With temperatures finally forecast to rise above freezing at the lower elevations, Steamboat Springs is gearing up for spring skiing season. We are finally getting a little extra ski time in after work, with more daylight available to enjoy those stunning views.
However, these seasonal changes can have an unexpected impact on your home. Tracking in snow or moisture after longer days on the slopes can present its own set of challenges. And the eventual changes in temperature, humidity and even foliage can affect your house in surprising ways (although humidity is less drastic in Steamboat). If you’re not sure of how this may impact your home and its floors, now is the time to begin preparing.
Ultimately, it’s important to start planning now to ensure that floors will be ready to go by spring. Here, we’ll take a quick look at a few considerations for the coming seasonal changes.
Ideal Temperatures
Solid hardwood floor planks tend to expand as temperatures rise. Maintaining a consistent temperature inside your home can help, but between shutting down the HVAC during working hours and changing temperatures around and below the home, your floors still have vulnerabilities.
We’re also looking forward to more sunshine, which can have a subtle, though surprising, impact on your flooring. When one area of a room receives more sunlight than the rest, that continuous exposure can lead to warping as one segment of the floor expands more often than the rest.
Maintaining Humidity Levels
Another overlooked detail: our humidity falls as warmer weather moves in. While this is great for outdoor excursions, it can prove detrimental for some hardwood flooring installations. In general, it’s recommended to maintain indoor humidity above 30%.
While this isn’t typically a challenge for Steamboat homes during winter, indoor humidity levels can certainly fall below this threshold during spring and especially summer. Also during warmer months, humidity shouldn’t exceed 55%. This is typically less of a concern for Steamboat Springs unless your home has below-grade rooms (such as basements or garages). In either case, both humidifiers can dehumidifiers can be used to maintain ideal humidity levels.
Proper humidity can also vary by species, thickness and construction method. Thicker widths can typically handle higher humidity levels. Ultimately, it’s important to verify this information with your chosen floor’s care guide. Please note, the lower humidity levels in Steamboat Springs are the reasons that we have to sell most hardwood flooring without warranties.
As we noted before, engineered hardwood floors can overcome these challenges. In fact, it was specifically designed to provide an authentic natural option while overcoming the shortcomings of traditional solid hardwood.
Carpet: Filter Your Home’s Air
In the past, carpet earned a bad reputation among allergy sufferers. Modern selections have changed this; if cared for properly, carpet can now actually help filter your home’s air. Newer carpet fibers and treatments (such as Anso Nylon and R2X, respectively), prevent microbes, dust, dander and pollen spores from becoming embedded into the fibers. So, when these particles eventually fall from the air, they become trapped under the fibers, but not embedded into them.
By vacuuming once per week, these allergens can be easily removed from your home. Just ensure that your vacuum includes a HEPA filter to prevent particles from reentering the air. It’s also typically recommended to have carpets professional cleaned once every 18 months. To get started, our Anso Nylon Destination features some of the most allergy-friendly selections on the market.
CORETEC: No Acclimation Required
CORETEC has designed a clever installation method for its luxury vinyl flooring selections that do not require an acclimation period. in other words, install your new flooring in whatever temperature it happens to be inside or outside, and it’s good to go! As an added bonus, CORETEC also uses a glueless process, so there’s less mess and virtually no cleanup after. Dusk Contempo Oak is one of the many luxury vinyl lines implementing CORETEC’s glueless installation.
Are Your Floors Ready? Find Out Today!
If you’d like an assessment of your existing floors – or if you are considering new floors for your home – Steamboat’s premiere flooring experts are ready to help at CarpetsPlus! Contact us today and get ready to make an informed decision.
