When to Use Transition Strips
Residential flooring can impact several aspects of home design and can incorporate a variety of flooring options into your home including carpet, hardwood, and many other materials that can add value to the home. If you have chosen to include tile or hardwood options in your residential flooring plan, then you may have heard of transition strips.
Transition strips will help prevent any unsightly or unsafe transition in the home between your new hardwood and your new tile flooring options. They offer an easy way to transition without breaking up the aesthetic in the space. Transition strips can offer you a flush transition that is hardly noticeable and will not interrupt the flow of the space.
Types of Transition Strips
Typically, you will want to choose a transition strip that resembles the flooring you have so you can connect two areas with a clean seam that is not noticeable.
Carpet to Ceramic Tile Transition Strips: These will connect a low pile carpet to a ceramic tile floor, and the aluminum strip should not be visible when it is laid down. The spikes that protrude upwards will grip onto the carpet, and the ceramic tile is against it but will not attach to it. A vinyl strip is then placed in order to bridge both residential flooring types seamlessly.
4-in-1 Transition Strips: The 4-in-1 strips have interchangeable parts that can work for different residential flooring types. They include T-molding, End Molding, Carpet Transition, and Hard Surface Reducer. They can join any two floors that are of similar heights in a doorway or archway.
Tile to Laminate Transition Strips: Tile and laminate are both residential flooring options that tend to lay on top of an underlayment, and the ceramic tile may be a bit higher than laminate. With these strips, a gap is left between the two floors for the base track installation, and then the finished part of the strip can be easily snapped into place creating a smooth and level transition between the two flooring types.
Wood Floor to Wood Floor Transition Strips: Seam Binders are approximately five inches wide and can help to connect to wood floors that are the same height. Screws are drilled in between the floor coverings so that the binder will not become loose and they also allow for expansion and contraction.
A carpet edge gripper: made from aluminum and is a type of transition strip that is used for carpets. The gripper will attach to the subfloor, and then the wall to wall carpet can be forced into the gripper section.
Features and Benefits of Transition Strips
Transition strips can be installed over different types of residential flooring options to award the homeowner with a smooth transition between different rooms in the home as well as hide any subfloor imperfections. They also help match the adjoining floor heights.
If you have two different flooring heights, then a half saddle transition is needed to help go from a lower level to a higher level. A full saddle transition strip is used to bridge the floors that have two similar levels. Before installing any transition strips it is important to be aware that some strips can dent and can create a noise when walked on. While the aluminum strips are the more affordable option, you have to weigh those disadvantages with the money you would save. Aluminum strips often need to be replaced as well.
Flush tile transitions function better and look better but are harder to install than aluminum strips. The flooring ideally should be straight with parallel edges. Hardwood transition strips and marble plus hardwood trim strips are two of the most common types of flush tile transitions you can find.
With the many different options for residential flooring available, it is hard to pick just one type and style. If you choose hardwood for the main portion of the house but would like to stick with a ceramic tile option for the kitchen, then a transition strip can be the answer you are looking for and will seamlessly transition one flooring type to the other while offering a safe way to move from room to room. There will be no fear of tripping because the flooring types are different heights and there will be nothing to hurt you as you step.
When determining which transition strip is best for your flooring needs, consider the type of flooring and the materials you want the strip to be constructed with. While aluminum is the more affordable option, it may not be the best choice for your floor, and it may require replacement parts due to wear and tear.
No matter what you choose, you will surely find a beautiful and seamless way to transition your home from the hardwood floors you dreamed about to the more versatile and stylish kitchen tile you have always wanted.