Should I rip out the tile by the front door or leave it when the installers put in wood floor?

Question

I have fairly new ceramic tile by the front door which opens into the living room. Now I want new wood in the LR floor and am wondering how it would look to leave the tile and start the wood at the edge of the tile. It will probably be laminate and will need some kind of separation edge or something.

Answer 1

If the tile is in good shape & you like it there, leave it. We have a natural stone entry at the front double doors. The rest of the house is oak hard wood. The bathrooms are ceramic tile. I like the look of the stone or tile beside the hardwood floors...
Besides it is more durable & holds up well to water, snow, etc.

Answer 2

If you like the tile, then you should keep the tile. After all, it is your house. Remember, a man's home is his castle. Don't let anybody tell what you should do or should not do. The professional installers will know how to put a suitable edging between the tile and the wood. If you give the order with conviction, they will follow it without putting up a fuss.

Answer 3

You should leave it. You get more wear and tear on the floor at the door and the tile will hold up much better than wood flooring will. (Also easier to clean!) The person doing the instaling should be able to get a small piece of divider that matches the wood flooring to put along the tile to make it look nice.

Answer 4

If I were you, I would leave the tile. Like you said, it is fairly new and probably looks nice. Anytime hardwood flooring is installed....or laminate, the installer will use a transition strip leading from another room, or tile or carpet. It will lay in the opposite direction of the laminate, be smooth, and you won't even notice it. Good luck.

Answer 5

LEAVE THE TILE!! Get a nice transition strip and leave the tile. Laminate finish will wear over time, and with coming in and out and tracking stuff in, the tile will hold up better over time. You can use Schluter strip, or get a transition piece from your local flooring store.

Answer 6

Leave the tile.

We have laminate, and while it is extremely durable, we kept the tile by our front door because it is easier to clean than laminate, and it is also harder than laminate. Sometimes people drag little rocks and stuff in on their feet, and you don't want to have to deal with your laminate getting scratched up.

Yes, they do use a special edging, and that will probably just butt up against your tile.

Good luck.

Answer 7

When we bought our used home we replaced the ceramic tile in the foyer, and then put down laminate flooring in the living room. It looks fine.THere is a beveled wood strip connecting the two. If you want to send an E-mail to [e-mail] I can send you a picture.

Answer 8

the separation edge isn't expensive and depending on your contractor look "seamless". If you like the tile keep it, but the reason they have tile right when you enter is bc so when you come in out of the rain, sand, whatever, the tile will get dirty and not your wood/carpet floors. I say keep the tile, unless you don't like it.

Answer 9

I think leaving the tile is a better idea...if you like the tile. It will differentiate between the living room and the entry to give it a little bit of separation. They make special molding peices, called reducers or t-molding to put in between to transition.

Answer 10

I would leave the ceramic since it must be in really good condition. Plus it's a good surface to have people coming in with who knows what on the bottom of their shoes. Yes, there is a strip they can put in to separate the two.

If you are concerned about resell value, ask the professionals what they think. When we put flooring in our kitchen they suggested a variegated floor surface because our house is so old and the floor isn't level. They know all the tricks.