Your Best Bathroom Flooring Options
With so many types of bathroom floor to choose from, deciding on the best bathroom flooring can be overflowingly overwhelming, but picking one that is both stylish and suitable for the space is not impossible these days.
Ultimately, some people follow their personal taste or style, while others put a premium on functionality – it’s just a matter of knowing which types of bathroom floors will work with certain conditions and aesthetics. Here is a list of different floorings for the bathroom and their characteristics, to help you in your quest for the perfect bathroom, installed by the perfect local bathroom fitter.
Ceramic
Ceramic tile is an excellent choice for bathroom flooring for that classic, clean look. It is durable, quite easy to maintain and comes in various porosity grades to suit different applications.
Ceramic tiles can be glazed or unglazed. Glazed ceramic is less porous and glossy, giving any room a vibrant appeal. Meanwhile, unglazed ceramic is porous, thicker, and denser. With multiple colours, sizes, shapes, patterns, and textures to play with, ceramic is a versatile choice that inspires creativity.
Porcelain
Porcelain bathroom flooring is tough, scratch and stain-resistant, waterproof, and comes in many styles, colours, and shapes, but can be quite slick when it becomes wet. To prevent slip and fall accidents, treating the tiles with non-slip coating can improve traction. Luckily, there are also manufacturers nowadays who produce non-slip porcelain.
Porcelain flooring is hygienic because it does not absorb or retain allergens, chemicals or odours and it does not require special maintenance. Porcelain is an excellent option for bathrooms with contemporary or modern styling.
Natural Stone
Natural stone tiles such as travertine and marble are classic, luxurious, and elegant. Once installed by a reliable bathroom fitter, such as Rila Tiling & Waterproofing, they are hygienic, easy to maintain, durable, and do well even in a humid and hot environment. However, natural stone flooring tends to be cold; a pair of bathroom slippers will be a good idea!
Because these are natural stones, they are also naturally porous. To prevent liquids from penetrating and damaging the floor, have them sealed with polish. Natural stone flooring can elevate a home’s value, so it can be considered an ideal investment.
Terrazzo
Terrazzo bathroom floor has resurfaced and has become all the rage for bathroom and other home areas. This type of flooring is made with composite materials like marble, glass, pebbles, quartz chips and others, and mixed with binders and polymeric. Some terrazzo materials are even made from recycled materials, making them an ideal green option.
Terrazzo flooring is stylish, long-lasting, and slip-resistant despite its glossy finish. It is a fabulous flooring option for unique-looking and trendy bathroom décor.
Mosaic
The mosaic floor imparts an artistic appeal to the bathroom. The wide range of materials, shapes, and colours make it possible to create different patterns and designs and. because the individual tiles are small, they can easily follow the shape and slope of a floor.
Whilst mosaic tile is mostly made with materials that can be slippery, the plenitude of grout lines provides slip resistance. As this flooring type has the most grout lines in all, it requires more maintenance.
Laminate
The humble laminate flooring is one of the most versatile, enduring, low-maintenance, and affordable options out there. Laminate is manufactured using wood by-products and bonded with resin. As a bathroom floor material, it is stable and withstands humidity and water.
The beauty of laminate flooring is that it can realistically mimic the physical appearance of many other materials. Some of the most common prints are wood grain, chevron, and whitewashed look. As laminate flooring can imitate other types of floors, it can easily blend with any bathroom designs.
Vinyl
Sometimes confused with laminate, vinyl is made from synthetic materials, usually PVC, polyurethane, or fibreglass base. Vinyl is even more resilient than its cousin laminate, against humidity, water and heat, because the polymers in vinyl are tougher than the more natural materials in laminate.
Look for high-quality vinyl for longevity, as cheaper ones tend to loosen and delaminate over time. As with laminate, vinyl can also imitate other flooring materials, offering many design possibilities for the bathroom floor. Speak to your local bathroom fitting specialists in the Hunter and Central Coast regions, for more information.
Linoleum
Linoleum (lino) is another flooring material that looks much like vinyl and laminate. It is made from both synthetic and natural materials. But unlike the other two, the design choices with linoleum are limited.
However, lino is best known for its resilience, heat-insulation, slip-resistance, and anti-microbial properties. Linoleum flooring can give the bathroom a classic, warm, and comfortable feel for a modest price.
Hardwood
Hardwood is among the most popular material for home flooring. A solid hardwood floor can lend a warm and charming look to bathrooms and hardwood bathroom floors can also easily integrate into the rest of the home with the same wood flooring.
Keep in mind that hardwood can contract and expand with frequent exposure to humidity and liquids. With that, it is best to limit hardwood flooring to bathrooms that are seldom used, such as the guest bathroom. Engineered hardwood flooring is a possible option for primary bathrooms, but it requires excellent ventilation and constant care.
Engineered Timber
Solid timber is excellent for many things, but not much for bathrooms. Moisture is a notorious enemy of timber as this can cause the wood to weaken and lose shape. However, engineered timber, or wood, is different. It is incredibly durable, water-resistant, and easy to maintain.
It also comes in a various wood finishes, such as red cedar, redwood, and white oak. There will always be one that will match any bathroom design. Engineered wood flooring also imparts a warm and cosy atmosphere in the bathroom.
Carpet
Carpet flooring in the bathroom? Why not? Although it is not quite a popular choice for obvious reasons, it may also work. There are now carpet flooring options with a water-resistant fibre surface and backing that prevent water from seeping through. Specially designed for bathrooms, this carpet dries fast and prevents mildew from forming.
As with regular carpets, this one also comes in limitless options of patterns and colours that make any bathroom look lovely and chic, with the added bonus that the carpet bathroom floor provides a soft and warm surface to walk on.
Concrete
With the modern industrial design being trendy in the past few years, concrete flooring has become a common choice – gone are the days when it is only used in garages, basements, and other utility areas.
Concrete flooring is extremely tough and is therefore difficult to damage. It comes in different finishes to complement the rest of the design elements. It can be polished, texturised, dyed, and acid stained. Durable is an understatement.
Pebble
Pebble bathroom flooring is a fashionable alternative to standard bathroom tile materials. This type of flooring conjures a unique earthy and nature spa-like ambience in the bathroom.
Natural stones come in a variety of shapes and sizes. The pebble bathroom floor has a subtle and interesting combination of bumpy and smooth. Talk about an awesome massaging effect!
On the downside, pebble bathroom flooring requires a ton of grout to seal, which can be a pain to maintain. Overall, pebble flooring can be a workable choice for those who are up to bring the outdoors in the bath.
Resin
Resin flooring offers that unbeatable seamless look — no more joints or grout lines! This flooring type is created from a mix of materials poured and hardened to a smooth, homogeneous layer. It can have a matte or high shine finish. As bathroom floor, resin is fantastic for its extremely durable, waterproof, slip-resistant, and easy to clean properties.
Resin bathroom flooring can blend with virtually any style scheme. The look is easily customisable to blend with traditional, contemporary, minimalist, industrial, and many others.
Can’t Decide Yet? Let the Experts at Rila Tiling & Waterproofing Help.
When it’s time for a fresh new look in your bathroom, Rila Tiling & Waterproofing can help pick out the best material that will work for you. Let’s make your next bathroom renovation project enjoyable, easy, and fulfilling!
Contact us today on 04 3576 3797 and let’s discuss your options. We serve anywhere in Morisset, Lake Macquarie, Newcastle, and Central Coast Regions.
