The Best and Worst Bathroom Flooring Choices

When it comes to your bathroom, there’s lot of factors to consider when it comes to flooring materials.  Being as it’s the wettest room in your house, your selection needs to be a material that can handle moisture, but also something that will prevent slipping while still being easy to clean.  Other helpful factors in determining which material works best include the number of people using the bathroom and your budget.  Allow us to break down the best and worst bathroom flooring materials and our reasons why.

The Best

Concrete

With concrete, you can choose between tiles or solid concrete.  Concrete makes sense because of its durability and because it can be sealed to keep water out.  It’s an easy material to maintain and can be stained to the color of your choosing.  It is resistant to moisture, staining and reduces allergens.  Bear in mind that it may require resealing on occasion.

Sheeted Linoleum

If your heart is set on linoleum in your bathroom, opt for sheets which come in rolls and are trimmed to the bathroom’s size.  There are no seams which can allow moisture to penetrate, causing warping.  If you go this route, be sure to have a reputable contractor do the installation because if it’s done incorrectly, sheeted linoleum can have the same problems as linoleum tiles.  Sheeted linoleum is desirable in a bathroom because it’s generally able to assist in cutting back on the amount of pathogens found in a bathroom.

Ceramic Tiles

There are many reasons that ceramic tiles are a favored bathroom material; they are long-lasting and non-porous.  Plus, they come in oodles of designs.  Just watch out, because certain ceramic tiles can be slippery.  Grout lines have to be sealed in order minimize staining.

The Worst

Carpet

Carpet is an impractical bathroom flooring selection for multiple reasons.  While it provides a feeling of warmth, carpeting accumulates moisture which can lead to mildew.  Carpeting can also be tricky to clean and easily stains.  Humidity and carpeting also don’t mix well and a musty smell will likely always be present in the bathroom.

Laminated Flooring

Verify that the warranty that comes with your flooring is not voided by placement in a bathroom.  However, if you are set on having laminate flooring in your bathroom, you’ll appreciate the fact that it’s easy to clean.  This type of flooring has glued-in seams that prohibit water from seeping through the cracks in the gaps between the floorboards.  However, those that lock into place can allow water to infiltrate the seams which can cause the floor to warp and blister.

Hardwood Flooring

Like carpeting, hardwood flooring provides a feeling of warmth.  Its cosmetic appeal is hard to beat.  Hardwood flooring is tough to make work in a moist bathroom because sitting water and humidity can cause the wood to crack and bend.  Once this happens, the flooring cannot be repaired.

Linoleum Tiles

Linoleum tiles resist water more effectively than hardwood or laminated floors because they are oil based.  However, unlike sheeted linoleum, linoleum tiles can still be penetrated by moisture because the tiles have seams.  When this occurs, distortion and gapping can result.

Glass Tile

Glass tile is a popular choice because of the endless choices of colors and patterns.  Oftentimes, it’s comprised of recyclable materials making it an eco-friendly choice.  Glass is appealing because it is resistant to temperature changes and humidity.  It also cleans easily.  Be mindful of the type of glass you select because it can be slippery, but choosing a sandblasted glass surface gets you around this risk.  Do know that glass floors can scratch.