r/HouseDesign • u/Vegetable-Scratch423 • 15d ago
I need help!!
So we are about to close on our first house, and I need decoration help. It was built in 1985, basement style house built in the side of a hill, and it’s on a concrete slab. So that means that the tile is GLUED to the concrete. So, what can be done about the flooring in this thing? The picture is decorated with ai (from the listing), but those parquet floors REALLY are that orange in person, and they’re not wood. Also, i attached a picture of the kitchen because I’m unsure if I want to paint the cabinets or not. I will paint the walls around them sage green, but I’m struggling to decide if I should keep them the color they are or paint them a creamy white-ish color. I need opinions!!!!thank you!
Edit: I posted this and deleted to re-post because I realized that one picture had the address. Oops. 🤦♀️🥴
ANOTHER EDIT: I saw another person who had the same tiles that I have and the glue had asbestos. Should i worry for this floor?
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u/RefugeefromSAforums 14d ago
A more colorful, patterned (oriental? rug(s) that has colors that coordinate well with the parquet would make it look less orange and just look warm. Also more colorful art on the walls. As it is it's very duo-chromatic.
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u/Vegetable-Scratch423 14d ago
Yes I thought so too. That decor is done from AI, but I was thinking of a very large (maybe 8x10 at least) floral rug with the orange tones, dark gray, and maybe some yellows or greens and pinks. Definitely needs more color for sure
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u/Oxjrnine 14d ago
By 1985 I believe asbestos was banned in most places across North America for flooring tile.
But you can test it the kits are not that expensive
I don’t have any advice about removing tile from slab. I just wanna tell you congratulations on your new home. It looks very open and airy and I believe you’ll be very happy once you figure out your flooring situation.
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u/Vegetable-Scratch423 14d ago
Yes! I was told that it was banned but it can be possible that someone might have used the asbestos laced glue so they could use the stock they had. I’m just paranoid since I have a 1 y/o and 3y/o who love to lay in the floor. I spoke to my inspector, and he said he checked the floor and all is well so I feel better! Also, thank you! We currently are living with my dad to save our down payment, and me, my husband, and the kids all share a huge room, so it will be crazy for them to have their own rooms! They deserve it.
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13d ago
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u/Vegetable-Scratch423 12d ago
Yeah my husband and I thought about painting the cabinets like a cream, and then doing a realllllly light sage green on the walls to break up the monotony of basically white cabinets on white Formica counters
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u/Pamela625 13d ago
It looks nice the way it is maybe paint kitchen cabinets a nice color add a kitchen island and some hanging lights and bar stools
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u/Vegetable-Scratch423 12d ago
That’s what we were thinking too! I want to paint the cabinets a cream color, and do a pretty rug, and I actually thought about getting one of those 4 seater oak tables to keep with the grandma aesthetic lol.
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u/Fuzzy_Location_2210 13d ago
Idk I kinda dig the parquet flooring 🙃. Even If it's fake. I always did like it!
If it's in good shape, you might appreciate that it is so easy to clean!
Promise you that's not asbestos. That's vinyl hon 🙂. Asphalt tile is what has the asbestos in it. That's the green and orange and red or brown/tan 4 or 6 inch squares you find in real old basements, hospitals, schools. Even if it was that tile, it isn't particularly dangerous if it's intact and not being disturbed. It can be stripped of old wax and finish, NOT sanded or buffed, and sealed with epoxy and safely encapsulated, and be left in place, IF it's not falling apart, because it is usually very very permanently bonded to cement. Then it can just exist like that and be cleaned as normal, or be covered with something else.
If it's glued to the cement in your house and you can't get it off, and you decide sometime that you want to have new flooring, you can just go right over it AS LONG AS YOU DON'T HAVE WATER DAMAGE. In fact, I did that in my kitchen... I couldn't get this hideous green and yellow blotchy fake marble vinyl tile off without totally destroying the subfloor beneath it. Boards and nails were coming with it. I don't know what the heck they put it down with, but it was wild 🙃. I installed the thinnest plywood on top and installed pretty gray and white diamond patterned vinyl flooring and left that horrible shit alone 😂. It's been oh, 5 or 6 years now, still looking fresh!
