Armstrong Hardwood Flooring - Anyone used it?

[jteneyck]

I'm going to pull up the ceramic tile and subfloor in my kitchen (lots of cracked tiles) and replace it with wood.  I'm looking at Armstrong maple, 3/4" thick.  Has anyone used Armstrong hardwood flooring and, if so, was the quality good and how has it held up?  Any input is appreciated.  I'm interested in lighter grey around 3" wide with a smooth finish so the options seem limited. Everyone seems to want wide, rustic flooring these days.  Not me. 

Thanks.  

John

[R Clark]

I've used Armstrong flooring products but not traditional wood.  What I used has been good quality.  If Armstrong offered what I was looking for in wood, I wouldn't hesitate to use it.

I've had traditional wood flooring and engineered wood in kitchens before.  You didn't ask this specifically, but I'll offer it up anyway.  Wood simply is not my preferred flooring for that application.  We put resilient vinyl tile into our kitchen two years ago.  It's one of those patterns that looks like stone tile and has traditional grout between the tiles.  We absolutely love it.  No cracked tiles and if we do manage to damage a tile it will be a very simple matter of pulling the damaged tile, replacing with a spare, and re-grouting.  Has good feel and texture under foot.  So far, the grout looks as good as it did the day it was finished.  We don't care if it gets wet.  We obviously wipe up spills, but if you miss something, it's not going to affect the finish.

[jteneyck]

Thanks. 

Guess I won't be using solid wood though, or at least not maple.  I was reading Armstrong's literature about the product last night and saw that it was not approved for use with radiant floor heat, which I have under the kitchen.  Most other manufacturers show their solid wood products can't be used with radiant heat either, but I did find a couple of companies that said their products could, although one had all kinds of gotta do's or the warranty was no good. 

So that lead me to look more seriously at engineered wood floors; not my preference but better than running into a problem.  I'm amazed at the warnings most of them have, too, for installation - RH levels, in particular.  I have to believe there are a lot of floors that get installed without waiting for the RH to be in the required range.  On the other had, friends of mine installed a laminate floor and it buckled up when they left their house unoccupied for several months in the Summer and turned off the AC. 

But some sort of wood seems like the best option in my kitchen.  Tile crack and the grout never stays clean, although I've been told there is an epoxy grout that does.  Still have the chipping and cracking problem, though.  Vinyl is just not going to happen in my house, regardless of how practical it is.  Cork? No thank you.  Same with bamboo.  How anyone can call that stuff environmentally responsible amazes me.  So I'm back to wood - of some sort, and if anyone has some thoughts on where I can find a uniform colored light to medium grey, narrow plank wood product (think Euro look) that is OK over radiant heat I  would appreciate hearing them.  

John

[Robert Adams]

I'm in the same boat here. Though loml wants tile I will try to get her to look at that new tile mentioned above. I had to do tile in the laundry room which aa so has the entrance from the garage and back yard and it's always always a mess. Tile is such a pain to keep clean and the grout will always look bad. I looked into epoxy grout and it is the best for it but it's hard to get and pricey. That's what they use in commercial kitchens and it holds up great but it's it's a pain to install and cure times are long. 


        I will say though that the old houses with oak floors in the kitchens hold up better than expected but I wouldn't try it with anything less than real 3/4" oak flooring. 

       I don't like vinyl flooring but unfortunately  it is extremely durable and holds up better to my abuse than anything else.

[Snipe Hunter]

I'm (traditionally) not a fan of vinyl either but I'm seeing a lot of vinyl "plank" in the homes I inspect. I was in one yesterday, brand new home with vinyl plank. I like it compared to the look of most laminates. I still like real tile and real wood better but those aren't always practical. I've looked at the Borgs at vinyl plank and I'm not thrilled at what I see. What surprises me is the better stuff costs as much as wood or tile. But, the installation is much less labor intensive. I suspect we'll put it in our kitchen when we get to that part of the house. It does interlock like laminate and it's softer so a level floor is important so it doesn't pop apart. Tile is really pretty cheap. It's the backer, thinset, grout and labor that make it pricey.

[Robert Adams]

I'm (traditionally) not a fan of vinyl either but I'm seeing a lot of vinyl "plank" in the homes I inspect. I was in one yesterday, brand new home with vinyl plank. I like it compared to the look of most laminates. I still like real tile and real wood better but those aren't always practical. I've looked at the Borgs at vinyl plank and I'm not thrilled at what I see. What surprises me is the better stuff costs as much as wood or tile. But, the installation is much less labor intensive. I suspect we'll put it in our kitchen when we get to that part of the house. It does interlock like laminate and it's softer so a level floor is important so it doesn't pop apart. Tile is really pretty cheap. It's the backer, thinset, grout and labor that make it pricey.

Same thoughts here. The vinyl I like is easily twice the price of quality hardwood flooring...

 Course look how many houses have tile right on the plywood and it holds up for many decades without a problem. But all the sudden when these new products came about it was a no no to put tile on plywood...

[Snipe Hunter]

Same thoughts here. The vinyl I like is easily twice the price of quality hardwood flooring...

 Course look how many houses have tile right on the plywood and it holds up for many decades without a problem. But all the sudden when these new products came about it was a no no to put tile on plywood...

We have tile on plywood in our entry hall. It may all be still intact but the floor squeaks terribly. It's also over laminated joists and they're like a trampoline. I much prefer tile on some sort of backer.

[Robert Adams]

We have tile on plywood in our entry hall. It may all be still intact but the floor squeaks terribly. It's also over laminated joists and they're like a trampoline. I much prefer tile on some sort of backer.

The squeaks and bouncing would still be there if there was backer board as its framing issues not tile. Remember the older houses were plywood over 1 1/8 tongue and groove Douglas fir. Squeaks are from nailing the ply down instead of screwing  and adhesive makes makes a huge difference.

[CarrieWilliamson]

I haven't heard much about Armstrong, but yes, recnetly my uncle have changed their house flooring from K&K floors and he said that the installation was really accurate and as per the schedule, also he was very happy after the work and finish and all.. I myself visited my uncle's house after and it seems really fine finishing work done ...

[jteneyck]

I'm still looking for a gray engineered wood product without success.  Oh I can find plenty of grays, but they just don't do it for me.  As much as I don't want to, if I can't find the right gray I may buy unfinished maple or rift sawn white oak engineered wood flooring and finish it myself.  I've even toyed with the idea of making my own engineered flooring.  I know how to slice veneer and I have a vacuum bag.  Other than patience it can't be too hard.  But I sure hope it doesn't come to that.  

Tomorrow I'm going back to the store I got the Armstrong samples from to return them and see what they have in engineered wood as far as colors go.  Considering I haven't found much on the web I'm not too optimistic.  More to follow at some point.

John