Choosing Alternative Floor Coverings

Carpet

Warm, comforting and quiet underfoot, it’s not surprising carpet’s popularity holds strong. It is suitable for most rooms – though it is usually best avoided in wet rooms – but the type of carpet you choose should be influenced by the amount of traffic the area is expected to receive. Stairs, hallways and living rooms will usually require ‘heavy’ or ‘extra-heavy domestic’ carpet, while bedrooms and lesser-used rooms can be fitted with a lighter-weight design.

Audrey Sunrise is a 100% wool heavy domestic carpet from Crucial Trading, £120/m² (01562 743747)

Tufted or Woven?
There are two types of carpet. Tufted is the more economical choice as it is less labour-intensive to make: yarn is sewn into a woven backing fabric, then a secondary backing fabric is applied. There is a large variety of colour, pattern and texture, as well as materials.

Woven carpets are time-consuming to produce, as they are made by weaving the front and back of the carpet at the same time. They are expensive, but high quality and will hold their appearance and pile well. Look out for Axminster (patterned) and Wilton (plain).

Material Matters
There are a variety of materials that can be made into carpet, each with different properties. Natural wool is a great choice — it’s fairly hardwearing and keeps its looks for years. However, it is more expensive than a wool blend, which uses synthetic fibres to create a more durable product. Many cheaper carpets are made entirely of a synthetic product such as nylon, polypropylene or polyester. They tend to be stain-resistant and hardwearing, but are unlikely to look as good as a carpet containing natural fibres.

For something a bit different, try a natural fibre such as coir (from coconuts), seagrass (grass soaked in seawater), sisal (from the leaves of the Agave sisalana plant) or jute (from the Corchorus herb). They look great, come from sustainable sources and contain fewer chemicals. Some cannot be dyed, and not all are ideal for areas of high traffic or wet rooms — ask the supplier.

Pile Texture
Multiple carpet textures are available, but not all are suitable for every application. Generally, velvet (smooth finish) and twist (textured and short) piles are suitable for any room, while Saxony – a softer, high pile – may flatten in areas of heavy traffic. Loop piles (right) emulate natural flooring but can feel a little coarse, while berber, a hardwearing loop pile, is made of naturally pigmented fibres and is suitable for use in most rooms.

Installation
The underlay, which starts from £4/², makes all the difference: a good-quality underlay will reduce the compression on the carpet and help it last longer. It is possible to fit carpet yourself, but many companies will throw in the fitting if you buy over a certain amount. If you do go down the DIY route, ask a friend to help you and get the right equipment — e.g. a knee kicker.

Underfloor heating
Underfloor heating can work effectively under carpet, but the tog is critical: the carpet/underlay need a combined thermal resistance of less than 2.5 togs.

Vinyl and Linoleum

harveymaria’s Rose Sprig vinyl from the Cath Kidston collection, from £39.95/² (0845 680 1231)

Forget the yellowed, flimsy coverings of the past, these two materials now offer far more than just a cheap and cheerful flooring, being extremely durable, water-resistant, easy to maintain and cost-effective to buy — vinyl in particular can also mimic wood and stone.

Due to their similarity in appearance, many people think vinyl and ‘lino’ are the same thing. But there is a key difference: vinyl is made up of a synthetic, petroleum-based material comprising a printed-design layer between a foam base and a protective top layer. Yet linoleum is a completely natural product derived from linseed oil, which is dried out and mixed with fine plant material, such as ground cork, wood flour and pine resins, and then combined with a jute fibre backing (sometimes this is polyester). Linoleum is one of the most eco-friendly floor options available, but as vinyl is so long-lasting (it has a shelf life of up to 40 years), it’s also fairly low-impact.

