Flooring for summer home

[ChuckieV]

We have a summer home built on a 4 ft. crawl space that we close down completely each November and reopen in April. Originaly, when we purchased the place ,the kitchen was carpeted (yuk) but after we remodeled the screened porch into a family room we installed peel and stick vinyl tile there and in the adjacent kitchen. When we reopened in April the majority of the tiles were loose, apparently either from the freezing or the moisture coming from the crawl space. Once the weather turned hot the tiles sealed themselves but then did the same thing over the winter. Last year, I re-laid the tiles with tile adhesive, but they still loosened over the winter. Now I want to replace the flooring. At first I wanted Pergo because I liked the look and it did not use an adhesive to hold it in place. But, then I relized that the laminate would probably absorb the moisture in the house which builds up over the winter. Now I am considering sheet vinyl which is held in place by quarter round. Does anyone have any experience with a problem like this? Do you have any other ideas. I would appreciate any advise.

[chandler]

First, let's stop the moisture. Is your crawlspace covered with 6 mil plastic? It should be. I am an advocate of crawlspace ventilation, while others advocate sealing it up and conditioning it, so you have a choice and can find numerous posts here on the subject.
Have you considered ceramic tile? Won't loosen if properly laid and firm to the stance.
Once the moisture problem is solved, you can do what you want up there (anything but linoleum, yuk )

[ChuckieV]

Thanks for the reply. This is like the house "that Jack made." It has several additions and some of the crawl space is unaccessable. Some are ventilated and some are not. We are in the process now of covering the accessable parts with plastic; and, I like your idea of ceramic tile but I was worried about the cost of installation. The area to be covered is approximately 400 square feet.

[chandler]

If the area is tile ready, laying the tile will run between $3 and 4 a square foot. But check with contractors in your area as it may vary from region to region, and the extent of prep work needed will affect the cost as well.

[diyplank]

There is a product that I like, its duraceramic!! Great stuff. It can be grouted or glued down. Subfloor just needs to be level and you do not need to put down durabacker cement board to install these. They can go right down on luan or that type of wood. I have installed these previously at a friends house, I wanted to use them in my laundry room remodel but it is going to run me 400 dollars for 98 sq. ft. Just to much money right now for just the floor.

I agree you need to fix the moisture problem first. THen do the floor. Good Luck