fbpx

Our bathrooms are high traffic places- everyone in the household is in and out of these rooms several times each day. When designing a bathroom, the flooring is often overshadowed by beautiful accessories or a gorgeous new shower. But the floor has a huge impact on the bathroom’s comfort and functionality.  While the attractiveness, style, and design of your choice of flooring options are important, you also need to consider the environmental conditions they withstand on a constant basis.

Bathroom floors experience great fluctuations in temperature as the shower heats the room before it cools once again. Moisture lingers in the bathroom (especially if you don’t have a window you can open or an efficient vent fan), and water constantly gets splashed from the shower, bath, and sink. Of course, germs can also build up, emanating from the toilet or dirty laundry.

Bathroom floors also must be easy to clean as well as be able to withstand constant moisture while not getting dangerously slippery. Our bathroom floors are held to high standards! Here are some options to consider when remodeling your bathroom.

Porcelain or Ceramic Tile
This is an excellent option for bathroom flooring, since the tiles themselves and the grout between them are waterproof and resist stains. They’re inexpensive, and thus one of the most popular choices for bathroom flooring. Regardless of how your bathroom is styled, you’re sure to find a beautiful porcelain or ceramic tile that matches. Many are even made to mimic other materials such as wood or marble.

Vinyl
Vinyl is a manufactured material that’s created to be waterproof and durable. Like tiles it can be made to look like a number of other materials to suit your bathroom’s needs. Vinyl comes in one of two types–either wood plastic composite (WPC), or stone plastic composite (SPC). Both are good choices; it just depends on your preferences. SPC is less expensive and more durable, but it is thinner and isn’t easily heated. WPC is slightly more costly than SPC, but is much less expensive than actual stone or wood. It’s thick, retains some warmth, and has a bit more give underfoot than SPC which makes it more comfortable to walk on.

Concrete
This choice is inexpensive (especially if your home is already on a concrete slab) and completely impervious to water, which ticks a lot of boxes when looking for a good bathroom flooring options. It can be stained or stamped to create a variety of looks–it doesn’t have to be plain and grey the way we picture most concrete to be. It can get quite slippery when wet if it is polished very smoothly, however, so when opting for a concrete floor make sure the contractor leaves some texture to decrease the chance of slipping.

Natural Stone
Stone is an expensive flooring option, but it’s a surefire way to increase your home’s value. However, unlike many manufactured options, natural stone is a porous material that will take on water and grow bacteria if not properly sealed. When choosing your natural stone, be sure to know how often it needs to be re-sealed to maintain a waterproof coating on top of it. Stone will stay nice and cool despite the heat your bathroom experiences, and brings natural beauty to any style bathroom.

Before getting too far into the design of your bathroom renovation, call the experts at West Coast Design Build Florida. We are the Sarasota area remodeling professionals you can trust will your kitchen, bathroom or outdoor spaces.