WHY all the ugly ceramic tile?
 

We've been in the process of looking for a new home. SO many of the homes have that awful ceramic tile in the entire home. WHY??? As many homes as we have looked at, I've never seen one of those houses that looks warm and inviting....even with rugs on them. I understand having it in the kitchen and baths, but the entire house...UGH!
My question....what do we have to do to put other flooring down? Does that have to be jack hammered up first?

Everyone's taste is different. I actually prefer all tile or wood. It is Florida and tile is so much cooler than carpeting!

In the winter all that tile flooring makes the house very cold. Hard wood is much warmer. Carpet is ok if it is good quality. They put more tile so they can charge more and you end up paying double for the tile work.

Why tile? Because the gritty Florida sand will settle in your carpet and scratch up your hard wood. Why not tile? It's just a matter of personal preference and tile is very popular in Florida.

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. I like the tile look.

Tell your salesperson you do not want a house with tile, not sure if any come with wood floors but at least with carpeting it will be easier to put in the floor of your choice. You could also look at preowned that have upgraded their flooring already. Many advantages to a preowned home.

I SO agree!!! Not trying to offend anyone and I do realize some people have allergies, but it's not like we are at the beach here or anything!

We would like hardwood and good carpet, and know we will probably have to put in ourselves. Just trying to figure out what the process is to do that over ceramic?

So true!!! Even the hospital rooms here are more inviting and residential looking, as they have warm-colored wood laminate flooring!

I actually requested the same tile throughout my whole house. I have no "transition" bumps and I just love the "Florida" look of my house. We do have a couple room size rugs, but I like the easy clean of all tile.

I actually perfer tile......that being said......some of the color choices on the new spec's had to have been on a special buy....because they are just awefull.....

and lets talk granite.......what were they thinking using those colors in the kitchens......

I'm not that picky but.....wow...... some homes are just way out there and i don't think will appeal to the average buyer......... its gonna take a special buyer for those colors....

but as my mom always said.....theres a seat for every ass....

Tile is sweeping, mopping, cleaning grout lines. Carpet is just run the vacuum cleaner. Hard on the feet and legs standing and walking on tile everywhere. Nothing like walking barefoot on a nice rug instead of cold hard tile. Then putting down area rugs that move and shift, something to trip over, and now you have added one more cleaning chore. Just my opinion after seeing tile and hearing comments from owners that have tile throughout.

I think we may have another TOTV classic.
So many places this expression can be used.:icon_wink:
Sort of like "Boy Howdy".

I have seen on the flip this house shows on TV where they put down the laminate over the tile. I do think you should call Floormasters and check with them though. We have laminate and some tile in the kitchen. Ours is a very high quality (thick) laminate with a styrofoam coating that is a vapor barrier and helps with the sound of your heels so they don't click. I like our laminate, but not all laminate. It pays to have the higher quality laminate. You do need to keep your air conditioning on most of the time if you have laminate at least we do. Otherwise the floors get sticky and damp. Our floor is 4 years old and still shines like new and is easy to clean. With tile you do have to deal with the dirty grout lines and may need to have it professionally cleaned once or twice a year. At least that is my experience.

I see houses advertised as having "all tile throughout" as an enticement.
I find homes that have it seem to echo. Plus it's hard on knees and hips.
But obviously easy to keep clean, which is a big benefit.
Laminate or hardwood also seems easy to clean but a little warmer and more welcoming.
Ask kstew said, there's a seat for every ass!

The carpet we had in our first home here was decent builder quality. In our second home it is top quality. We asked them to duplicate a model home when we built three years ago and the model home had a tone on tone diagonal pattern carpet. I liked both carpets and they clean well. Our first home here was built in '07.

They put more tile in spec homes because tile is very sought after. That is what a lot of people ask for here. Many people have pets and it is easier to keep clean. All tile floor is a positive selling point and you will see it advertised as such on homes for sale here.

Back home or in Tennessee hard wood is warmer because it is installed over a subfloor. Here it is installed over a barrier that is installed over the concrete slab. The up side it isn't cold very long here.

We have carpet in the bedrooms, hardwood in the great room and dining room and tile in the rest of the area. I think they use great contractors and very good products.

Some of the so called "hardwood" we've seen looks fake and plastic. Nothing like the hardwood floors we were used to up north. The sales pitch is that these are "engineered" hardwoods - much like Steak-Ums are engineered steaks. No thanks. I'll take natural tile instead. At least it looks real....

