Having a debate with DH re wooden flooring in hallway - if you have it, is it draughty?

[Loueytb3]

Basically, about to start an extension, part of which will involve replacing the kitchen floor with a wood floor. The hallway leads into the kitchen and the carpet is grubby and constantly looks messy. I want to replace it with wood at the same time as we do the kitchen. DH thinks it will make the hall and the rest of the house very draughty. Stairs would still have carpet on them.

Those of you who have wood hallways - are they cold as a result?

[CuddyMum]

No drafts and easier to keep clean :)

[PiedWagtail]

We do - looks neat and tidy, very easy to keep clean, and no draughts!!! Go for it

[Loueytb3]

Do you have uPVC front doors? We've got the original wooden door and DH thinks that is the cause of the draughts.

[Loueytb3]

And how do you spell it - draughts or drafts???

[MaryMotherOfCheeses]

We have a wooden floor. Drafts come in around the ftont door, nowt to do with the flooring.

[brainonastick]

We have a new wooden floor (ie engineered wood with no gaps), it isn't draughty. Old front door which is a little bit draughty, but not too bad. We've got rugs on the floor to cosy it up a little, but not because it's draughty.

If he's worried about it being cold, what about underfloor heating?

[lalalonglegs]

Floorboards can be bloody draughty but wooden floors laid on top of an existing floor kill draughts.

[YouOldSlag]

Hall carpets just get filthier and filthier. It's not the floor that's draughty, it's the door! In our house we have a sort of tiny porch which means it's like two front doors. Does the job nicely plus there's a radiator in the hall.

[Loueytb3]

We've got a radiator in there already. DH thinks that the carpet absorbs the draughts whereas wood wouldn't. I think he's deluded

[nocake]

We have wood floors throught the first two floors of our house and there are no draughts. Draughts come in round doors and windows and are nothing to do with your floor covering (or lack of). Your DH is a numpty

[Jbck]

All wood or tile downstairs and any draughts not due to floors. We dont even have radiators on in hallways unless its exceptionally cold.

[MaryZezItsOnlyJustNovember]

We have wooden floors. A gale comes in under the gap under the front door (nothing to do with the floors) so we have a curtain and a draught excluder thingy.

[balia]

We replaced our hall carpet with wood for exactly the same reasons you describe - the hall carpets just looked filthy and worn. No draughts, but we do have a uPVC door. I think the wood gives a really warm feel, though.

[HappyTurquoise]

No draughts here, either, as long as doors to cold areas are kept closed. Have you considered a stone/tile floor with underfloor heating?

[LittenTree]

A draught is a draught. Your floor covering won't change that. Cure the source of the draught- and get a wood/hard floor! So much easier to keep clean a nice! Carpets are for bedrooms and one living room!

[thenightsky]

ceramic floor here. No draughts. Have kept carpet on stairs due to safety/slipping and noise.

[tricot39]

Are you talking sanded original boards or a modern timber floor laid over? The former can be draughty unless insulated and draftproofed (see the energy saving trust) or the latter tends to be less drafty but less energy efficient than an insulated floor.

[Loueytb3]

It would be engineered wood laid over the original floor. I'm glad I'm not the only one who thinks this is better than carpet.

[bureni]

Op, will you have solid floors or will the floor be mounted on wooden joints above a floor void, if the floor is solid then you have no chance of draughts but a floor with a void below can be insulated and made draught proof by using foam insulation between the joists prior to the wooden floor being installed.

[StetsonsAreCool]

We have laminate wooden floor in our hallway. The drafts come from the front door, not the floor.

And while they are much easier to keep clean, I have just put a runner down in there though to mop up some of the wet footprints that I was fed up of constantly mopping. And it's cold on your feet when you come down in the morning. And we used to constantly skid as we turned to go up the stairs. But apart from that...

[Cezzy]

We have solid wood in the lounge conservatory and hall. We laid a thin foam sheet over the concrete first which helps insulate a bit, but as wood is a natural insulator they don't get really cold, unlike tiles, but check cleaning Instructions for your finish as if they get wet you can get marks, we use a slightly damp mop then dry off straight away. You may also want a good doormat to take most of the mud etc from shoes.

[Rhubarbgarden]

We had terrible drafts coming up the cracks between the floorboards in the last house until we fitted insulation underneath. That sorted it out. Suddenly we could get the house above 16 degrees. Wished we'd done it years ago - all those winters sitting in the lounge in woolly hats and coats!

[Loueytb3]

I'm thinking we would get a coir mat inset into the doorway. I think it's floorboards below the carpet. DH has begrudgingly admitted that its the door that's the problem - not the floor.

[brainonastick]

Lousy - yes yes to an inset mat. We've had this put in (quite a large one), it looks very neat and is great at keeping stones etc from scratching the floor. You'll need a mat outside the front door as well. I read somewhere that ideally you have 3 steps on mats before reaching the wooden floor - to get off big stones/small stones/then grit.

[brainonastick]

Re the front door - have you insulated it round the sides? It cut down a lot of our draughts. And/ or you could consider a door curtain.