Replace Carpet With Vinyl Plank, Smell and All
The carpet, the pad and everything soaked into them go out the door. Waterproof vinyl plank goes down in their place, from Tampa Bay to Orlando.
About $5 to $12 per square foot installed, before your discount. A 200 sq ft bedroom is roughly $1,200 to $1,900.
50% off your flooring installation$1,200 Off + 5% Senior & Military Savings Claim →Free Measurement in 60 Seconds
Replacing carpet. Four more quick questions.
How many rooms?
Carpet keeps what you spill. Plank lets you wipe it away.
Carpet looks clean on top long after the pad underneath has stopped being clean. In a Florida house with pets, kids and humid air, that’s where the trouble lives.
- Pet accidents soak into the pad. Shampooing cleans the fibers. The smell comes back because the pad under them is still holding it.
- It traps dust and dander. Every step pushes it back into the air. A hard floor gets swept or mopped, and it’s gone.
- It wears in paths. Hallways and the spot in front of the couch flatten and fade years before the rest of the room.
- Buyers notice it. Stained or worn carpet is one of the first things people mentally rip out on a showing.
50% off your flooring installation
$1,200 Off + 5% Senior & Military Savings. Seniors 60+ and active or retired military get an additional 5%. The 50% applies to installation labor.
See rep for details! Mention offer during your design consultation.
Pick the Wear Layer for Your Household
Carpet hides scratches. Plank shows them unless the clear top coat is thick enough. Match it to who lives there.
No pets, light use
A spare bedroom or office that doesn’t see much traffic.
Cats and small dogs
Most bedrooms and living rooms in a calm household.
Big dogs, busy house
Holds up to dog claws. Over an SPC core, a 20-mil floor lasts 20 years or more.
Have dogs? Read: Vinyl plank with dogs: scratches, slipping and accidents
How Carpet Comes Out and Plank Goes In
Carpet is the fastest floor to replace. Here’s the day.
Measure the rooms
The installer measures each room and closet and brings plank samples to see next to your walls and trim.
Carpet and pad up
Carpet is cut into strips, rolled and carried out with the pad. None of it stays in your garage.
Tack strip and staples
The spiked wood strips at the walls come up, along with the staples that held the pad. The slab gets scraped and swept.
Planks down
Planks click together over the slab, running through closets and into doorways with matching transitions.
Trim goes on
Baseboards or quarter round cover the edge gap, and the rooms are ready to use that evening.
Most installs are completed in a single day once your materials arrive. Next-day installation is available. Read: Whole house in vinyl plank, bedrooms included
What Replacing Carpet With Vinyl Plank Costs
Most jobs run about $5 to $12 per square foot installed. A 200 sq ft bedroom is roughly $1,200 to $1,900 before your discount. Slide to your square footage.
A 12 × 16 bedroom is about 200 sq ft.
Wear layer, room shape and the floor underneath all move the number inside this range.
Estimates only, not a quote. Your price depends on your rooms, the product you pick and the floor underneath, and is set after the in-home measurement.
What adds to a carpet job
- Lots of closets and small rooms
- Low spots found under the pad
- Carpeted stairs, priced by the step
- New baseboards instead of reusing old ones
Why carpet jobs run lean
- Carpet and pad come up quickly
- No thinset or mortar to grind off
- Open rooms with long runs
- The 50% off installation labor offer
Life After Carpet
Most people’s worry is that a hard floor will feel cold, loud or slippery after carpet. Vinyl plank is the gentlest step down.
Soft underfoot
The attached pad gives a little with each step. It isn’t carpet, but it isn’t tile on concrete either.
Easy to add a rug
Want softness by the bed or under the couch? A washable area rug gives you that without the wall-to-wall pad.
Accidents wipe up
The planks are waterproof. Clean up pet messes promptly, and nothing sinks into the floor.
What’s Inside a Plank
SPC means stone plastic composite. It’s rigid, and it doesn’t swell.
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- Wear layer. Clear top coat, 6 to 20 mil. It takes the scratches.
- Printed wood look. The grain and color you see.
- SPC core. Stone plastic composite. Waterproof and rigid.
- Attached pad. Quieter underfoot, no separate underlayment.
Drag to Compare
Carpet replaced with 20-mil waterproof LVP.
↔ Drag the slider. Product demonstration: the same empty room with carpet, then with 20-mil waterproof vinyl plank.
Why Carpet Has a Harder Life in Florida
Carpet was made for dry, cool houses. Florida gives it damp air, sandy feet, strong sun and a storm season. Here’s what that means for the carpet you have and the plank that replaces it.
Damp air and the pad
University of Florida extension notes that most molds do best above 60% relative humidity. Carpet pad sits right on the slab and holds on to moisture. The Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America points out that dust mites can’t grow on hard surfaces, and recommends taking bedroom carpet out when you can.
What’s under the pad
Pulling carpet shows the slab for the first time in years: nail holes from tack strip, paint drips, old glue and hairline cracks. Makers commonly want the floor flat within about 3/16 of an inch over 10 feet, so dips get filled. The slab is checked for moisture before the planks go down.
Sun through the slider
Carpet by a sliding door fades in a band where the sun lands. Vinyl isn’t immune. One maker warns that long, direct sun can discolor its planks and suggests blinds or drapes during peak hours.
