Cheapest wooden floors? - including underlay - for large kitchen space...

[Kitttty]

where should I look?

Try UK flooring direct. Mine was second hand from eBay, £100 for 30m2 of oak. But haven't seen anything like that since.

I found bamboo was the cheapest option.

We used uk flooring direct, they were helpful and sent replacement packages straight away for the ones that were damaged. Just remember to check all the packages when they get delivered and write any damage ones onto the delivery note which the driver takes back with him. Don't let him go till you have checked everything.

They told us to keep and get rid of the 2 damaged packages ourselves, so we now have wooden flooring in the downstairs loo too.

Also get them to send you free samples of flooring and then you get an email saying if you order within a week you will get an extra 10% off. I got a second lot of free samples delivered just to get the 10% off email as I didn't order within the week of the first lot of samples.

What is it being laid on top of? Are you doing it yourself? The retail chains often have big reductions when they are clearing a range for new lines. The only one which is warranted moisture resistant for kitchens is bamboo.

I have had bamboo for nearly 6 years in my kitchen, dining room, utility room, cloak room and bathrooms
we are a shoes on house and I still love it

yesterday it coped with a bottle of fanta, some beef stew and vanilla icecream!

sounds like a dog

Piglet - we have an issue with our very expensive porcelain floor which has many cracked tiles - some we replaced and then others cracked - friend suggested that the concrete floor beneath (it is an extension) is an issue and that we need to take up all the tiles - dig up the concrete to start again,,,,,so I though that a floating wooden floor would solve the problem....what do you think?

Does bamboo just come in one colour?

no, it is available in a sort of honey colour which is "natural" and a sort of caramel colour which I think is cooked. There seems to be a light brown "tanned" but I don't recall seeing it.

for example

Thanks for the link PJ - do you think overlaying over the cracked tiles will work?

kitttty

have they cracked where you dropped stuff on it? or are there long cracks covering several tiles?

a long crack where the extension meets the house I could understand

PJ - cracks on tiles not due to dropping stuff - yes ling cracks across many tiles -- we replaced a few initially (there are v large tiles) and it just happened elsewhere....not directly near the original building - about 2ft out

OK, sounds like the concrete slab is poor or is moving independently. This is not a surprise because it will be a different age and probably a different depth to the house foundations. It would probably be a huge job to dig it out, and possibly impractical if it is the same ground slab the walls are built on. It will probably stop moving in 100 years or less.

A floating wooden floor will not crack and will accommodate a little lateral movement. It would be nice to have an insulation slab with a screed on top but that would mean digging out the floor now. Have the tiles taken up if you can otherwise there will be a pronounced step going into the room.

pigletjohn
two year old nephew!

OP
my floor is glued to the substrate - and goes straight across the wood / concrete join in several places
BUT
I had the concrete screed set specifically to allow that
there is a patch under the dining table that is a bit low and the planks spring slightly, but no damage after 5 years as they are 11mm thick

get some samples www.simplybamboo.co.uk/?gclid=COSm04mh2LsCFbMbtAodBnIAJg
ours is "natural" and when I first opened the boxes I nearly cried because it was so dark (think bourneville)
but within 12 hours the smell had gone and it had lightened to as you see in the picture on my profile

Thanks Guys -- now looking at getting a custom made rig to cover the cracked tiles - as they are all under the dining table area - and this seems to be the cheapest solution

rug!