Flooring options for concrete slab

[Anonymous]

The first floor of my 1700-square-foot, 100-year-old house was formerly a garage. The current engineered hardwood flooring is warping and buckling. I’ve tried carpet (hated it), ceramic tile (cold and freezing), bamboo flooring (okay but not great). I love wood and wanted the downstairs flooring to match the solid wood flooring of the second floor, but I think there’s just too much moisture in the slab for wood. Is there an option I haven’t considered? House is worth $1.2M if that’s relevant.

I’ve even considered digging down a foot and adding space for radiant heat above the slab but have no idea what’s involved structurally or financially.

[Anonymous]

LVP.

[Anonymous]

It's not even moisture from below it's humidity in the air. Learn to love tile and put a rug, not wall to wall carpet, on it.

[Anonymous]

Tile, area rugs, dehumidifier.

[Anonymous]

Mohawk hybrid resilient plank flooring from Costco wood looking Or LVP 22mil from Home Depot.

[Anonymous]

You can put the warmer coils under the tile in certain areas. You turn the warmer on and off with a switch as you wish.

I have wood look tile and rugs and really like it.

[Anonymous]

LVP. We love ours. Bonus that it's room temperature feeling like wood, whereas tile is very cold.

[Anonymous]

I've seen several homes that paint the concrete slab and put rugs over. I'm not a fan of it but just giving you and option.

Laying the warmer wire under tile does not add much cost.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You can put the warmer coils under the tile in certain areas. You turn the warmer on and off with a switch as you wish.

I have wood look tile and rugs and really like it.

How much height does it take to add warmer wire? I would want that with tile but only have 88 inches of ceiling height.

[Anonymous]

Tile plus good rugs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You can put the warmer coils under the tile in certain areas. You turn the warmer on and off with a switch as you wish.

I have wood look tile and rugs and really like it.

How much height does it take to add warmer wire? I would want that with tile but only have 88 inches of ceiling height.

You have to insulate under it or most of the heat will go into the ground. Figure on a minimum of two inches of foam insulation. If you leave the slab it probably means raising the floor at least 3".

If you take out the slab digging down a couple inches isn't that much additional work, but that's a bigger project.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It's not even moisture from below it's humidity in the air. Learn to love tile and put a rug, not wall to wall carpet, on it.

This is a really important point. In the DC area, it often gets humid enough in the summer that the dew point is higher than the temperature in a basement. Even if your basement is absolutely waterproof, you still get moisture from the condensation of damp air against cold walls.

[Anonymous]

I would consider either a cork or foam underlayment to break the thermal transfer.
The add sleepers if wood floor.

Best would have been to add the thermal break UNDER the slab but too late for that now.

[Anonymous]

What about radiant heat installed in stained and polished concrete with area rugs? That can look pretty cool.