A floor carries so much more than the weight of your footsteps. It also supports the entire house (literally and figuratively) and brings all design elements together into one cohesive interior.

Despite this, it often seems to remain at the bottom of the list when it comes to home construction and design planning. The worst part is that proper maintenance also ends up slipping away from homeowners’ minds until it’s too late.

It’s time to make a change. If you want to get the most of your decorative flooring, you need to stop making these five flooring mistakes right now:

Mistake #1: Choosing the wrong flooring material for every room

Mistakes tend to haunt you when they are already made. This is truer when it comes to flooring than most other things. After all, you only realize that you chose the wrong floor material until it’s already too late.

So, if you’re lucky enough to realize this during the early stages of house construction or a major remodel, you should take extra care in picking out the material for this part of your house. Plan it carefully based on what room it will go into, its specific purpose, and your lifestyle.

For example, if you’re choosing a flooring material for a children’s playroom and the living room in a house with pets, you should steer clear of softwood materials. They may not be able to last long under stressful conditions, which means you may need to refinish to replace them in just a few years.

Similarly, hardwood is not a good choice for rooms that get exposed to moisture, such as the kitchen, bath, mudroom, and laundry area. After all, water is wood’s biggest foe.

For both situations, concrete is the better choice. With polishing and other newer technologies making it possible for this flooring material to become more decorative, concrete floors can help your home stand out while still enduring extreme stress from foot traffic and moisture.

Mistake #2: Inappropriate cleaning

Cleaning is one of the most common maintenance tasks that can help extend your floors’ lifespan, but only when done right.

Remember that how you clean the floors largely depends on the type of material it is made from, so be sure to do your research first. This will help you to identify the level of maintenance and the products and methods you will need to use to keep your floor sparkling while preventing long-term damage.

This becomes even more crucial for polished concrete. You see, this type of material requires pH-neutral products for cleaning. Anything too acidic or too alkaline can cause its shiny finish to become dull or damaged.

That said, you need to wipe down spills immediately, especially if the substance is acidic or alkaline, like ammonia or lemon juice.

If your concrete floor is sealed, such fluids may also break through the coating as time passes, which may require more frequent resealing and, thus, more wasted money.

On top of that, products often used as natural cleaning agents like vinegar are not always the best choice for some types of concrete floors. For instance, terrazzo flooring doesn’t fare well under this acidic substance and may end up losing its shine.

Mistake #3: Not thinking about cohesion

The floor is a crucial element in interior design. Do you know why? Because it can either tie the décor together or tear it apart.

Think about it. A house with an entryway that features hardwood flooring, a kitchen fitted with vinyl tiles, and a dining area sporting wall-to-wall carpeting won’t look great as a whole. Since these spaces aren’t typically divided by doors that distinguish their different purposes, having radically different flooring for each of them leaves the interior design looking disconnected and somewhat sloppy.

Of course, this doesn’t mean you need to pick the same flooring for every room in the house. The key is to keep cohesion in mind and look at areas from different vantage points. For instance, if your dining area is visible from the entryway, think about using the same flooring for both spaces.

Besides flooring material, you should also ensure that the floor’s color complements the other parts of the room. Ensure that fixtures, cabinets, and walls work well with the floor and avoid a mishmash of various colors and materials within the same room.

Mistake #4: Using a single pattern for everything

Using the same flooring pattern throughout an interior also won’t work well if you’re after an expertly designed space. This isn’t to contradict the previous item on this list; it simply means you should consider matching patterns that complement each other.

This can be helpful when you’re having difficulty picking out a flooring material for your interiors. Believe it or not, you can use more than one material in the same room or a bigger space divided into smaller ones as long as they look good together. One good example of this is carpeting on concrete floors.

Similarly, you should also consider picking a floor that will go in contrast with your walls. The rule of thumb is to sustain the emotional reaction you want the room to inspire when making the decision.

For example, if you have a rosy pink wall color, you can choose a dark-hued material for the floor. This will make the wall look more sensational and create a bolder statement for the room.

Mistake #5: Going for cheap, low-quality materials

Although the price isn’t the only important consideration in flooring selection, how much you spend on your floor often determines how long it will last. This is the part where you should keep the saying “you get what you pay for” in mind.

So, don’t skimp on quality. Labor won’t change the output too much, as long as you hire professionals for the job. But when it comes to the material used, you’ll see and feel a huge difference in durability and appearance.

Do Your Flooring Right

Floor choices, maintenance, and use in interior design all require much thought and preparation. Learning these common mistakes will help you get it right the first time.

Need advice or help with your decorative flooring? Don’t hesitate to reach out to us. Equipaint is here to help.