My wife and I just bought a house (after decades of happy renterhood). It is a tri-level sixties style and the last owner had made the lower level into a game room (physical type) for the kids with tile on the floor. We are moving in this this weekend and don’t have a great deal of money nor time right now (the money went because of the mortgage company’s discomfort with the current lending situations and the time went because I had to take a second job to get more money). I thought carpet squares would be a cheap way to get something down on the tile so we can get furniture in there and move in (we are going to use it as an office). We plan in about a year to put carpet in there, but the time constraints and cost right after buying the thing right now would really be stretching the budget perhaps past the breaking point.
I have mentioned this idea to friends and they always come back with, “Umm, really, carpet squares, huh?” and when I press them, they often come back noncommitally with, “Well, I suppose it could work…”
I have held off doing it because of all the tentative reactions, but now I am running out of time. Is this a terrible idea? Will it function as a stop-gap measure?
There are tons of other things that will have to be done before I get to this floor in a permanent fashion - new ceiling in the downstairs and a bathroom, reconfigure a bathroom, tearing out a wall between the kitchen and the dining room, getting the fireplace working, painting walls (about three quarters of the house), new light fixtures in about half the house (God, I am getting so depressed).
When we bought our house two years ago (two years and the list really hasn’t grown any smaller) we had to do a lot of the same sorts of work: finishing floors, finishing plumbing, finishing electrical work, finishing fixtures and stuff. In the walk-in closet off of the back bathroom, instead of devoting the time and funds to carpet, tile or laminate, my wife picked up a couple boxes of carpet tile and laid them down.
Our thinking was the same as yours - a temporary solution while the higher priorities get resolved. Only there was a problem - the closer the closet floor came to the top of the list, the more we liked the carpet tile.
The pile shows no wear (and we use that closet a lot, especially as a changing room), the seams are still tight and the edges are stuck down very well. Last fall the closet reached the top of the list and we went in there, stripped everything out and redid everything except the tiles. So, in my experience, as a reasonable filler between projects, carpet tile is pretty good, YMMV of course.
There are carpet squares and then there are carpet squares! Of course carpet tiles are acceptable, I like the versatility, colors and pattern selections. Are you thinking about carpeting the entire space? You could get by with a few well placed area rugs too, I would arrange the room into two or more cozier nooks, it has to be welcoming or I would never want to visit the office.
And speaking of painting, it can get out of hand, I have seen plenty of homes where every room is a different color, and bright, yow. I have been wanting to dress up at least one of my plain white walls with blik.
Thank you for your comments. I feel a great deal more secure. And I may even put the design type squares in a couple of months down the road by pulling up the ones in the center or in a corner. You have given me wonderful ideas.
Regarding the walls – Those are also some great ideas. Traditionally, we do our walls in bookcases. With rentals, it always seems safer that way. The office will be mostly that. My wife is excited about having a living room where we will be able to actually see a wall without books. There is a built-in bookcase and she has allowed that I can put one other bookcase in there. The downstairs, though, is the biggest disaster and the one that will be covered with stop-gaps until we can find time and money.
I think I can make it tolerable initially (two or three months in) and then when the summer rolls around, and I am down to one job, I can probably find some more permant solutions.
You will not believe the downstairs bathroom (do the words “dark grey concrete shower” send shivers down anyone’s back).
How large an area are we talking about?
Carpet comes in 12’ wide rolls - see craigslist for leftovers.
I hate to pay good money for something I know I’ll throw away.
If it going to be temporary, it fits in the “use once and throw away” class, which is the exception to the “never buy junk” rule.
If it is a throw-away, find the cheapest thing that’ll work. This means craigslist, Pier 1, even a good section of the stuff the installers tear out when replacing whole-house wall-to-wall.
Spending real money on something you’re going to throw away? Yeah, I suppose that could work…
I’d spend the money on paint - that is the easiest, cheapest, quickest way to make progress on the seemingly endless line of to-do’s
Why is the tile unacceptable? It’s much easier to clean than carpet. If you’re worried about it being too cold, an area rug works just fine and it’s, again, easier to clean and maintain than carpet.
The tile currently in there is badly worn in spots and it is something of a playroom red with large circles of black and white lines. And to be quite honest I enjoy the feel of carpet on my barefeet which is my preferred footwear around the house. Being on the lower level, warmth is indeed a factor, and yes we can use area rugs, but with that powerful red that is currently there, I feel they would have to be everywhere. We do plan on putting area rugs in some spots over the carpet tiles, however for affect.
Wow, a red floor with with b/w contrast, YOW. I wondr if they skated and played hockey down there? that would be cool with rubber trim and bumper guards on the walls!
Hubby’s company used to have mall displays for their product which were carpeted with carpet tile. When they discontinued using the displays, we took the tiles…a whole trailer full…and laid them in our basement. Whenever one of the kids wrecked a tile with paint or glue, we simply lifted the one tile and replaced it from our “stockpile”. There was absolutely nothing wrong with them. They were practically new, a neutral colour and helped keep the concrete floor warmer for the kids and any damage was easily replaced. I highly recommend them as a temporary measure. They will definately look better than the worn tile that is there.
Yes carpeted walls,anyone? my mother used carpet sqs on the wall to decorate a bedroom/den that was converted from a garage. They were on the wall just a few years then started falling off. They eventually panelled that room, lord to see that house once more…
There are indications that they did indeed skate there - played hockey, maybe, but no rubber trim or bumper guards and no puck indentations on the walls that I can find.
