Hardwood floors vs. carpet for dogs

bmar · 09-05-2006

We need to replace our old carpet and are thinking about hardwood. Our major concern is that one of our two dogs isn't the most potty trained. She's had a kinda hard life and means well, but she has accidents when we're not home. And she sometimes overeats...well, I do too, but that's another thread. One salesperson told us that unless it's cleaned up immediatly it'll ruin the hardwood. She was really pushing laminates, which my husband is totally against, so don't know if what she said was true. So I thought I'd turn to my friends at PDC! Thanks for any input!

Jacko · 09-05-2006

Quote:

Originally Posted by bmar

We need to replace our old carpet and are thinking about hardwood. Our major concern is that one of our two dogs isn't the most potty trained. She's had a kinda hard life and means well, but she has accidents when we're not home. And she sometimes overeats...well, I do too, but that's another thread. One salesperson told us that unless it's cleaned up immediatly it'll ruin the hardwood. She was really pushing laminates, which my husband is totally against, so don't know if what she said was true. So I thought I'd turn to my friends at PDC! Thanks for any input!

Doggy pee pee ruins hardwood floors.....potty train the dog, then get hardwood floors! Good luck!

MikeW · 09-05-2006

Epoxy coated cement.

MikeW · 09-05-2006

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jacko

Doggy pee pee ruins hardwood floors.....potty train the dog, then get hardwood floors! Good luck!

And keep the toe nails trimmed. Wood and nails don't get along.

Nerak936 · 09-05-2006

Kitty vomit and hairballs will eat through hardwood floors too. My two love to leave little surprises in areas where I don't see it until it's already too late.

I had a high quality linoleum put in an apartment about 6 years ago in a pattern that looked like hardwood. Looked so good that one of the new tenant's brothers looked down at the floor and said, "Wow!! Awesome hardwood floor!!"

They do amazing stuff with floor coverings these days. You don't need to go with hardwood floors to have a nice look that's also easy to care for.

Nerak936 · 09-05-2006

Quote:

Originally Posted by MikeW

And keep the toe nails trimmed. Wood and nails don't get along.

But it is fun to see dogs try to take fast corners on a non-carpeted surface!!

cuffedlinks · 09-05-2006

Pergo.

vivamex · 09-05-2006

Ceramic tile!

StewartG · 09-05-2006

Quote:

Originally Posted by cuffedlinks

Pergo.

Don't you mean, "Ergo, Pergo!"

vivamex · 09-05-2006

Hello Stewart!

StewartG · 09-05-2006

KelliG and I have feces and vomit spewing children and a similarly inclined dog.

Luckily I have a client/friend in the business, so I was able to get some good, accurate, impartial advice.

Bottom line, having kids and pets can REALLY wear the SH*T out of hardwood floors, especially if the dog is bigger than about 20 lbs or so.

My friend suggested we get SOLID hardwood, not laminate, because SOLID can be refinished, usually at least twice, sometimes three times. Laminates cannot be refinished.

He said - let the kids tear up the floors for a couple of years, when they are old enough to be a little more careful in three to five years, you can refinish the floors and start fresh.

Just my 2 cents.

**sctx** · 09-05-2006

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nerak936

But it is fun to see dogs try to take fast corners on a non-carpeted surface!!

yep, this is the #1 answer.........reminds me of when Elvis was young and would chase mardi gras beads when you threw them....so i would always toss them into the linoleum floored kitchen and laugh when he smahed his lil kitty head into the stove

jflattracker · 09-05-2006

We have hardwood floors and two dogs. Wouldn't do that again. When they run they slide and scratch the floors. If your not home to clean the mess up it will warp the floor. Our fridge water line broke and we didn' notice it and it warped it. My In-Laws put pergo in their kitchen. It holds up pretty well!

caramba · 09-05-2006

Well, I'm partial to wood floors as that's one of our family businesses

(lumber co. specializing in wide pine and native hardwoods) so I'm biased...
but over time dogs do a great job of giving your wood floors that nice distressed look

and, seriously, that's what lots of our customers want these days (especially if they have an old house).
Upkeep is pretty easily maintained if you use a penetrating oil finish rather than poly which sits on top of the floor like a sheet of plastic and which scratches easily. The beauty of an oil is that it seeps into the pores of wood and helps harden it, and can easily be touched up on occasion by applying more oil with a rag. Very easy to clean- Murphy's Oil Soap- and to touch up.

caramba · 09-05-2006

My parents' home is over 200 years old and has some very old wood floors in it that still look great- we've always had dogs and lots of "accidents" through the years and I've never seen a board get warped or ruined from it.

