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Choosing flooring that survives a Central Texas house
Slab movement, big humidity swings and a lot of sun. What that rules in, what it rules out, and what actually decides the result.
People usually ask me which flooring is best. There is no best, but there are a few things about houses around here that make some choices easier to live with than others.
What our conditions actually do to a floor
- Slabs move. Clay soil under a slab expands and contracts through the year. A floor with rigid joints over a slab that flexes will eventually show it.
- Humidity swings hard. Solid wood takes on and gives off moisture with the air. That is normal and it is why wood flooring needs an expansion gap around the perimeter, hidden under the baseboard.
- Sun. West-facing rooms with big windows will fade a floor unevenly over a few years. It happens to almost everything to some degree.
The honest short version
- Luxury vinyl plank is popular here for good reason. It does not care about moisture, it handles slab movement well, and it takes a beating from kids and dogs. The cheap end looks cheap, and that is where most regret comes from.
- Engineered wood is real wood over a stable core. It is far happier over a slab than solid wood is, and it can usually be refinished at least once.
- Solid hardwood is beautiful and it is the fussiest choice here. It wants a stable environment and proper acclimation before it goes down.
- Tile is the most durable thing you can put on a slab, and the most sensitive to what is underneath it. Movement joints matter more than the tile.
What actually decides whether you are happy in five years
Not the product. The preparation. A floor is only as flat as what it is laid on, and slabs are rarely as flat as people assume. Skipping the levelling is the most common shortcut and it shows up later as hollow spots, movement underfoot, and joints that separate.
The other one is acclimation. Flooring that goes down the day it is delivered has not had a chance to reach the temperature and humidity of your house, and it will move once it does.
Bring me a sample and tell me which room it is going in. Half of this decision is about the room — sun, traffic, whether it is on the slab or upstairs — and not about the flooring at all.
Related: Flooring & Hardwood
More from the blog
- How I price a job, and why I won't guess over the phone
- The new-build punch list your builder never came back for
- Is your shower failing, or just ugly?
- Before you call anyone: the photos to send
- One visit or three? How to group a punch list
- Drywall cracks: which ones matter and which ones don't
- Why a texture repair shows, and how matching actually works
- Gutters: what they are actually protecting, and when to clean them
- After a Texas storm: what to check, and in what order
- Cabinets: reface, repaint, or replace?
- Interior painting: the preparation is the job
- Building outdoors in this sun: what actually lasts
Ready to get that list handled?
Send a few photos and I'll tell you what it takes. Free written estimates across Leander, Cedar Park, Georgetown, Round Rock and the towns nearby.