My choice: tile on top of an uncoupling membrane such as

Thanks, worthy! That looks like it might even keep it from feeling quite so cold..maybe?

might even keep it from feeling quite so cold..maybe?

Sorry, no. But, heck, there's nothing like the feel of ice cold marble on your feet after leaving a hot shower!

We're going to put a bamboo floating floor down over concrete slab in our basement. Very durable, doesn't dent (use the stranded type!) and looks alot like hardwood - and so easy to clean. Not nearly as cold as tile, not as warm as carpet, but as you say cheap area rugs go a long way.

http://www.lumberliquidators.com/catalog/product.jsp?productId=6548&categoryId=495&sectionId=472&subCategoryId=503

Here is a link that might be useful: Bamboo Floating Floor

I'm considering a cork floor for my basement project. Goes down similar to the floating bamboo option. Renewable and cork is a natural for areas that are damp.

You have to consider pet activity with cork though. If you have less active dogs, it should be okay. Big, young dogs who tear around, would probably be a bad idea.

My sister put in bamboo floors and the dogs ended up marking it up with their claws right away. I think you can avoid that by going with the strand variety which is harder.

Thanks all. I appreciate the suggestions. Our dogs do their running on the main floor, so that isn't an issue. The accidents are the concern. Love the idea of cork or bamboo. DS has cork in his kitchen and it looks terrific.

Thanks again. I will be researching and thinking for a bit.

Hi cyn427,
As I type this, my husband is downstairs in the basement, ripping out carpet in our 16 x 24 ft rec room. This is a brand new custom built house...moved in a year and a half ago. Our poor cat.....must have been very stressed out by the move, because he went ahead and sprayed all over that rec room!..We tried to clean and clean...using the recommended enymatic cleaners.... but that smell was still there!
So....we have decided to rip out the carpet and put down engineered wood floors.They are floating floors with the clic/loc type of installation....no glue. We live in the cold mid west...so I wanted something warmish underfoot. we are also adding a small wet bar, and turning the room into a games/enertainment area..there is a carpeted theater room attached...luckily, kitty did not mess up in there!
We purchased the wood (handscraped maple) online...infact...delivery is due tomorrow. We are researching the best underlayment to put down... We were happy to see that the concrete is in good shape...very level. Hubby filled in some of the dings that occurred from removal of the carpet. We will do a basic test for moisture...and hopefully, we will be laying floors down this weekend. I hope we have made the right decision...I am a little nervous! Let us know what you decide!

I'm in the same boat, concrete floor and what to do??? Rather than fighting moisture and possible spring rain flooding. I'm going to stain and polish the exsisting concrete floor. Next time your in HD or LOWES, Costco look down. These floor look great and TAKE A BEATING. A couple of area rug's will keep the toes warm.
To Newhome3-you may want to get your cat fixed to prevent more spray and over population. Tha t smell never goes away
Good luck

tjburke...our cat is a neutered male! Got him fixed at 6mths old...he is now 5 yrs old. Guess he is just one of those rare ones that will still spray after being neutered :(
Funnily, he does not do it upstairs at all....he just had an issue it seems with our basement rec room! Needless to say, he is not/will not be allowed downstairs...a baby gate at the foot of the stairs has taken care of that! After we removed all carpet/padding...the smell dissappeared completely! It had actually soaked through to the pad...so, we really had no choice but to just rip everything out.

Our wood floors arrived yesterday...and they are beautiful!
As soon as the underlayment arrives, we will be laying them down.

Thanks everyone! I am leaning toward the idea of polishing the concrete or the engineered hardwood. Both sound beautiful-thanks!