floors tile alternative?

Real wood is the best choice then. There are so many choice in types,widths colors, and may things you can do with it.

Wood looks in vinyls just don t cut it and look good. There are a few good quality laminates that look good but if you have a nice , higher priced range house, not always a good idea.

Real wood will help keep the house value also.

Any questions you can e mail me through my avatar. GL

I'm concerned about the cracks. If the cracks transferred through the tile and it has been proven that it was the tile setters fault, that means the cracks did not get prepped with an isolation membrane (it allows movement under the tiles without cracking the tiles). If you want to have wood installed you will be going over the exact same cracks. Cracks under wood can cause just as much of a headache. Another potential problem is that there could be a height difference on each side of the crack, meaning with a wood floor you will need concrete grinding to level the floor (this is expensive).

My suggestion is this. Hire someone who has a reputation of doing great work! Someone who is licensed and insured, because they have a risk involved if they don't live up to the customers standards. A quality flooring installer will need to inspect your floor personally so call up some of the local flooring companies and get some bids (a bid should always be free).

I have been a tile setter for 10 years. If your in Phoenix az you can get in touch with me through my website below.

If you want an eco-friendly option, maybe cork? Or some of the newer linoleum type products can look great in a kitchen setting. I'd try hardwood in the living areas. Good luck.

You can have natural marble without the grout joint (you'd have to install small dimension tiles to avoid breakage), although I advise you to always leave a joint grout it avoids unexpected problems.