When looking for a new floor for your home, many people look at the cost or the aesthetics of the material to help them make their decision. If you have a child however, one of the main things you will be looking at is how safe the floor is and how easy it will be to ensure they can play and be kids without flooring hazards.
What Are the Best Floors for Homes with Kids?
Rubber Flooring- Perfect for Family Play Rooms
Rubber flooring is an ideal flooring material for families with small children, since it’s one of the safest options available. There’s a reason you often find rubber-based flooring materials at playgrounds. Younger kids may be learning how to crawl or walk in this very room, so ensuring they can’t slip is key. Rubber flooring also cushions a fall just in case. Additionally, it’s easy to clean, since it doesn’t require regular vacuuming or trap dirt and other particles the way other soft flooring materials, such as residential carpeting, does. Just sweep it regularly, and mop it gently in warm water with a light soap, and your playroom will be clean and safe for years to come.
Cork Flooring
Cork flooring is another soft, kid-friendly flooring material; one made from the center of the cork tree. Cork flooring is actually one of the most environmentally-friendly floors on the market as well, since it doesn’t actually harm the tree; it stays alive, and can be harvested again in the future in much quicker fashion than replanting. It has all of the same features as rubber flooring does, so you won’t need to spend much time cleaning it, and cork flooring can be styled to look like hardwood flooring, so you won’t sacrifice looks for function. Just keep an eye on the humidity levels, already a problem in Nashville, since molding can become an issue with cork flooring.
Hardwood Flooring
Hardwood flooring might not seem like the most family-friendly flooring, due to its rough and hard nature. But there is one quality that makes it ideal, and that is its durability. Hardwood flooring is the most durable flooring material available, and pretty much the only one that can last for centuries, if properly maintained. What that means for your family is you don’t have to be concerned with the minor spills and slips, or constantly check for scratches and scrapes. Hardwood flooring can handle that, and anything else your family can throw at it, including pets, natural disasters, and more. If those benefits intrigue you, but you’re concerned about the safety aspects, there are special cushion inserts made to go under the surface of your floor that will greatly increase the amount of padding. Throwing a rug on the surface of the floor will help mitigate these concerns, leaving you with a durable, sturdy floor capable of handling anything.
When you have kids, everything changes, and that includes the way you shop for flooring. Finding a floor that works with your family, whether it be made from Rubber, Cork, Hardwood or any other type of material, is the number one priority for the professionals here at Ozburn-Hessey, so give them a call today.
