Best Bathroom Flooring Options
If it’s time to freshen up your bathroom with a remodel there are many decisions to be made. A great place to start the process is with your flooring choice. Bathroom flooring is different from choosing the other flooring throughout your house as you have to account for one key element, water. Bathrooms see a lot of foot traffic throughout the day and are prone to lengthy exposure of wet and humid conditions, so you should consider what options will be the most sustainable for your space. Depending on what type of theme you’ve decided on for your bathroom, there are many options and designs to create the ideas you’ve envisioned.
Ceramic or Porcelain Tiles
If you are looking for a material that’s timeless but will meet all of your needs, then porcelain tiles should be the top pick. Porcelain is stylish, which gives your bathroom a rich and textured feel that looks great, but is also cost-effective. More importantly, porcelain tiles are waterproof with a 0.5% (or less) water absorption rate, according to the Porcelain Tile Certification Agency. And if you’re worried about cold tiles on bare feet, radiant heating can be installed underneath to keep those toes toasty. No matter what look you want for your floor, you can create the exact tone and texture you want with tiles that replicate wood, stone, and more!
Natural Stone
If you are wanting a classically luxurious feel to your floors, natural stone is great material for this! It’s aesthetically pleasing to the overall look of the bathroom, and the hard surface is durable which makes for an excellent perk in resale value. Although stone is relatable to ceramic tile in a cooler temperature, this can still be addressed using radiant heating underneath. Slippery surfaces can be alleviated with sandblasting or textured stone. And if you want something totally different, you can use pebble tile flooring that will give your bathroom a spa-type feel with a gentle foot massage. Your options can range from marble to granite, travertine or limestone.
Luxury Vinyl Flooring
Something fairly new to the residential market is Luxury Vinyl Flooring. This is a premium vinyl product that can mimic the look and texture of hardwood, ceramic, or even stone. It’s perfect for the bathrooms because it is waterproof, won’t dent, scratch, or stain, and is extremely easy to clean. Another highly appreciated feature of this product is that it maintains a comfortable temperature year-round, so you don’t have to dread stepping onto a cold tile floor every morning. Luxury Vinyl Flooring comes in planks or tiles, has a huge variety or colors and styles to choose from, and it doesn’t contain harmful chemicals that could affect the air-quality in your home.
Cork or Bamboo Flooring
If you are wanting something environmentally friendly and made from highly sustainable resources, look no further! Both of these options can resemble hardwood flooring but are better suited for a bathroom as they are durable and ideal for wet environments. Cork flooring is made from bark that has a polyurethane topcoat and is resistant to mold, mildew, and potential water damage. Cork flooring is soft underfoot and gives a warm, cozy aesthetic to a bathroom. Bamboo flooring gives you the hardwood feel without the fear of water or termite damage. People with allergies will appreciate this type of flooring as it’s inhospitable to dust mites and tends to repel dust and pollen as well. Overall, bamboo flooring has a clean edge to it that gives the area a more contemporary feel.
We hope this article provided some food for thought. There are so many different options available today that you no longer have to choose between tile and tile for your bathroom floor. Let’s get together to discuss your bathroom remodel and the team at ELM Construction will be happy to help you with all of your decisions, including the best flooring choice.