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Hardwood floors are stylish, easy to maintain, and a great way to add beauty and value to your home. But if you want to add them to a bathroom, you might want to reconsider: As physical environments progress, bathrooms aren’t the most hospitable to hardwood floors.
Humidity and your bathroom
Without a doubt, the humid air typically found in a bathroom represents the biggest challenge for a hardwood floor. When using a shower or just plain running water in the sink, the water evaporates into the air. Since most bathrooms are enclosed spaces, moisture is trapped in the air in the form of tiny droplets. As more accumulate, they get bigger and heavier until they finally fall to the ground.
And that’s not counting the water that splashes when you are washing, the puddles that form when you get out of the bathtub and the small lakes and streams that inevitably follow a child’s bathroom. However, unlike lawns and plants, floors don’t like to be watered!
What does this mean for your soil?
Wood is naturally permeable, which means it is more likely to absorb water than repel it, even with moisture-proof treatments. The wooden slats on your floor have spaces between them. When water seeps into those spaces, it stays there. This water then expands and contracts with changes in temperature, causing more damage to the floor and making it even more susceptible to moisture retention problems.
Damaged flooring must be repaired by tearing it up and replacing it with new wood. This can be time consuming and expensive, especially when needed on a regular basis.
What options are better?
When it comes to remodeling a bathroom, it’s okay to use wooden vanities and cabinets. Although these are also exposed to moisture, the physical punishment that the floors receive are avoided. Also, good quality bathroom furniture has a waterproof coating to protect it.
Here are some good alternatives to hardwood floors in the bathroom:
o Tiled floor
o Vinyl flooring
o Laminate flooring
o Composite flooring
Each of these materials has advantages and disadvantages in relation to the others. Just make sure the installation process is thorough and doesn’t involve using particle board for the base. That board can also absorb a lot of moisture, leaving the same problems you had with hardwood.
What else happens when the floor gets wet?
Moisture not only weakens hardwood floors, but also creates a perfect environment in which mold and mildew can thrive. These, in turn, cause wood to rot and can make life miserable for people with allergies. In extreme cases, it will be necessary to replace the entire bathroom structure to stop the spread of these toxic substances.