178 yr by Ron Dudelston
tags added

I am planning to use a Luxury Vinyl Plank when I re-do our kitchen.  I have used some already in the master bath and utility room and really like it.  They click and lock together.

Here is one example: http://www.lumberliquidators.com/ll/c/Golden-Teak-LVP-Tranquility-Ultra-5GT/10023665

Cal

The click and lock could have a problem with any water seepage into the joints. The material swells and forms ridges along the seams that never shrink back down. Even so, you can use it as long as you understand the risks and do quick clean up on the spills. We plan on doing that to our current kitchen when we remodel it, and we did it once before some years ago...although at time the click and lock laminate hadn't been introduced yet and the stuff we had installed was the glue together type (Mannington). I'm sure you're tuned into this, but buy a box or two extra for future repairs just in case. The patterns are changed regularly and there's a really good chance you won't be able to get matching product the following year.

Edited April 27, 20179 yr by Fred W. Hargis Jr

Have you thought about sheet vinyl ?    No seams, reasonable in cost but not as easy to install and sub floor imperfections will show through.   Roly

The laminate is beautiful stuff,but I would go with the sheet vinyl, so I could sleep at night, I know of a couple who went on vacation for 10 days and a pipe leaked in the kitchen and when they got back the floor was curling up.. Check with flooring company on their thoughts about it, and what they would guarantee.

Herb

Have you thought about other options?

 

I can't recommend laminate for a kitchen environment. There is too much of a chance of standing water damage, and wear becomes a factor. As a youngster my mother had commercial grade, rubber backed indoor/outdoor carpet put in the galley sized kitchen and adjacent breakfast nook. It was never a problem but the dark blue and green motif meant it got vacuumed daily. I would never do this either. It all boils down to basically two logical choices; sheet vinyl, which I hate, and my favorite, tile.

 

A good tile is easy to keep clean, essentially water proof and if the proper type of grout is used it will stay looking good for a long, long, time.

@oldwoodie

 

Jim, re-reading your post I see you have "plywood" to "take care of the leveling problem". What is your flooring construction? Do you have a raised house (wood sub-floor) or are you on-slab?

 

If you are on-slab, consider another option. Stain or epoxy coat the bare concrete. Some of the products available today provide some really stunning results, and the color/design options are extensive. It would provide for an aesthetically pleasing and extremely durable water-proof floor. 

 

However, I suspect that you have a wooden sub-floor, so that is probably a non-starter.

Edited April 27, 20179 yr by schnewj

12 hours ago, oldwoodie said:

I don't want to spend a lot of money, but I want it to be a good quality product. Thanks!

Good ol Ceramic tile would be my choice, inexpensive, attractive, and it'll last a lifetime.

I like the no wax vinyl myself. Ceramic can date a kitchen floor unless a standard old color like terracotta is used. Drop a glass or plate on tile and you break something,the tile or the dish. Drop a heavy cast iron skillet and there goes the tile. Any flexing in a wood floor can crack the grout. Tile is good laid on a concrete floor or if on a wood floor it needs a scratch coat layer of reinforced cement 1''-1 1/2" thick under it. So as to come out flush with the adjacent flooring the kitchen floor would have to be recessed  by filling in between the joist and then removing 1"-1 1/2" off the top of the joist.

Herb

We installed tile with wooden sub floor covered in 1/2" concrete backer board screwed to the floor.  Then thinset we applied of all joints and screws.

That was 20 years ago and never has the grout cracked nor the tile broke.  But as Dadio wrote drop any dish and it will break.  We have dropped cast iron frying pans but no damage to the tile resulted.

Sheet Vinyl is a good choice if installed correctly and the subfloor must be covered in the 1/8" luan with taped joints to keep anything sticking up from poking thru the vinyl.  Also look at good old fashioned http://www.armstrong.com/flooring/products/linoleum

 

1 hour ago, Michael Thuman said:

But as Dadio wrote drop any dish and it will break.

Yep, dropped many a frying pan on our ceramic tile in the kitchen and no tile has ever chipped or broke. But Dadio is right, drop anything glass on a tile floor, it's toast.

We have ceramic tile in our upstairs bathrooms over sub-floor and concrete backer and no grout cracks or anything has showed up, I installed that tile in 2002. If the floor is properly built and the floor joists are installed correctly, you should not have a grout cracking problem.

 

Another good argument for ceramic tile, if you do by the off chance destroy a tile, you can replace it, and only replace that tile.

With sheet flooring, you damage it, seems like it could get tricky to replace. Do you try to splice a new piece in? Or do you replace the whole floor?

Pros and Cons, I see both sides.

All good comments. There is no one best choice. I agree with Herb. Tile has it's disadvantages and it can become dated. However, the same applies to vinyl sheeting. It, too, can become dated, but it is easier to replace but not repair. You have to choose wisely no matter what you put down.

 

Again, my personal preference is tile. It is so much more durable and to me. The occasional and inevitable dropped dish, plate or glass is an acceptable risk to me.