I hate carpet
I can't wait to put in tile or hardwood
If you've pulled up carpet and seen what lurks beneath!!!!

Love our tile, easy to take care of. Carpet you need to stretch it too often in Florida.

I actually hate granite! After having it for over 10 years in my old home, I found it to be high maintenance! My new home has laminate and it's so much better than granite for now! Will keep it until I decide if there is a better option out there! Quartz? Poored cement? I love hardwood floors over tile as well! Sand is a concern. Although we do not live at the beach, the ground is a sand mixture!

Freudian slip- poured concrete, not poored

:bigbow:

Slipping and falling on a tile floor can be more dangerous for elderly people.

If more and more people refuse to buy these spec homes with amenities they don't like or want, perhaps TV will go back to allowing people to design their own homes.

but...that does not appear to be happening.

Why??? If SO many homes have all tile, obviously it's popular here.

Steak-Ums. That's just funny!

I have carpet in my living room and bedrooms. Everything else is tile, kitchen, dining room, nook, hall and bathrooms. I like the warmth of carpet in the living room.
When we built this house 10 1/2 years ago I did choose a high quality carpet for the carpeted areas. I got Karastan and it still looks beautiful.

My neighbor up north in CT was a General Manager for a car dealership. I once asked him what do they do with "that" car that is the wrong color, wrong options, etc etc etc that just sits on the lot for a long time.

He said the exact same thing to me and it made me laugh when you posted that quote :1rotfl:

And doubt it will happen with only 2 or 3 years to go.

I agree. Just a personal preference, I don't like laminate or "engineered Hardwood" or whatever you call it. Steak-Ums HA HA, I have another one that I scratch my head on -- Imitation Seafood that you see on occasion at a salad bar!! What the heck is that???

When buyers think carpet holds dirt, they've probably not really hand scrubbed the tile grout lines with a brush to see what kind of dirt grinds into grout and sits in it, even with weekly, meticulous washing of the floor by hand.

Custom build and tile flooring
 

It wouldn't do any good when you build. We built a new home, they only allowed carpet in certain areas, they would only lay the wood OR tile floor where THEY wanted it not where I wanted it. We did vinyl because I wasn't going to put tile or wood where they wanted it because it would have ruined the flow and made the rooms look smaller. They wouldn't let me install wood in the kitchen or any other "wet" room only tile. We did carpet in the living/dining area and bedroom and when we're ready we'll replace it with hardwood. I hated having tile anywhere because it's so hard to remove if you want to install something else. Just the experience we went through and we were one of the last ones to be able to custom build. When you're building and paying for a home you would think the custom means the way YOU want it not the way TV say you have to do it. Regardless, we love it in TV, love the home and lot just wish we'd been able to have more say in the installation layout.

I like steak-ums:boxing2:

I had the tile removed...no jackhammer required...came up easily.

graciegirl, I love your colors!! Where did you get your drapes or fabric for those drapes? LOVE!

This home is three years old this month. Just shot a picture of the tile and grout lines unsealed in entry. Use a Swiffer after vacuuming. I think it is holding up well.

Sorry. I printed a sketch I am working on for art class too and it won't go away.

I guess because "they" had to warranty it. PLUS...I have heard this dozens of times from the "old" times. They would allow many more choices and then the buyer had an unexpected cash reversal and the home didn't close and The Villages then owned the VERY individualized home that no one else would want. The Villages have learned as they've gone along.

m

I agree. Carpet fills with all kinds of fuzzy, gritty, furry things . I have a darker tile with same color grout and no grout cleaning needed. :a040:

To each his own. I've been in Florida most of my life and except for my first home in Miami all I've had is tile.......except for now here. I hated how tile would chip if something dropped on it, and especially how dirty the grout got in traffic areas. My last home in Boca Raton was to cost $1000 to restore the grout and it probably wouldn't have stayed clean for more than a year or two. I'll take the softness and warmth of carpet anyday. If you are new to Fla. and this is all new to you then you'll probably like tile. As they say......You pays your money and takes your choice.

We have tile everywhere except our three bedrooms. I hate the traffic patterns and so we tossed back and forth as to what we were going to do with the bedrooms. Wood floors were out because of moisture concerns. I know hey can test and I know they can treat but its Florida My wife didn't want tile, I did. We compromised and did it my wife's way and replace carpet with carpet but installed top quality from the concrete up. Its holding up better.

We do not feel that tile is a problem maintaining and periodically call our tile guy to come in and give our tile a face lift.

it all works because we all make it work. enjoy your home

May I ask who your tile guy is? Thank you!