Brendan’s Floor

Jul 23, 2009

Casey

I am struggling with what I should do in Brendan’s bedroom. I ripped out the carpet with the intent of refinishing the hardwood floors underneath. However, the black tar paper is not wanting to come off. Shane and I have tried using boiling water, scraping, and the heat gun. None of these methods worked very well. I have gotten a total of 6 tiles done and they aren’t that clean.

So after getting frustrated I decided I would just put new carpet in. I picked it out and about died when I tallied up how much it would cost me. I went to Lowes and I’m looking at $600 for the carpet, premium carpet pad, tacks, and installation. After talking to my mother-in-law she had me rethinking the carpet. She’s voting for hardwood.

I love our hardwood floors in the house, but I’m still unsure about having them in the bedrooms (especially in Brendan’s room). Brendan loves to play on the floors. He is all boy; crawling around on the floor, wrestling etc. I like the idea of carpet just for the fact that it would be easier to play on. But I could do the hardwood and find a nice 8×10 rug that is thick. I’ve looked at a few rugs and it looks like it would cost me around $200-$300.

To sum it up I need to make a decision and I could use some help! Shane helped me create a poll. Your answers and comments would be greatly appreciated!

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5 Comments

Jen • Jul 23, 2009 @8:25 pm

I wish I could give you some advice on the tar paper, but I have no idea. I think you should definitely go with hardwood floors, though. I love the look of beautiful old hardwood floors (wish I had them throughout our current house…)!!
Di • Jul 24, 2009 @7:47 am

I definitely vote for wood; it’s much easier to keep clean, and you can change the decor by changing out the area rug.

Have you tried any paint remover on the tar paper? The really nasty removers (usually called “Super Strip” or something similar) usually work well to remove adhesives. It might be worth testing out. Or what about just renting a drum sander and sanding it off?
Andrea • Jul 27, 2009 @5:16 pm

My hardwood floor in the laundry room is covered with tar paper. We took up the tiles to find it. Anyway, by a fluke, the plumber accidentally knocked the drain pipe for the washer out of the wall when he did some work, thereby flooding the laundry room. We discovered it later that night. Anyway, since it sat there all day, it loosened the paper and it came right up. Maybe you need to soak it a little? You also may be able to rent a floor sander and sand it up.
Karen Anne • Aug 4, 2009 @5:24 pm

Wood is so much easier to keep clean. And you can get area rugs for on the floor comfort, as you noted.

I looked a little on the web about this. The only happy person was one who’d hired a professional floor refinisher.
bungalowbliss • Aug 7, 2009 @9:27 am

I agree, wood is so easy–even if it’s more difficult to get in the condition you want. Once it’s done, it’s done (whereas carpet gets stained and eventually replaced–multiplying that $600 down the road).

The best place I’ve found for rugs is TJMaxx/HomeGoods (all of mine are from there). You can get a really nice rug for a fraction of what you’d pay elsewhere.

Let us know which route you end up going!

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