Storm season
Hurricane season runs June 1 to November 30. When storm water gets into a carpeted room, the pad soaks it up. The EPA says wet materials should be dried within 24 to 48 hours to prevent mold, and a soaked pad rarely makes that deadline. Plank doesn’t hold water, and it wipes clean once the house is dry.
Carpet vs Vinyl Plank, Room for Room
What you give up and what you get when the carpet goes. Softness is the one real loss. The stains, the vacuuming and the pad that holds odor are what you leave behind.
| Carpet | SPC vinyl plank | |
|---|---|---|
| Feel underfoot | Soft and warm. | Firm, with a little give from the attached pad. Add a rug where you want soft. |
| Sound | Quiet. Soaks up footsteps. | Quieter than tile. Rugs and furniture take the echo out of a big room. |
| Pet accidents | Soak into the pad. Odor comes back. | Stay on the surface. Wipe up and it’s done. |
| Dust and allergens | Holds dust and dander in the fibers. | Nothing for dust mites to live in. Sweep or damp-mop. |
| Everyday cleaning | Vacuum often, shampoo a few times a year. | Sweep, then a damp microfiber mop. |
| Wear | Flattens in paths and in front of the couch. | The wear layer takes the scuffs. 20 mil holds up to dog claws. |
| How long it lasts | 8 to 10 years | 20-mil over SPC: 20 years or more |
The carpet life range comes from a Florida life-expectancy chart published by a home inspectors’ association.
Picking a plank for rooms that used to be carpet
Carpeted rooms are the ones you spend the most time in, often barefoot. That changes what to look for.
- A warmer color. Bedrooms and family rooms feel softer in warm wood tones than in cool grey. Look at samples in the light you actually have, including lamp light at night.
- A texture for bare feet. A lightly embossed grain feels better underfoot than a slick, glossy plank, and gives dogs more to grip.
- The attached pad. It’s part of the plank. It takes the edge off footsteps and makes the floor feel less hard than you expect.
- One look through the bedrooms. Run the same plank through the bedrooms, closets and hallway so there are no seams at the doors. If you’re doing bedrooms now and the rest later, write down the plank name.
- The wear layer for your pets. Carpet hid claw marks. Plank shows them unless the top coat is thick enough. With dogs, pick 20 mil.
- Rugs that won’t stain. One maker’s care guide says long contact with rubber can stain vinyl. Use rug pads made for vinyl floors.
Getting ready for carpet removal day
Bedrooms and living rooms are full of things that sit on the floor. Clearing them ahead of time is most of the prep.
- Clear the closet floors. Shoes, boxes, laundry baskets and anything else sitting on the carpet in the closets.
- Empty under the beds. Storage bins, suitcases and whatever has collected under there.
- Strip the beds and clear nightstands. Lamps, clocks and anything breakable on furniture that has to move.
- Pack the bookshelves and dresser tops. Heavy or fragile items are safer boxed.
- Unplug electronics. Snap a picture of the wiring behind the TV first.
- Plan for the pets. Carpet comes up fast, and doors stay open while it’s carried out.
- Run the AC. Keep the house at normal living temperature before and after the install.
- Decide on baseboards. Carpet hid the gap under old baseboards. With plank, you can reuse them with quarter round, or put in new ones.
- Point out problem spots. Where pet accidents happened, or where the carpet ever felt damp, so the slab gets a look there.
Thinking It Over
What people want to know before the carpet comes up.
Carpet Replacement Questions
How much does it cost to replace carpet with vinyl plank?
Most jobs run about $5 to $12 per square foot installed, before your discount. A 200 sq ft bedroom is roughly $1,200 to $1,900. You get your exact number after the free measurement.
Do you haul away the old carpet?
Yes. The carpet, pad, tack strip and staples leave with the crew.
Can I do just the bedrooms?
Yes. Many people start with the bedrooms and do the rest later. Ask about matching the same plank if you plan to add rooms, so the floors line up.
Will vinyl plank feel cold after carpet?
It’s warmer and softer than tile, thanks to the attached pad. An area rug by the bed covers the first step on a cool morning.
Is it slippery for dogs?
Some dogs need a few days to get used to a hard floor. Keeping their nails trimmed and putting runners in their usual paths helps.
Does it help with allergies?
A hard floor doesn’t hold dust and dander the way carpet and pad do. It gets swept or mopped instead of vacuumed.
What about my carpeted stairs?
Stairs are a separate job with treads, risers and stair nose, priced by the step at your measurement.
Will my bedrooms sound louder without carpet?
A little. The attached pad takes the edge off footsteps, and a rug by the bed plus normal furniture soaks up most of the echo. If you’re in an upstairs condo, your association may have sound rules. See condo floors
Can I put area rugs on vinyl plank?
Yes. Pick a rug pad made for vinyl floors. One maker’s care guide says long contact with rubber can leave a permanent stain, so skip rubber-backed rugs and mats.
How long does carpet last compared with vinyl plank?
A home inspectors’ association chart for Florida puts carpet at 8 to 10 years. A 20-mil wear layer over an SPC core lasts 20 years or more.
What will the slab look like under my old carpet?
Usually a mix of tack strip nail holes, paint drips, old glue and small cracks. None of that shows through once it’s cleaned and low spots are filled. The installer also checks the slab for moisture before any plank goes down.
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