Flooring that will be utilized in a home for wheelchairs and walkers needs to be smooth flooring or low pile carpet.  Plush carpet and textured carpet can be difficult for wheelchair or walker propulsion. Goals for Choosing Flooring Resilient to allow for minimum injury or breakage from drops or falls.  The flooring should be a fairly smooth or regular surface for ease of use by persons with mobility or balance issues. Matte finish, highly polished surfaces create glare and are usually slippery. No one has time or the inclination to install a floor that requires excessive upkeep and maintenance to look good.  The most popular thought when thinking of installing flooring in a home with a wheelchair or walker is hardwood flooring.  Hardwood flooring looks beautiful when first installed but with the wear and tear of a wheelchair or just daily living hardwood begins to show signs of wear. If you do decide to install hardwood flooring, the harder the wood the better it will wear. 

The Janka hardness test measures the hardness of wood. Tires For Sale In Indio CaIt measures the force required to embed an 11.28 mm (0.444 in) steel ball into wood to half the ball's diameter. Rhodesian Ridgeback Puppies For Sale OahuThis method leaves an indentation. Washer And Dryer For Sale Frisco TxIt is a good measurement technique to determine the ability of a type of wood withstand denting and wear. The hardest woods on the Janka hardness test have ratings of 100 for Balsa wood and 3692 for Brazilian Ebony.  The following are the Janka hardness ratings for woods common for flooring in the USA.  Click here for more information for Janka hardness ratings. The following flooring tends to wear well, but whatever style flooring you choose, commercial grade flooring is always the most durable. 

Most all of the flooring comes in a rainbow of colors and patterns. Residential inlaid sheet vinyl (NOT standard roto-vinyl, but inlaid) Commercial inlaid sheet vinyl Luxury vinyl tile and planks High end, commercial grade laminate wood High end commercial carpet tile There is a company called FLOR that has interesting, fun, durable carpet tiles that can create a multitude of looks. FLOR tiles from the FLOR company. The core of product is typically made of High Density Fiber (HDF). The top layer is a photographic layer that should appear identical to the product it replicates, be it wood, vinyl, tile, etc. The product is generally 3/8” thick and is a floating install with tongue and groove glue less locking system which allows you to install and uninstall the floor several times if desired. Laminate flooring is less expensive than wood flooring, more stain resistant and durable. When people think of laminate flooring they normally think of wood laminate but laminate can be made to look like tile as well.

Slip-resistance in the kitchen and bathroom is vitally important.  A floor that is somewhat slippery and not safe for anyone.  Flooring manufacturers us a slip-resistance rating called the coefficient of friction, with higher numbers indicating greater slip resistance.  Click here for more information on the coefficient of friction and how to identify friction ratings on flooring products. Small tiles are usually less slippery than larger tiles.  Tiles no larger than 2"x 2" should be used for shower floors and preferably bathroom floors. Carpet is not a good choice for bathrooms and kitchens due to water and mess factors.  Carpet however is not a bad choice for rooms that are for enjoying and relaxing such as bedrooms and living rooms.  Smooth flooring is often cold and uninviting so rugs are used to soften up the room and to add warmth.  If someone has wheelchair, balance issues, visual issues or utilizes a wheelchair, rugs become a tripping hazard and can be very difficult to propel a wheelchair over and on.

Recommendations for wheelchair/walker friendly carpet: Low pile (1/4" pile is the best), even loop carpet.  Plush carpet is difficult for wheelchair propulsion and walker legs tend to get catch on plush carpet, not a good choice.  Textured carpet is not recommended either for the same reasons.Eliminating the carpet pad eliminates the resistance of the carpet.Commercial grade is more durable and stain resistant than standard carpet, it's always best to use high quality products that wear well and won't fall apart. Click here for reviews of specific flooring quality and types. What experiences have you had with flooring and wheelchairs/walkers?  Anything you would recommend or not recommend?  Wheelchair-friendly flooring is smooth with enough traction for easy maneuvering. The American with Disabilities Act makes three recommendations for the type of flooring you should use to make a room wheelchair accessible. Your flooring material should have a coefficient of friction of about 0.5;

you should avoid high transitions; and carpeting should be firmly attached to the subfloor and have a pile less than 1/2-inch high. Durability is also an issue; wheelchairs are heavy and can quickly wear down some floor coverings. Non-Slip Floors The coefficient of friction is a measure of the amount of frictional resistance of a flooring materiall in other words, it's a measure of the material's slipperiness. Possible values range from from 0 to 1: The lower the value; the more slippery the flooring. Floor materials with a coefficient of friction in the neighborhood of 0.5 are considered slip-resistant. These include such options as hardwood, some types of ceramic tile, sheet vinyl with an embossed surface, luxury vinyl tiles and laminate flooring boards. Thin-pile carpets are also slip-resistant, but thick carpets are difficult to navigate in a wheelchair -- they have a coefficient of friction greater than 0.5 -- and should be avoided. Hardwood and Laminates Hardwood floors are not only ADA-compliant, but attractive as well, but you should pay attention to the hardness of the wood you choose.

Softwoods, such as pine and fir, dent easily, while hardwoods with a high Janka rating, such as maple, hickory or virtually any exotic species, should resist the bumps and grinds of regular wheelchair traffic better. Factory-finishes are harder and less likely to sustain damage than on-site applications. Laminate flooring has a comparable appearance and a factory-finished surface hard enough to resist dents. Scuff marks come off easily with little danger of ruining the finish. Ceramic Tiles Ceramic tiles are more water-resistant than hardwood or laminates and are a better choice for the kitchen or bathroom. The ideal tile size is 2 inches square. Larger tiles are more fragile and likely to crack under the weight of a wheelchair, while floors with smaller tiles are filled with grout lines that scuff easily and are difficult to clean. If the floor has 2-inch tiles, however, there are enough grout lines to improve traction. This is an important safety consideration both for wheelchair-bound people and caregivers when transferring from the chair to the shower.