Amtico’s Urban Marble resin vinyl costs £66/² (0121 745 0800)

Installation
Sold in whole sheets or as tiles, vinyl and linoleum are often chosen for their easy and low-cost installation, which can be attempted by most DIYers — you may not even need an adhesive. However, the material does need to be cut with precision. Choose a quality product that is cushioned and has good slip-resistance, and aim for as close to 4mm thick as possible (with 1.5mm minimum for sheets; 2mm for tiles). Backings can offer improved sound and heat insulation, but not all vinyl and linoleum is compatible with underfloor heating, so check with the supplier. When fitting, the floor surface must be as level as possible, and you should loose-lay it first as it needs at least a day to acclimatise (check with the supplier for details).

Cork

City Cork Engineered Fein flooring, £24/² from UK Flooring Direct (0845 263 6586)

Cork flooring is made from the bark of the cork oak tree, which can continuously be harvested without causing harm to the tree. For this reason, it is a sustainable and renewable material. Its softness makes it kind to the feet and it is also fire-resistant and soundproof. The substance does, however, need to be kept clean and dry, which will also help it to retain its attractive appearance — so if fitted in the bathroom it needs to be sealed. Cork flooring is available in a wide range of colours and tones.

Bamboo

Wide Carbonised Horizontal bamboo flooring from The Bamboo Flooring Company, from £24.09/² (0116 274 1050)

Bamboo is a very sustainable material which is also naturally waterproof, durable and often cheaper than – though comparable in performance to – hardwood. The plant itself is a fast-growing grass which matures within three years (oak takes 120) and requires little fertilisation or pesticides. Its colour is achieved by heating as opposed to staining, and the longer it is heated, the darker it gets. It’s usually imported from China, so make sure it’s from a sustainable source and ideally doesn’t use formaldehyde binders.

Laminate

Left: Perspective Vintage Oak planks, £26.99/² from Quickstep (quick-step.com); Right: TileLOC, £14.98/² from B&Q (diy.com)

Laminate flooring consists of a photographic image of wood or stone placed on top of a core board made of compressed fibres; the material is covered in a melamine wear layer, which is what gives laminate flooring its famed toughness. It is less likely to scratch than wood and is easy to clean, and also feels softer and warmer underfoot. It is also easy to install as it usually has click system installation, without any need for glue or nails.

Concrete and Resin

Puur’s cementitious floor overlay. Expect to pay from around £90/². Call 020 7084 6266 for more information.

Concrete is perfect for those seeking a smooth contemporary design with an industrial vibe. Concrete is often given a bad press for being eco-unfriendly, but it’s greener than you might think, being that it often uses recycled aggregates in its manufacture and is incredibly hardwearing — so will last for decades without the need for replacement; it’s also waterproof. It needs to be poured by a specialist company, and is often polished to a high gloss.

If you can’t have a solid concrete floor, try Puur’s cementitious floor overlay (above) which looks just like concrete. The company also offers poured resin, which can create a seamless look in virtually any colour. Expect to pay from around £90/². Call 020 7084 6266 for more information.

Ceramic Tiles

Neutral Clay tiles from Fired Earth cost £85.41/² (01295 812088)

It’s no secret that ceramic tiles are ideal for wet rooms, but they are increasingly being used to emulate stone — yet are lighter weight and cheaper. When in large format, ceramic tiles can create seamless flooring in contemporary, open plan living areas — look for rectified edges for narrow grout lines.

You can lay the tiles yourself without too much trouble – ideally on a concrete subfloor – but you will need to buy the right equipment, e.g. a tile cutter. It is standard practice to start in the middle of a room — although you’ll need to plan the layout, as you won’t want to be left with any slivers at the edges.

Leather

A mark of luxury, leather tiles create a warm atmosphere, generally improving with age as they develop a rich patina and gain characterful marks and scratches over time. Available as tiles, leather is expensive, costing in excess of £200/², however, it is a very durable material. All the same, it’s not advisable to install leather in bathrooms.

Rubber

Rubber is derived from rubber trees, and is a renewable resource with a 20-year lifespan that can look great in contemporary homes. It also insulates, absorbs noise and is highly water resistant.