Flooring for Aging-in-Place

My Aunt Florence is starting to feel her years, and she’s asked the family for help making some changes in her home so she can stay there safely as long as possible.  You probably think we’re going to pay close attention to her floors—you bet we are!

After years of wear and tear, the flooring in my aunt’s home is looking a little sorry and she’s ready for a change.  The pros at the Tile & Carpet Store of Durango are going to work with her to make sure her new flooring will look fabulous and let her age in place.

Here’s the Floor-1-1 on our room choices:

• The living room, where Aunt Florence spends much of her time reading, knitting and watching TV, needs to be warm and comfortable in our Southwest Colorado winters. Carpeting with a very low pile, less than ½ inch, is the plan here.  It will feel soft and welcoming for her without causing a hazard if she needs a walker in the future.  We’ll choose a high-quality padding that’s dense and firm to increase the safety factor.
• For the kitchen, dining area and hallways, we’ll go with the latest in luxury vinyl plank (LVP) flooring. Today’s LVP looks prettier than a peach—it’s manufactured to closely resemble wood or stone.  And it has so many other benefits!  LVP is affordable, and it can be installed right over the existing flooring.  It stands up to water and heavy traffic, and it’s easy to clean too.
• On top of everything, LVP is softer than tile, stone and hardwood.  Its smooth surface makes for easy travel, but if Aunt Florence should take a tumble down the road—heaven forbid—she will fare better on LVP than on other flooring choices.
• Aunt Florence wants tile in her bathroom, even though it’s one of the hardest surfaces around. StepWise^TM technology to the rescue!  Made by American Olean and available at our showroom in Durango, StepWise is slip resistant material infused directly into tile during the manufacturing process.  It helps with footing now and in the future as it never wears off.  To enhance safety, we’ll use smaller tile with a bit of texture on the surface, plus narrow grout seams.

The folks at the Tile & Carpet Store of Durango know flooring, and they know the best installers around.  They will be sure to recommend one to work with Aunt Florence and look out for her, creating even surfaces and smooth transitions from one room to the next.

After the new floors are in place, that’s when the family comes in!  We can get rid of all throw rugs, tuck electrical cords away, make sure pathways in the home are clear and so on.  Aunt Florence will be good to go for many more years.

Do you have a family member who needs flooring changed for the sake of safety?  Are you looking at your own home and wondering how you can age in place?  Visit the Tile & Carpet Store of Durango at 103 Everett Street, just north of Bodo Park ,to find out more about your options.