Bathroom Flooring Options

Since the average person spends one hour a day or more in the bathroom, bathroom flooring that is both functional and appealing is important.

Fortunately there are many beautiful options for todays bathroom floor.

Ceramic tile is one of the most popular choices.

Ceramic floor tiles wear well for years and come in a stunningly beautiful array of styles amd colors.

As popular and durable as ceramic tile flooring is, it does have some negatives.

It is extremely important that bathroom floor tiles be installed correctly on a very flat and smooth surface.

If there is any space at all between the tile and the subfloor below, or if the underfloor is not rigid, it creates pressure on the tile and the floor can be prone to cracking.

The grout between tiles can also require a lot of maintenance to keep clean and to maintain the color.

Tile is still one of the most beautiful and durable choices for your bathroom floor and is very popular. Now though, other options are increasing in popularity as well.

Slate, marble, stone, porcelain and composite material tiles provide hundreds of looks and surfaces to design around.

Natural stone, slate and marble have been used in bathrooms for hundreds of years. They will wear forever. Although they do resist staining, there are new chemicals available that can keep them pristine.

Natural stone floors can be more expensive, but if you plan to be in your home for a while, the beauty of real stone, slate and marble can make the long term investment in this type of bathroom flooring very much worth it.

Treated concrete floors are a newer and more modern choice. They are available in a wide variety of vivid or more sedate colors and can have elaborate designs etched into the floor surface.

At one time, vinyl flooring was THE choice for bathroom floors. They came in a variety of designs and colors and were easy to maintain. With the advent of gorgeous ceramic tiles, vinyl was pushed to the background and became thought of as the cheap choice. Not so much any more.

The new vinyl sheets and tiles are extraordinary and can rival ceramic tiles for beauty and versatility. Some people are now looking again to vinyl floors as a great bathroom flooring option.

While vinyl is still a lower cost alternative to tile, todays vinyl offers many of the benefits of tile. It is sturdy, waterproof, very easy to clean and comes in a wide array of patterns and colors to enhance your decorating scheme. The one drawback to vinyl is that there is a possibility of tearing, and, if not tacked down properly, can curl up at the edge over time.

Hardwood floors are another option for the bathroom. Hardwood creates a stunning look in the bathroom, especially with the availability of woods like Brazilian Teak and Chinese Cherry.

The new hardwood treatments available ensure that the flooring sheds water easily and does not allow mildew buildup. The down side to hardwood floors though is that you do have to keep treating the wood occasionally to maintain that water resistant top layer.

Of course the new alternative to hardwood is laminate flooring. Laminate floors can have the look of hardwood, stone, slate, marble or ceramic tile with less expense. The new laminates are quite sturdy, easy to clean and long lasting. Again they are a wood type product, so check with the retailer for information about how to keep laminates dry and mildew free.

With the beautiful choices available for todays house, it is definitely worth taking time to look and choose the bathroom flooring you will love for years to come.