Hi there everyone! This post may be up for debate. I am not here to debate, but to simply give my opinion, and things I have been told by an M.D. The truth of the matter is, it is the home owners personal preference. Honestly, if you compare cost, it is not a whole lot more of an investment. You as the consumer have to shop around and compare. Today, I am talking about why I didn’t choose carpet. We have been in our home for 10 years now and the only area of our home that still had existing carpet was the upstairs.
We recently replaced the entire upstairs with Pergo Max/Crossroads Oak laminate flooring. To say we are pleased, is an understatement.
I have raised our boys to always take their shoes off in the house, and never have food or drink upstairs. Some may call me Mom meanie, while I found it to simply be respectful and smart. The carpet would have been trashed within the first month or two with all the kids in and out of our house when they were younger. Heck, even now that they are older, the bigger the boy, the harder they are on things.
I kept it clean organically and it was still in decent shape. However, every time I vacuumed I was amazed at the dirt and dust that would get picked up. In the back of the doors all along the edges of the molding was a permanent light grayish dingy looking stain. It was simply ground in YUK that was never coming out.
Around 15 years ago, I recall having to take our older son Alex to the allergist. He had constant bloody noses and allergies. The first thing the allergist asked me was “Do you have carpet in your home” Of course, living in South Florida at the time, the only place we did have carpet were the bedrooms. I told the allergist yes but only in the bedrooms. He was quick to say “get rid of it”. He said carpets are the absolute worse thing in a home, especially for someone who has allergies or asthma. Turned out when he was allergy tested, dust mites were top on the list. Do you know they live in carpets?
(Upstairs sitting room)
How to hang curtains with bath towel hooks
How to paint a door to look like wood
I found some tid bits on Web MD. I have read a lot of debunked myths about having carpets in the home versus laminate, tile and hardwoods. Of course, they were mostly all from carpet companies. For people that suffer with chronic allergies and asthma these are some of the top things in a home Doctors will recommend.
- Remove rugs and wall-to-wall carpeting. Talk with your family about this and about how this will affect family life. If you cannot or do not want to remove carpeting throughout the home, consider removing it only in the bedroom.
Not only do you have to clean the carpet itself, but what you don’t see is what’s going on between the weave and under the padding. You’ll clean your carpet every day and once you’ve finished, you’ll be convinced that everything is peachy keen because it looks so good, right? Wrong. There’s always much more going on below the surface. There is plenty of dust and dirt lurking under that top layer of carpeting that you’ll never see and you’ll never get to. With hardwood, laminate and tile, what you see is what you get. Period.
You’ll typically find that carpeting is made from synthetic materials, which means that toxic chemicals are more than likely involved. Think about it… don’t you notice that pungent smell any time that you walk into a carpet warehouse? That’s the smell of chemicals. Can you imagine releasing that kind of toxicity into your home for years to come?
Before I replaced the carpets, I never had them professionally cleaned by places like Stanley steamer, etc. I did find as earlier mentioned a nice organic alternative to cleaning the carpets and you can find that post How to clean your carpets organically here.
There is just so much more involved in the cleaning process when it comes to carpeted floors. You need to drag the heavy vacuum out of the closet, plug it in and try your best not to get tangled in the mess of the cord. Heaven help you if a stain gets involved because then you get to bring out the sprays, sponges and rags as you get down on your hands and knees to save your carpet. With hardwood, laminate or tiled floors, you’ll find that life is much easier. Just pull out the broom, or swifter and with a quick sweep, you’re free to enjoy your day.
My personal recommendation, if carpets are your thing, I would suggest a very low pile carpet, like berber.
Replacing the carpets with the laminate, not only feels cleaner, but it totally opened up the space. This is my office where I blog, and I have a little craft table set up there as well. The bench ottoman is where I keep a lot of my stencils, fabrics, etc.
Jack’s bedroom. I will show you around his room sometime in the future. He has a lot of neat little things he collects.
That wraps it up for today. I am back from my cruise celebration. It certainly was an eventful time. Not sure if cruising is my thing though to be honest. I had a blast with my friends, but I still feel like I am on the ship and fell ill a few days while out at sea. But all in all, it sure was a blast of a time. I think my friends and I could probably be anywhere together and have a jolly good time.
Thanks for stopping over today. If you are new here, welcome. I hope you come again.
Here are some more fun galleries to browse through while you are here.
Oh and one more thing. Don’t forget to check out my Amazon affiliate store. That headboard you see in the guest bedroom is a steal!
Marty@A Stroll Thru Life says
January 31 at 9:38 amI would love to have all the carpet in our home gone. Still saving my pennies.
Pamela @ FlowerPatchFarmhouse.com says
January 31 at 9:41 amYep, the first thing we ripped out when we bought our home was the carpet because an allergist had told my friend (whose son had severe allergies) that it was the filthiest thing to have in a home. We lived with plywood floors that I painted until we could afford to put down Pergo flooring. That was 15 years ago. The Pergo looks fantastic still and when I clean, I know there is nothing more lurking out of sight!
Plus, who had ever owned this house before had put carpet in the bathrooms. You know that was a stinky mess when we yanked it out!
The other very nasty culprit is those sisal rugs and jute rugs that are so popular, they release little fibers that get into the air and we breathe them in.
debbiedoo's says
January 31 at 10:30 amAgreed, agreed, agreed! Cheers, glad you made the change too.
Sheryl says
January 31 at 10:00 amI would love to replace my carpet with wood flooring…do you like the laminate??
