Home improvement

Plus, which hardwood floor stands up best to pets and high traffic? Send your home improvement questions to (email protected).

By Mark Philben, The Boston Globe

October 30, 2024 | 11:40 am

F. When should you replace your roof? Mine is about 25 years old but has no visible signs of wear. I replaced both bearings last time.

MC

A. MC, that’s a tough question. We’ve seen many roofs that go further than that and hold up well. Roofs often crack at the margins, the flashing details, and roof grommets for vents, etc. Rarely, the shingles themselves just begin to crack and let water in. For that reason, if you are worried, find a professional roofing company and have them put a ladder on the house for a quick check. Flashing and penetration problems are hard to see from the ground, so it’s best to get someone up who knows what to look for. There were companies 25 years ago that made shingles with 30 to 40 year warranties; the products were so good even then. It sounds like you have a quality shingle up there as you don’t see any visible signs of failure. But at the age of 25, it’s time for a check-up.

F. We live in a 1964 center entry Colonial. We need to replace all the hardwood floors on the first floor; they can’t handle another paint job. The number of flooring options out there is overwhelming. We have two dogs and a busy household. We’re not against fake wood flooring, but it always seems noisier than hardwood. What would you recommend?

CS

A. I’m sorry you have to replace yours wooden floorCS Wooden floors are always our first choice, but we have installed newer laminate floors or pre-treated wooden floors. There are pros and cons to both.

Laminate floors are incredibly durable and can withstand an incredible amount of abuse. They clean well and keep the color. The main drawback is that most are not ¾-of-an-inch thick, which can cause problems at doorways and baseboards when hardwood floors of that size are removed. You usually also need to add a “base shoe” or a small piece of trim along all edges because laminate must be installed at quarter-inch intervals.

Another option is three-quarter inch pre-finished hardwood floors. This floor has a superior finish compared to on-site installed wood floors. They have a much more durable, machine-applied finish that cannot be replicated in the field. This will hold up better to foot and pet traffic. It will also integrate better where the existing wooden floor was removed. A disadvantage can be if the floor is uneven from the house settling over the years. The finished floors cannot be sanded to take the curves out of the floor. This can create visible, uneven seams.

With these questions in mind, I believe that a high-quality wood laminate floor will give you the best of both worlds. The ones we have installed have the padded underlay backing on each piece, so when the floor is installed it helps dampen the sound and give it a slightly softer feel underfoot.

Mark Philben is project development manager at Charlie Allen Renovations in Cambridge. Send your questions to (email protected). Questions are subject to editing.