Flexibility In Life

One thing I have discovered is that flexibility in life is a must and sometimes works out for the best.

Yesterday Bill and I decided to go to Indianapolis to visit his mom and then to meet our son and his wife for dinner. As we were driving we discussed what to do with the floor in one of the apartment units that had been destroyed.

Sample of the damage

The best solution was to take up the laminated wood and put in ceramic tile. The only problem with this solution  was that the tile needed to match the existing tile and that tile has been discontinued.  We thought about stopping at the Home Depot to see if they still had any tile or if they could special order it for us.  However, I really didn’t think they had anymore since we had just brought the last pallet of tile a few weeks ago for the sun room at home.

MARAZZI Model # UJBU Terra 12 in. x 12 in. Brazilian Slate Porcelain Floor and Wall Tile

  Full price: $1.48 / sq. ft.

$22.20/  case  (covers 15.0 sq. ft.)

 

Bill suggested we use those tile for the apartment and get new for the house. Than he sealed the deal by saying that solid hardwood was back on the table for that room and the studio. 🙂 Jump for joy! I really wanted the hardwood in that room and the studio but had agreed to the tile because it was on sale.

The hardwood will average out to about the same  price as the tile because with the tile I would now need to replace the boxes of tile at full price, buy the backer board, the thin set to set the backer board, the adhesive to set the tile, the grout, the sealer and rent a wet saw.  Plus the fact that I have only seen the tile laid and was not sure if I could handle that large of an area.

1/2 in. x 5 ft. x 3 ft. HardieBacker Cement Backerboard

I would need 16 of these at $12.67 / each

FlexBond Gray 50 lb. Fortified Thin-Set Mortar at $28.97/ each

1-gal. High Performance Ceramic Tile Adhesive and Mastic at $11.67

Grout at $13.97

Sealer at $33.97

This does not include renting the saw and buying the other tools that are needed to install the flooring or paying for the labor if I decide to have it installed.

The next problem is that the original hardwood was installed over 20 years ago. I have the information about the flooring it was Bruce C-720 Sterling Strips Natural Red Oak (Smooth) Dura Luster (Urethane) Finish 3/4 x 2 1/4 inch which also has been discontinued.

We brought home a few samples to try to match the original flooring since the new flooring will butt up against the original.

Bruce Sterling Strip 2 1/4″ Natural Red Oak C720

Close match:

Bruce Model # SHD2214 American Originals Spice Tan Oak 3/4 in. Thick x 2-1/4 in. Wide

$4.89 / sq. ft.

$97.76/  case  (covers 20.0 sq. ft.)

 

Another advantage to the hardwood is that the only additional coat will be the nails, the underlayment  (about $50.00), and renting the installation tool. One big advantage is that we have installed this material before and know how it is done.

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 August 17th challenge is declutter yard toys for kids.