Some of us can’t afford hardwood all over. Me? I’d rather travel than spend $$ replacing carpet.
I’m not a pro, but yeah. That’s what was done in the failed installation at my in-laws and that’s what I ended up with at my place. I wasn’t kidding when I said I laid that floor five times.
Attempt #1: remove floor, ringnail fresh stiff ply over existing subfloor. Too bouncy, rip it back off.
Attempt #2: remove subfloor, to discover traces of ancient, huge, no longer occupied honeybee hive. Remove lots of wax, screw down multiple plywood layers to joists. Still not stiff enough.
Attempt #3: pull off layers of plywood, sister all joists damaged by plumbers in ages past. Reinforce at wall edges with additional framing. Screw the plywood back down… still too bouncy for tile.
Attempt #4: cross-reinforce joists, screw plywood back down. Seems stiff enough now… I attempt to lay some tile. Joints crack, but only after much jumping up and down. But we’ve almost got it now…
Finally, success - pull the plywood layers back off, put in a bit more reinforcing around the heat duct and toilet flange, then replace top layer of ply with glass-reinforced cement board, followed by isolation layers, tile and grout.
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Yes. Blargh.
I, for one, admire your dedication.
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Decoupling membrane FTW.
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In my experience, pretty typically, yes. I always take off my shoes by default whenever I enter someone’s home as a courtesy, though.
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It did come out pretty, didn’t it? I still have to finish the base moldings around the washer/dryer stack… they’re reproduction. The trim around the window and entry door is original, though. I carefully removed the window molding before tearing out the walls, and I found the old door molding inside a closet.
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I grew up with carpet in every apartment or house that I lived in until I was at least 18, and every hotel or cheap motel that I’ve ever seen had it as well. Not in the kitchen or bathroom because of the water, but everywhere else. Bare floors - squeaky old wooden planks, concrete, plywood - those were floors that you’d find in a barn, shed, garage, or the abandoned building where you’d stay if you were homeless, not a house or apartment you would pay for. They were one step up from a hut with a dirt floor with some straw thrown down.
Imagine my surprise and culture shock when by the time I became an adult the real estate agents would gush about beautiful bare hardwood floors as if it were a selling point. hah. I eventually got used to the bare (and loud) squeaky wooden floors, but it still seems a step back. In my experience, most places with them don’t have central heat and air and often have old plumbing and wiring. It’s like housing technology regressed since the 80’s.
Yes. There are exceptions in muddy, slushy, or deep snow situations, but we don’t usually poop on the sidewalks here, so in most cases our shoes aren’t that dirty. And it’s often easier to sweep/mop a bit than to take off the shoes at the door due to the way the houses are laid out.
Some houses have large entrances with seating where that would work, but in many, upon entering you are immediately in a small hallway and/or stairway and have to go a ways into the house to get to a place where you can set down your groceries (or whatever else you might be carrying), take off your coat, and sit down to take off your boots. And there’s no real point taking off your boots if you’re going to be going right back outside again soon. (Which is common where I’ve lived.)
And of course, no one wants to smell other people’s stinky boot feet, and no one wants to be the one with the stinky feet, so everyone keeps them covered. Also, with the trend away from carpet to bare floors, from which enormous amounts of dirt, pet fur, etc. stick to your feet/socks, it’s cleaner to keep your shoes on so that you don’t end up with furry black feet. And more comfortable when walking around. In places that are still carpeted, people probably take their shoes off more often.
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Most old wood floor joists allow for too much deflection for tile without reinforcement.
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My parents had the carpet replaced with hardwood floor, which is forgiving of crappy subflooring. It made a huge improvement to the mustiness and general allergy load.
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