Real wood is extremely durable. We have hand scraped 3/4” wood over 3/4 plywood. Yes it gets scratched some bit just adds to the look. Now the water is an issue if you ever have a leak no doubt!

I had hand scraped oak in my last house and liked it so much we put it in our current house. We have 3 small dogs and it holds up well and can be touched up as needed.

The first house I built in the mid 90's we had the engineered wood floors. We had a weimeriner and he scratched through the top coating. I'll never use the engineered prefinished again.

I put the laminate (Pergo type) flooring in my hobby room. It looks fine but is very "clicky" sounding when the dogs walk on it. This is a good low cost option. Not sure how waterproof it is.

Never had the wood look tile but the pics on this thread look awesome.

They look great to start with. They scratch pretty bad
I have had it done in several houses I have built
I would not use it in my personal house

I think some of the tile options that look like wood are ok, but they still have that tile feel when you walk on it. Had title in the last house and I hated grout lines and cleaning grout.

This time around we went with hardwood in every room except the upstairs gameroom and kids room and obviously bathrooms and its held up pretty well so far after a year and a half. it will chip and scratch ( don't try and slide a safe across it.....ask me how i know..) but I really enjoy the look and feel of hardwood floors.

We went with engineered hardwood ( if your house is on a concrete slab most builders will not put down straight hardwood due to moisture wicking ) and its a hardwood veneer with plywood underneath.....still real wood flooring. Pier and beam is much better option for true hardwood floors.

I would never do stained concrete on a home I owned....the best its every going to look is the day its finished.


Laminate/Pergo is a cheap option for improving aesthetics over carpet or ugly tile but its not anything like real wood. Had that in my first house.

Bamboo is another option that you may consider....its extremely durable but some coloring options may be out ( really dark stain for instance )

When you know how much you paid for the hardwood, you'll become a real Ahole! Ask me how I know......

The engineered white oak we installed in the master bedroom was soft and dented easily....accidentally dropping pistols on the white oak floor left big dents in the closet floor.
The engineered red oak hand scraped and stained is very durable.