Vinyl or Carpet – the flooring conundrum explored!
At de Fiddes, as aged care interior design specialists we have a preference to specify carpet in the communal areas and the hallways; and vinyl in the dining areas, and have gone with either carpet or vinyl in the bedrooms depending on the facility preference. Carpet is a good insulating material and a low conductor of heat1.Carpet can have an insulation value up to 5 times higher than hard floors1. For example, PVC tiles only have 1.3% of the insulation of wool carpet2. Uninsulated floors can account for 10-20% heat loss from a residence1.
Studies have shown carpeted floors to have energy savings over uncarpeted floors for space heating3. As a carpeted floor feels warmer underfoot, it may not require the same heating as a smooth surface and thus add to the energy savings1.
In terms of infection control, you may think vinyl flooring would be easier to keep clean but interestingly, a study showed that unlike carpets, Staphylococcus aureus spores can survive on smooth flooring such as vinyl tiles and wood for at least 4 weeks4.
A life cycle cost analysis showed that after 25 years, resilient flooring (such as vinyl) costs more than 2.2 times the costs of soft flooring (carpet). The LCCA takes into account initial costs, equipment, operations and maintenance and found modular carpet to be the best functional alternative5.
Safety is explored with falls studies showing different results depending on the variables under review and often includes a different type of flooring (soft fall resilient or impact absorbing product) which is not widely reported in Australian aged care facilities. Donald et al6 examined carpet and vinyl specifically and found 15% who fell on carpet sustained injuries compared to 91% injured when falling on vinyl flooring.
Acoustics is an often cited measure of indoor environment quality and flooring is a surface that can affect sound levels. A study showed that carpet tiles performed better as they absorbed more sound than the hard or resilient floorings7.
We have only really just touched on this topic. If you would like to see further research on flooring including a comparative analysis between carpet and vinyl, drop us a line and if the numbers warrant it, we’ll schedule it in as a research study for 2020!
Click here to read more about the roll of flooring in retirement home design.
1. https://www.carpetinstitute.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/factsh_thermal.pdf
2. Neil, S. (2016). The thermal properties of wool carpet. Agresearch. Christchurch. Retrieved from: https://www.eccarpets.com.au/images/downloads/Misc/Thermal_Properties_of_Wool_Carpet_2016.pdf
3. Vieira, R., Parker, D., Kono, J., Martin, E. and Sherwin, J. (2016). Measured Differences of Ground and Space Temperatures for Side-by-Side Slab-on-Grade Residences With and Without Carpet. Presented at ASHRAE Thermal Performance of the Exterior Envelopes of Whole Buildings XIII International Conference, Clearwater, Florida – December 2016.
4. Gupta, M., Bisesi, M. and Lee, J. (2017). Comparison of survivability of Staphylococcus aureus and spores of Aspergillus niger on commonly used floor materials. American Journal of Infection Control, 45(7), 717-722. doi.org/10.1016/j.ajic.2017.02.014
5. Harris, D., & Fitzgerald, L. (2017). Life-cycle cost analysis (LCCA): A comparison of commercial flooring. Facilities, 35(5/6), 303-318. doi:10.1108/F-10-2015-0071
6. Dixit, M. K., Singh, S., Lavy, S., & Yan, W. (2019). Floor finish selection in health-care facilities: A systematic literature review. Facilities, 37(13/14), 897-918. doi:10.1108/F-03-2018-0042
7. Harris, D. D. (2015). The influence of flooring on environmental stressors: A study of three flooring materials in a hospital. HERD: Health Environments Research & Design Journal, 8(3), 9-29. doi:10.1177/1937586715573730
Studies have shown carpeted floors to have energy savings over uncarpeted floors for space heating3. As a carpeted floor feels warmer underfoot, it may not require the same heating as a smooth surface and thus add to the energy savings1.
In terms of infection control, you may think vinyl flooring would be easier to keep clean but interestingly, a study showed that unlike carpets, Staphylococcus aureus spores can survive on smooth flooring such as vinyl tiles and wood for at least 4 weeks4.
A life cycle cost analysis showed that after 25 years, resilient flooring (such as vinyl) costs more than 2.2 times the costs of soft flooring (carpet). The LCCA takes into account initial costs, equipment, operations and maintenance and found modular carpet to be the best functional alternative5.
Safety is explored with falls studies showing different results depending on the variables under review and often includes a different type of flooring (soft fall resilient or impact absorbing product) which is not widely reported in Australian aged care facilities. Donald et al6 examined carpet and vinyl specifically and found 15% who fell on carpet sustained injuries compared to 91% injured when falling on vinyl flooring.
Acoustics is an often cited measure of indoor environment quality and flooring is a surface that can affect sound levels. A study showed that carpet tiles performed better as they absorbed more sound than the hard or resilient floorings7.
We have only really just touched on this topic. If you would like to see further research on flooring including a comparative analysis between carpet and vinyl, drop us a line and if the numbers warrant it, we’ll schedule it in as a research study for 2020!
Click here to read more about the roll of flooring in retirement home design.
1. https://www.carpetinstitute.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/factsh_thermal.pdf
2. Neil, S. (2016). The thermal properties of wool carpet. Agresearch. Christchurch. Retrieved from: https://www.eccarpets.com.au/images/downloads/Misc/Thermal_Properties_of_Wool_Carpet_2016.pdf
3. Vieira, R., Parker, D., Kono, J., Martin, E. and Sherwin, J. (2016). Measured Differences of Ground and Space Temperatures for Side-by-Side Slab-on-Grade Residences With and Without Carpet. Presented at ASHRAE Thermal Performance of the Exterior Envelopes of Whole Buildings XIII International Conference, Clearwater, Florida – December 2016.
4. Gupta, M., Bisesi, M. and Lee, J. (2017). Comparison of survivability of Staphylococcus aureus and spores of Aspergillus niger on commonly used floor materials. American Journal of Infection Control, 45(7), 717-722. doi.org/10.1016/j.ajic.2017.02.014
5. Harris, D., & Fitzgerald, L. (2017). Life-cycle cost analysis (LCCA): A comparison of commercial flooring. Facilities, 35(5/6), 303-318. doi:10.1108/F-10-2015-0071
6. Dixit, M. K., Singh, S., Lavy, S., & Yan, W. (2019). Floor finish selection in health-care facilities: A systematic literature review. Facilities, 37(13/14), 897-918. doi:10.1108/F-03-2018-0042
7. Harris, D. D. (2015). The influence of flooring on environmental stressors: A study of three flooring materials in a hospital. HERD: Health Environments Research & Design Journal, 8(3), 9-29. doi:10.1177/1937586715573730