The Right Floors for Specific Rooms in Your Home

Different rooms require different types of flooring in home. Check how to select the right flooring options for each different room in your home.

Every room in your home is unique (if every room in your home is identical, please send us pictures. That’s probably something to behold). The different spaces of your home perform unique functions and see varying amounts of traffic. With this in mind, you tailor your rooms with the mindset that they will fit your lifestyle. For example, if hubby has a “man-cave” tucked away that he uses to flop out and watch games, you’re more apt to put an old couch and coffee table in the room and save the good furniture for the living room. It just works better that way. The same goes for flooring. Certain types are more suited to different areas of your home than others. While wood is America’s favorite hard-surface flooring type, outselling vinyl, porcelain tile, and every other ­option (according to market-research firm Mintel’s 2016 report on residential flooring), it’s not necessarily the best choice for the kitchen, where it can be easily dented. So, what are the best flooring choices for the various rooms of your home? Read on to find out.

Best Flooring Choices For The Various Rooms Of Your Home

Floor For Kitchen

From grit-covered shoes that grind in dirt to chairs dragging back and forth, and heavy cans crashing from the countertop to the floor, the kitchen floor sees its fair share of action. Though wood is – and will continue to be – a popular choice, it doesn’t always stand up well to the assault. In general, wood floors are far more prone to denting than other materials and, with very few exceptions, foot traffic is tough on the finish. A natural fit for high-traffic areas of the home is porcelain tile. It outperforms every other flooring material tested for resistance to scratching and denting. Plus, porcelain tile comes in a range of styles to fit any décor. You can get small-format hex tiles for a traditional look, or 4-foot faux reclaimed-ash planks that, when laid tightly ­together with a matching grout, will convincingly create the look of wood. Tile is also low-maintenance, never ­requiring more than a vacuuming and mopping.

Floor For Bathroom

These floors don’t face the stress of foot traffic or the constant sunlight that can fade solid and engi­neered wood. Rather, the flooring threats in these rooms come in liquid form. Bathers splash, showerers drip, and toilets overflow. Urine, for example, can stain and even etch into some natural stone flooring, particularly marble, and bleach can affect the finish of some flooring (particularly wood and laminate). Again, porcelain tile is the way to go, primarily due to its ability to hold up well in wet places. Porcelain also allows for design-forward, barrier-free showers, where the bathroom floor extends straight into the shower without any lip. While some may worry about the “slippery when wet” factor of porcelain tile, you can choose a more textured product rather than one with a highly polished surface. And for a bathroom floor that’s warm and welcoming in the morning, you can splurge and install an electric heating element under the tiles connected to a timer control.

Floor For Family Room

While furniture, pet claws, and kids’ toys can damage a solid wood floor, this material adds a richness and beauty to your common area that is difficult to surpass. Also, never forget the substantial value wood flooring adds to a home. Consider prefinished plank wood flooring. You won’t have dust from sanding or fumes from finishing to contend with during installation; and, depending on how it’s installed, you might be able to walk on the floors right away (prefinished flooring also tends to be less expensive).

Floor For Basement

Regardless of what you’re using it for, from a rec room to a wine cellar, the biggest threat to a basement floor isn’t from above; it’s from below. A concrete floor might be damp constantly. And if the area floods, any porous material can absorb the water, expand, and buckle. For this reason, vinyl is a great choice. It withstands moisture very well and is durable enough to handle heavy usage. And, it’s available in a wide range of formal and informal looks to fit whatever look you’re after.

As always, these are simply general guidelines. While not everything works when it comes to flooring (ie, carpet in the kitchen!), nobody knows your home better than you. We’re here to offer our decades of expertise to find the best flooring solution for you. Our goal, as always, is your complete satisfaction.