Vinyl and Linoleum Flooring - Flooring Choice

Hey guys. I'm in the process of giving my kitchen a facelift, but on a modest budget. Going with Ikea cabinets and probably Wilsonart counters. I'm stuck on which flooring to choose. Right now I'm torn between Armstrong Cushionstep vinyl (loose lay) or tile. I have two big, extremely sloppy dogs so those are really the only choices. I've laid tile before so I know it's fairly easy, but a pain. The subfloor would require some work. I'm actually leaning toward the vinyl for cost, no fear of water issues, ease of install... plus it looks pretty darn good imho. What are your guys thoughts? Anyone have experience with the Cushionstep vinyl?

Opinion? As long as you know it is free and worth every penny of it. TILE. I'm in the same boat with dogs and cats, and the present loose lay linoleum (vinyl) is taking a beating. My plans are to remove it, cbu then tile it and be done with it. You can get 12x12 tile really cheap at the big box stores. I think a reasonably good tile runs about 77 cents/sf, or thereabouts. You could probably tile an average kitchen for less than $200, since you already have the experience. Yeah, bad knees, I know. got 'em too.

:coffee:Like you, I have laid and have both tile and vinyl in my house but if I had 2 SLOPPY dogs....Vinyl would be my choice. Tile is an upgrade for your property but like you say, more of a pain to do. One thing... if you do vinyl DONT choose a light color for the floor!! You will drive yourself crazy trying to keep it looking good. We used to have a light colored floor in our kitchen/dining and hated it for just that reason. Good Luck!!

@chandler - I hear what you're saying and believe I'm close to going in that direction. But right now I have vinyl, luan, hardwood then subfloor. To lay the tile I'd probably have to go down to the subfloor. Not something I'd enjoy doing. With the loose lay vinyl I can just lay it down... easy peezy.

@lefy - anything I lay will be an upgrade. Our current kitchen (including the vinyl) is just horrible right now.

Thanks for the comments guys.

:coffee:Well one thing about tile... it lasts for ever!!! If you go the tile route, I would use a darker shade of grout. Both my neighbors installed a light shade of grout in their bath floor tile and they hate it. They applied sealer but its already discolored in different places. Not a look you want in your kitchen!! I applied the darker shade in my baths and it still looks great !! Just a though.... about a year and a half ago I inslalled the "tile look" vinyl planks that have the adhesive strip down one side of each plank in my moms bath. Its a floating type floor, pretty easy to install, no mess and it still looks good as the day I put it in! Its tuff stuff, much, much better than the single 12"x12" adhesive squares of the past. You can get the vinyl planks at the big box stores.

:coffee: Its a floating type floor, pretty easy to install, no mess and it still looks good as the day I put it in! Its tuff stuff, much, much better than the single 12"x12" adhesive squares of the past. You can get the vinyl planks at the big box stores.

What brand did you use? I was looking at Allure, then came across numerous comments about scratching problems.