LESLIE: Donna in Wisconsin is doing some tiling or un-tiling. What’s going on over there?
DONNA: Well, I have a main entry in my kitchen and dining area and I have, right now, ceramic tile on the floor. And we bought a very inexpensive tile, which I will never do again, because the surface is very porous and the crevices are deep. It’s very difficult to clean.
LESLIE: Mm-hmm.
DONNA: And I’m thinking of putting a flooring over that and I’m wondering if I can use a – what type of flooring would be the best without taking up the ceramic tile?
LESLIE: Now, Donna, is there a front door or doors that are in this area that might be hindered if you go up a little bit in thickness?
DONNA: No, they would not be hindered.
LESLIE: So this is a completely freeform area – so you can just go right on top?
DONNA: Yes.
LESLIE: Alright. There are a lot of different choices, actually. If you’re looking to do -so you don’t want tile or you’re going to go with another tile?
DONNA: I don’t want another ceramic tile, no.
LESLIE: Are you open to a laminate floor choice? Something that looks like wood, that installs very easily, that’s not terribly thick but very, very durable?
DONNA: Yes.
TOM: I think that’s probably your best choice because there are so many options in laminate floor. You could clearly find something that looks like tile or looks like hardwood …
LESLIE: Mm-hmm.
TOM: … or looks like stone and you could put it down right on top of that existing tile and it’s going to be incredibly durable.
LESLIE: And if you have any transitions from that area to other parts of your house where you’re going from, say, this new flooring to tile or to carpeting, there are different transitions that you could put to end that part of the room and continue into the next that would vary on the height – what would be underneath from the new laminate then going to the carpet or tile or whatever it is in the surrounding areas. It’s very easy to do.
DONNA: What type of – do I have to put an underlayment? If I use laminate, do I put an underlayment down first?
TOM: It depends. Some laminates have an underlayment built into the tile themselves.
LESLIE: Right on the back side.
DONNA: OK.
TOM: And some have a separate laminate or separate underlayment that could be like a thin mat or could be foam-like and you lay that down first and put the laminate on top. Now, the laminates – they also are lock-together so you don’t have to worry about gluing them; they snap in place. And so I really think this couldn’t be easier for you, Donna.
DONNA: OK, is that good for when you have pets? I do have a dog.
TOM: Absolutely.
LESLIE: Mm-hmm.
TOM: Yep, absolutely. It’s a great flooring.
DONNA: (overlapping voices) OK, great.
LESLIE: (overlapping voices) Because they’re not porous so it’s not going to absorb anything.
TOM: (overlapping voices) Yep.
DONNA: Oh, wonderful. OK. Thank you so much.
TOM: You’re welcome, Donna. Thanks so much for calling us at 888-MONEY-PIT.
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