09-05-2006	#1 (permalink)
bmar way into it Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Lee's Summit, MO Posts: 145	Hardwood floors vs. carpet for dogs We need to replace our old carpet and are thinking about hardwood. Our major concern is that one of our two dogs isn't the most potty trained. She's had a kinda hard life and means well, but she has accidents when we're not home. And she sometimes overeats...well, I do too, but that's another thread. One salesperson told us that unless it's cleaned up immediatly it'll ruin the hardwood. She was really pushing laminates, which my husband is totally against, so don't know if what she said was true. So I thought I'd turn to my friends at PDC! Thanks for any input!

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09-05-2006	#3 (permalink)
MikeW añejo Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: Moorpark, CA Posts: 9,340	Epoxy coated cement.

09-05-2006	#5 (permalink)
Nerak936 Cat-Lovin Nerak Bead Lady Join Date: Apr 2004 Posts: 18,638	Kitty vomit and hairballs will eat through hardwood floors too. My two love to leave little surprises in areas where I don't see it until it's already too late. I had a high quality linoleum put in an apartment about 6 years ago in a pattern that looked like hardwood. Looked so good that one of the new tenant's brothers looked down at the floor and said, "Wow!! Awesome hardwood floor!!" They do amazing stuff with floor coverings these days. You don't need to go with hardwood floors to have a nice look that's also easy to care for.

09-05-2006	#7 (permalink)
cuffedlinks añejo Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: The City of Presidents Posts: 16,003	Pergo.

09-05-2006	#8 (permalink)
vivamex time out Join Date: Feb 2006 Posts: 266	Ceramic tile!

09-05-2006	#10 (permalink)
vivamex time out Join Date: Feb 2006 Posts: 266	Hello Stewart!

09-05-2006	#11 (permalink)
StewartG commie pinko Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: The Kremlin (when not at my dacha in Houston) Posts: 13,389	KelliG and I have feces and vomit spewing children and a similarly inclined dog. Luckily I have a client/friend in the business, so I was able to get some good, accurate, impartial advice. Bottom line, having kids and pets can REALLY wear the SH*T out of hardwood floors, especially if the dog is bigger than about 20 lbs or so. My friend suggested we get SOLID hardwood, not laminate, because SOLID can be refinished, usually at least twice, sometimes three times. Laminates cannot be refinished. He said - let the kids tear up the floors for a couple of years, when they are old enough to be a little more careful in three to five years, you can refinish the floors and start fresh. Just my 2 cents.

09-05-2006	#13 (permalink)
jflattracker añejo Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Loveland,Co Posts: 11,504	We have hardwood floors and two dogs. Wouldn't do that again. When they run they slide and scratch the floors. If your not home to clean the mess up it will warp the floor. Our fridge water line broke and we didn' notice it and it warped it. My In-Laws put pergo in their kitchen. It holds up pretty well!

09-05-2006	#14 (permalink)
caramba añejo Join Date: May 2002 Location: Massachusetts Posts: 3,514	Well, I'm partial to wood floors as that's one of our family businesses (lumber co. specializing in wide pine and native hardwoods) so I'm biased... but over time dogs do a great job of giving your wood floors that nice distressed look and, seriously, that's what lots of our customers want these days (especially if they have an old house). Upkeep is pretty easily maintained if you use a penetrating oil finish rather than poly which sits on top of the floor like a sheet of plastic and which scratches easily. The beauty of an oil is that it seeps into the pores of wood and helps harden it, and can easily be touched up on occasion by applying more oil with a rag. Very easy to clean- Murphy's Oil Soap- and to touch up.

09-05-2006	#15 (permalink)
caramba añejo Join Date: May 2002 Location: Massachusetts Posts: 3,514	My parents' home is over 200 years old and has some very old wood floors in it that still look great- we've always had dogs and lots of "accidents" through the years and I've never seen a board get warped or ruined from it.

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