When it’s time to replace your floors, you want something that’s durable and well-suited for its location. The old adage that “you get what you pay for” rings very true for Lisa Carlson Nelson, who owns Carlson’s Flooring in Geneva with her brother, Greg Carlson.
“You want products that are going to perform for the investment that you are making,” she says.
Carpet is an enduring favorite, and pricing is dictated by the design, construction and amount of fiber – all factors that could affect the product’s durability as well. A polypropylene-based carpet fiber will be stain-resistant but less resilient against dirt while a nylon or wool carpet will be more soil-resistant and responsive to foot traffic.
One of the best-selling products at Carlson’s Flooring is luxury vinyl plank. This product comes in many colors and styles, including some that mimic the look of a classic hardwood floor. The price of a luxury vinyl plank could be comparable to that of a wood floor, says Nelson, but wood floors are known to bring a more enduring value to a home.
When it comes to tile or luxury vinyl, Nelson says it’s a good idea to keep a few extra pieces on hand, just in case something happens down the road. It’s much easier to replace one or two chipped tiles when you have extras set aside.
The quality of installation can also make a difference. As a second-generation, family-owned business since 1967, Carlson’s Floors takes extra efforts to ensure the right people are on hand to lay a new floor.
“We once had a commercial contractor who didn’t want to pay our price for labor, so they had someone else do it,” says Nelson. “The tile is being torn out now because it wasn’t done right. He went with a lesser labor price, which I understand, but now it’s ending up costing more.”
Carlson’s Flooring is located at 728 W. State St., in Geneva, (630) 232-4964, carlsonsfloors.com.