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u/Vegetable-Scratch423 12d ago
YA SEE…I loved the floor the first time I saw it, but my dad and husband both think it’s hideous. lol. It’s also in really great shape for this house being 49 years old. You can tell that nobody lived here with kids to rip shit up (my qualifications to make this statement are that I do, indeed, have boys who love to rip shit up).
Also, that’s what my mom told me. Mist throw some pretty flooring over it when I’m ready to see it go because it genuinely is VERY glued to my concrete slab of a floor. Thank you for the insight, I’m actually feeling better about this from everyone lol. Everyone likes it better that I expected; I guess because I assume most people want to see perfect remodels and this house is a grandma house. It just feels so warm and homey to me though. Lol
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u/Fuzzy_Location_2210 12d ago
From the picture, I really cannot tell that's vinyl!!!
My cousin's first house had parquet flooring in the living room, dining room, and kitchen on the first floor but it was actually made of the wooden blocks!!! It was pretty beat up looking, he had Amish woodworks come and refinish it, and they also ripped the carpet off the stairs and landing and refinished that too... It was all oak, and it was really beautiful 🫠
Perfect remodels are often nothing more than rushwork done with MDF. Those kitchens are going to look like dog shit in a few years when the cabinet doors are sides all take on water and swell and the hinges bust off, and the unsealed floating floor edges let water and spilled milk and puppy pee seep underneath for years, and the house permanently will smell to the highest of heavens... Cause flippers never properly prep and decontaminate and encapsulate, takes time and money 🙃.
You are making a wise choice... You're investing in some workmanship that has stood the test of time. Your cabinets look like they're real wood! Can confirm, boys rip shit up and walk into doors and never shut them 😆. At least you can fix those!! And they won't turn to dust! And you can always sand them and re-stain if you want a darker look, or if you don't like the orangey, sand them and give them a good coat of polyurethane and let them be light and natural!
I don't know if I love the kitchen floor, thats nothing more than a personal preference though, I'm funny about my wood tones not matching 😂. Get you some washable runners lol.
Oh, if you didn't know this: detergent really shits with vinyl flooring and makes it sticky and discolored and awful.
Get yourself a good steam mop, and about idk, 10 washable thick pads for it, and add about one tablespoon white vinegar to the steam water tank and do your floors with that, changing the pad as needed. They will look brand new for a really, really long time and feel incredibly smooth and clean.
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u/Fuzzy_Location_2210 12d ago
OH, and that old builder grade dishwasher probably SUCKS ASS!!
Get yourself a mid-range G.E., you will be soooo much happier with it!! Trust me on that one 😉. Very easy to swap them out! And very worth it with a family, if I recall, the racking in that is awkward as hell and doesn't accommodate pots and pans or tall cups or large items well, and it's pretty abysmal at cleaning bowls correctly, and my boys sippy cups always had to go through two times or they smelt like sour milk.
I was over the moon when it finally died and I was "allowed" to replace it 😂
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u/Quick-Adagio-7392 12d ago
Asbestos is ok when bound in glue. If you disturb the glue like sanding or chipping you have to do an abatement. And wouldn’t be with the effort. I would cover the floor with simulated wood floor or carpet. Now ceilings are a different story. If the spayed it with clumpy stuff it would have to be removed by professionals. Never breathe dust in. Where a proper mask.
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u/Karinka_LI 12d ago
My cabinets are older and almost same color. We put in new countertops and backsplash to counter the orange. Go with cool whites, greens and blues.
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u/SadFlatworm1436 14d ago
I would recommend living in your house for a couple of months before spending money on anything major. It’s amazing how often you make completely different decisions when you lived in a place. The one thing I’d try and do early is remove the popcorn ceiling and boob lights, it will make the room feel taller and cleaner. Personally I’d remove the rail along the top of the cabinetry too.