Old Floor, Old Dog, Old Dad

Q: We have an old (30 years) linoleum kitchen/dining room floor and an old dog who slips quite a bit on the floor. I’ve spread throw rugs and runners everywhere but now I’m afraid my 88-year old dad will slip on the mishmash of rugs. I would like to put down a new kitchen/dining room floor that is easy to clean (wet mop) but has some texture to help with slipping and would be good for future dogs — since we can’t be without a dog. Is there something in the vinyl category that meets these requirements and looks good, too?
Thanks very much,
Debra F.
Berkeley CA
A: There are a couple great vinyls out there that will fit the bill for you. If you want the wood floor look, both Congoleum and Konecto make a great textured product which is not only easy to maintain and durable, but also non-slip. Congoleum’s Regal and Forum plank collections are easy to install but require you to glue them in place using an adhesive or you can look into Konecto which has an excellent locking mechanism which is very easy to install.
Now if you are trying to find a stone look, there are a few lines from Congoleum, but generally most vinyl tile has a texture to it which makes it fairly non-slip. Konecto also has a few stone looks, but not quite as much variety as in their wood look lines. I would avoid roll vinyl as these are more likely to end up similar to your current vinyl, slippery for the dog or father if the floor is wet.
Another floor you could look into beyond vinyl would be cork. Cork is rather easy to maintain, comfortable under foot and dent resistant. The only problem you can run into with cork is problems with gouging, but if you ensure your dog’s nails are clipped and long hair is kept trimmed away from the pads of paws then you should have a great floor choice in cork. Maintenance wise, you can not wet mop, but you can damp mop (the difference is the amount of water/cleaner on the floor).