WHAT FLOORING IS BEST FOR ALLERGENS

 

Your home is supposed to be your safe place, but what happens when your flooring is making your life difficult?

 

More than 50 million people in the United States experience allergies each year. Allergies are an incurable condition that adults and children alike are faced with every single day. 

 

Those numbers make it easy to see why you would want to prevent allergy triggers in your home. Do not go through all of the trouble to “allergy-proof” their home. Instead make the right call and install the right flooring that will increase your quality of life.

 

What options are available for allergen-sensitive households? Is there even such a thing as an allergy-proof floor? Which flooring is the best option for combating allergy triggers? This will give you everything you’ve ever wanted to know about selecting the best allergy-friendly flooring. 

 

ALLERGIES: WHAT IS IT? 

Before we get to the options, it can be helpful to understand the condition. You may get a cold a few times a year, but those are not allergies. Every time your nose runs, it may not be due to allergies. 

So just what exactly are allergies? 

 

 

WHAT TO LOOK FOR IN A FLOOR 

Do not burn the place to the ground after reading those lists of allergens and where they’re found, let's look at some options to help your house become a home again.

 

Soft surfaces are not going to be your best option, so stick with harder surface floor products and avoid rugs. Stay with natural products, rather than man-made, which will help you avoid chemicals. 

 

LEAST ALLERGY-FRIENDLY FLOORING 

Let’s start with the bad news. There is one flooring option less effective than others when dealing with allergens. Carpet is by far the worst. 

Carpet is not bad. Carpet is a beautiful, soft, cost-effective flooring option for many homes. But, if you’re looking at allergy-friendly floors, it’s best to stay away from soft surface products, and carpet in particular.

 

BETTER OPTIONS FOR ALLERGY-FRIENDLY FLOORING 

Laminate & Vinyl Flooring 

Laminate and vinyl flooring meets the criteria of hard surface vs. soft.  However, they’re not completely impervious to allergens either. Laminate and vinyl plank flooring do not trap allergens like carpet and they’re much easier to clean. 

 

Luxury vinyl plank and vinyl tile flooring are one of the biggest new trends in flooring in recent years. It’s durable, easy to clean and comes in a variety of trendsetting colors, patterns, and looks. 

 

Vinyl is an allergy-friendly alternative as its hard surface qualities makes it easy to clean of dust and debris and don’t lend towards trapping allergens. 

 

Laminate is a manufactured product and contains limited natural materials. The majority of laminate plank and rigid-core vinyl flooring products require click-lock and floating installation, eliminating the need for adhesives. 

 

Engineered Hardwood contains several layers of actual wood, bonded to a base layer for strength.

All those adhesives and man-made materials are potential sources of allergens. As they’re chemical-based, they have the potential for immediate and timed-release of Volatile Organic Compounds. Be sure to check the levels and presence of one particular VOC: Formaldehyde. This is a common allergen in flooring, as it’s used in both the construction of the floors as well as in the adhesives. 

 

Tile and Stone - with any potential new flooring job, our search for allergy-friendly floors brings us to tile and stone. Long popular for their durability, style, high-end appearance and variety, tile and stone are good allergy-friendly options for flooring if attention is paid to the selection, style, and installation. 

No matter what tile or stone you select, pay attention to the adhesive and the grout for VOC content and select one with lower quantities. Additionally, it’s critically important to properly seal the tile and grout, and regularly clean and reseal it at the manufacturer’s recommendations.

 

Solid Hardwood 

Hardwood floors have been a consistent, popular flooring choice for literally hundreds of years. They’re durable, can be refinished, versatile for use throughout the home, and for our purposes, they’re allergy-friendly. 

Hardwood floors are consistently rated as one of the most allergy-friendly choices on the market. When properly installed and sealed with an allergy-friendly polyurethane-style clearcoat, hardwood floors do not harbor microorganisms like dust mites or trap dirt, dust, or other tracked in allergens. Dust, mold, animal dander and hair, are all easily addressed with a dust mop and regular cleaning with an appropriate hardwood floor cleaner. 

Hardwood floors can be refinished, and with care can last a lifetime or more. They are natural, renewable resources, that like anything in nature omits some VOCs, however, they pale in comparison to those contained in (brace for a surprise!) the adhesive and the finish coat. Not to sound like a broken record but be sure to watch the VOCs on those products. Your partners at The Good Guys can help with navigating some of these tricky allergy-free products.