Flooring

We also know as a PP has said someone with underfloor pipe work leaking under concrete, someone with a similar problem with their underfloor heating and DDs MIL had an underfloor leak and when the plumbers dug about found asbetos. She had to live in a hotel for almost 6 months while it was all removed, leaks fixed and everything put back to normal.

If you are inclined to fall about a bit, as I am now I'm ancient, you can't beat landing on a nice carpet.
I dislike hard floors.

I have engineered wood everywhere except for the kitchen, bathrooms and utility cupboards where I have porcelain tiles. I think that tiles are usually better in the hallways by the front door because of dirt and scratching, as I'm guessing that laminates and vinyls could also scratch in this postion.

Witzend

I do like carpet (warm, quiet, and the dust doesn’t show!) but the moths have been at ours with a vengeance. Underneath is parquet flooring (covered up 40 years ago!) but it’s fairly dark, which is why I didn’t like it.

But I’m now thinking of ditching the carpet and getting the wood sanded, but we have some very heavy items of furniture that would need shifting, so how to even start going about it I haven’t really thought as yet. Theres no way dh and I will be shifting that furniture.

We're about to have our wooden floors resealed and our company say that they're happy to move the large furniture if we remove the small stuff. I think you'll probably be able to find a firm that will do this for you.
They do the rooms in two halves, which means we'll need to stay out of the house for a couple of days whilst the finish "cures".

We too are about to have a change of flooring, going from carpet in the lounge, dining room, kitchen and hallway, to engineered wood flooring. I was really worried about who would take up the carpet, and move the furniture, as we're both disabled, but having had various people come out to quote, they were all happy to organise moving furniture, and taking up the carpet and disposing of it. It just costs a bit more, but obviously worth it, if you can't do it yourself. I must admit I'm dreading them coming to do the job, as it's going to take about a week, but we will still have access to the ensuite bedroom at night (we live in a bungalow), and during the day if it gets too noisy, or chaotic, we'll decamp to the motorhome, or at least that's the plan!! Meanwhile, I have to get on and pack away all my breakables, not something I'm looking forward to, more because I have to find room for them once they're packed, but I daresay it will all come together in the end, and we'll be glad we had it done.

Time2. I am sure it will increase the value of your bungalow

We have LVT all thru downstairs...been down 6 years...not a mark on it

Wood floors throughout, most of them original uneven pine or Georgian. However I also have lots of rugs everywhere.

I find the clattery hollow sound of wood floors without at least scatter rugs to be echoey and the vibe is cold and officy.

If you are stripping carpet up to reveal original floorboards and you have a suspended floor, then make sure that there are no gaps between the floor boards or take them up and suspend insulation under them.

We once viewed a house where the ownes had stripped the carpets and titivated the rather gappy floor boards. It was a cold windy day and the scatter rugs were giving a good impression of flying carpets, suspended in the air on the cold cushion of air coming through the floro.

Aely

Just going to mention the flooring here (downstairs). Not to be recommended. Concrete "raft" base covered in tiles (with 2% asbestos so nearly impossible to get rid of) in a delightful shade of poo with decorative streaks of "blood" and "vomit".

I go for carpets myself. I can't walk on "hard" floors barefoot, it is too painful, and they do help stop the cold coming up from below in Winter.

My house is also on a concrete raft, with similar (Marley?) tiles, possibly 1950s. It’s a 1920s semi. I understand the small amount of asbestos is in the backing, and it’s recommended to simply lay new flooring over it rather than have the major headache of removing the tiles.

When I moved here the kitchen had green Flotex-type nylon carpet, in front of the cooker it had spots where it had melted from spitting or spilt cooking oil. I’d love to have vinyl laid but it’s very uneven where an internal wall had been removed without prior levelling. It’s cool for the dogs on hot days, and I have washable mats in front of the sink and cooker.

DD had her living room and happ carpet taken up and laminate laid, it’s slippery and really horrid for the poor dogs, it has also chipped in places. I prefer carpet.

*hall carpet!

DH likes carpet so we have carpet in the living room and dining room & Amtico in the kitchen / breakfast & hall.

I love the look of hard floors & easier to maintain, but I have to admit, hearing is easier in the carpeted areas (I have high-amplification hearing aids & even a slight echo plays havoc).