Yours is beautiful, I love the wide planks!
debbiedoo's says
January 31 at 10:29 amI absolutely LOVE the laminate. It looks like the real deal and it is so so simple to swifter up the dust. Every time I do, I think wow, that was all in our carpets. The better grade laminate obviously the nicer look. I am a big fan, I think it is well worth the investment. Like I said, you really don’t pay that much more in the grand scheme of things when you cost compare.
Anne says
January 31 at 10:08 amI totally agree with everything that you said Debbie. In our last house we replaced our entire home with hardwood floors. It was quite a process, but it was totally worth it. When we moved and built our current home we couldn’t afford to add hardwood floors in our entire home since we added 1,000 SQ ft. We were tapped out as far as expenses. Our home is now 9 years old, it will be 10 in November, and our carpet looks horrible. Since we are planning on selling we won’t be replacing it with wood, but carpet. And that’s only because of the market value, it would be a waste of money and we would never get that money back. But I will tell you this, our next home will have hardwood floors and not carpet. I am done with carpet and will never, ever have a home with carpeting again! I too have allergies, as well as my family. I’m just holding on for a few more years when we can replace the carpet and move on!
Can’t wait to hear about your cruise 🙂
debbiedoo's says
January 31 at 10:31 amThanks Anne! I know you will be excited NOT to deal with carpet anymore once you can make the move. The cruise, well, it was a lot of fun, but I will not be getting on another ship anytime soon lol!
Heather says
January 31 at 10:38 amThose laminate floors are gorgeous! I would love to do that in our bedrooms!! Thanks for the inspiration!
Brenda Kula-Pruitt says
January 31 at 11:04 amI personally hate carpet of any variety. I have asthma. When I was choosing this apartment, I asked if they were replacing the carpet. They said yes. I said I’d much rather have plain vinyl/laminate flooring. So that’s what I got. I don’t understand why apartments put carpeting in at all, frankly, because the renter is not going to be careful and they will just keep replacing it. Seems to me not putting in carpet would actually save them money. Not too many ways to tear up what I have. And when I clean it, I really feel like it’s clean because there are no hidden layers.
I like vinyl/laminate flooring over hardwood because I have dogs.
Sorry you got sick on your cruise, but sounds like it was a wonderful time with girlfriends. I love your little office space. So cozy!
Brenda
debbiedoo's says
January 31 at 11:06 amThanks Brenda! That was fantastic that they did that for you. So much healthier in the long run.
Shirley@housepitalitydesigns says
January 31 at 11:07 amI so totally agree with you Debbie….I really wish that i had put wood floors in all f the bedrooms when we built this house…but at that time it was cost prohibitive…Definitely doing this in our future downsized home!….Love your floors!
Dawn says
January 31 at 12:50 pmYep Im a carpet hater. I think it holds dust and odor and is always dirty. I would never have carpet if I have a choice. Your floors look fantastic:)
Kris says
January 31 at 1:13 pmYou are right on about yucky carpets, Debbie. I detest wall to wall! I’m renting a house now and I will be so glad when I buy my next house because I will go all Pergo. My parents had it installed all over their new house at least 20 years ago and it still looks great. They live on the beach – Puget Sound salt water property – and even with sand and salt air, dogs, kids and all sorts of entertaining those floors have really done well. I have a constant stuffy nose at home, but it goes away when I visit my mom. Great clue! Thank you for posting this! People have no idea how toxic and filthy carpet can be and what little creatures it hides! So sorry you didn’t get your “sea legs” on your cruise, but so glad you were able to celebrate with your friends!
Pam @diy Design Fanatic says
January 31 at 1:16 pmLove it Debbie! I’ve always disliked carpet. Our last house was all hardwood, but this big house was too expensive to have the builder install hardwood in the whole house. Plus, carpet is never really clean. Our next house will be hardwood again!
Shannon Fox says
January 31 at 7:54 pmLove all the updated and new peeks at the floors! I love the finish you selected. I so agree, when I empty my cup from the floor with wood and the one with carpet, it’s like night and day.
Great catching up, sorry you were feeling ill on your cruise! xo Shan
Tracey says
February 2 at 8:21 pmCarpets are terrible. I thought I was doing a good thing putting carpets in the bedrooms when my kids were little. They would be warm to play on during the cold northern winters. But, I couldnt stand how dirty they would get. I had them professionly cleaned. My son was 4 and got very sick….so sick. He contracted Kawasaki Disease. They dont know if it is the chemicals used in the cleaning or the bacteria that is pulled up that breeds the virus. It is rare but its also bad and very serious if not diagnosed quickly. We were lucky….the only long term problem is the anxiety and mental health issues that are present since his illness. I would never ever have carpets if I had littles….just not worth it!
debbiedoo's says
February 3 at 8:13 amThanks for sharing Tracey! WOW, I am so sorry to hear about your little man falling so ill. I agree, I would never do it again either. Like I mentioned when our older boy was young, he constantly was suffering with allergies and bloody noses. We had to wait a while to replace the carpets, because obviously, it is an investment and a costly one. But our healthy is more important than the money at the end of the day.
mary says
February 3 at 7:12 amHi Debbie! We only have carpets in the upstairs bedrooms and I would love to get rid of it. My trouble is our upstairs landing is hardwood so I’m not sure how I would be able to transition without going with the same. Very costly! We desperately need new flooring up there (I raised two boys too) and I would be happy with a new berber carpet in those rooms.
debbiedoo's says
February 3 at 8:10 amI transitioned Mary. You don’t try to match, you try to compliment the woods. I think it looks great. Our floors on the stairs are the traditional oak color, I went darker with hints of light in the laminate.
Sarah says
March 20 at 11:41 pmLove these floors! What is the color/finish?
debbiedoo's says
March 21 at 7:19 amI believe I left the info in the post. They are Pergo.