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Look!: Wood Floors in the Bathroom

20080318woodbath1.jpgHardwood floors in the bathroom?! Can this be? We know that it's possible (as evidenced above) but should we be so bold as to tempt the water gods with this choice of flooring?

Jump down to see why this AT junkie and bathroom renovator says YES!

20080318woodbath2.jpgJellyknits decided to go for the plank treatment because she wanted the floor from the outside hallway into the bathroom to be seamless. Aesthetically, it works but technically...?

This bath is on the main floor so the shower is typically only used for overnight guests. Two rows of subway tile (used around the tub) have been brought down onto the floor to give the occasional bather six inches of splash insurance. No boys live here so the toilet tinkle factor is minimal and the sink is more often used for a quick wash-up than a messy bedtime facial. As for the thought of plumbing back-ups, we assume she's knocking on - ha! - the floor.

What are your thoughts on bathroom flooring: tile, hardwood, (gasp!) carpet?

Comments (12)

We have hardwood in our bathroom (a shoe factory converted into lofts) and it looks amazing but it is a bit stressfull. There was a small leak before we moved in so there's some warping but it's minimal and hidden.
While we love the look of it, our longterm plan is to install slate tiles in order to keep the natural feel but stop worrying about every drop of water!

posted by renee c.f. on 2008-03-18 13:01:30
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Hello, my name is Art...and I'm an AT junkie and bathroom renovator too.

(crowd) "HI ART!"

but seriously,

Rock and roll with the hardwood.

As long as it is solid wood and finished properly you shouldn't have any problems provided there is not steady leaking from anywhere.

I would also keep an eye out if you have cold water lines exposed because the condensation could cause a steady drip. But other than that I think that your tile border along the tub was a great idea and you have a purty floor.

posted by art on 2008-03-18 13:09:16
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I totally understand why Jellyknits decided to give it a go in this particular space & I don't blame her one bit for experimenting a little. But normally I would say "hell to the no!" when it comes to a wood floor in a bathroom or any room where water is used. My old landlord put wood floors in the closet where she kept her washing machine. It took just one little leak to ruin those floors. The wood was warped and when you stepped on it, it felt unstable & brittle.

posted by Nougat on 2008-03-18 13:11:53
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The wood floor probably won't be a problem here because this isn't a heavily used bathroom. Normally, I'd advise against it, for all the reasons previously mentioned.

The wood looks really nice here. A cheat would be to go with Pergo that looks like wood. At least, I THINK it's okay for bathrooms.

posted by zazzu on 2008-03-18 13:43:10
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I have bamboo flooring in my kitchen and both baths. It's wonderful. Unless you're regularly flooding your bathroom floor, there's no reason why wood or bamboo can't be wonderful.

posted by kimg924 on 2008-03-18 13:48:03
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Rock and roll Art! My parents have a wood floor in their most-used bathroom and it really isn't a problem. A bath mat or two and properly treated wood will do fine.

posted by ljh on 2008-03-18 14:10:04
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I have wood flooring in front of my bathroom sink and it doesn't rock for me. It's on my list for replacement. (But not this cure-around.)

posted by JonathanB on 2008-03-18 15:42:22
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I have also seen wood-look ceramic tiles. You would think it would look cheesy, but they had a bunch installed at the tile store and it actually looked really great. It was available in several different widths and colours. As I recall it was something like $11 a sq ft.

posted by marlo on 2008-03-18 20:11:13
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i'll take tiles thanks

posted by venus_thames on 2008-03-19 01:11:54
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I have wood-look ceramic tiles, I can clean tiles better than wood and I want my bathroom very very clean

posted by mille100piedi on 2008-03-19 12:29:00
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Mark, if you are reading this... get back to work.

posted by StudioStarter on 2008-03-20 13:13:54
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I have maple hardwood throughout the main living area of my home. I ended up running the maple into the laundry room and 1/2 bath because by the end of the remodel I was so sick of making decisions I couldn't pick out one more material-in this case tile. All this to say in 10 years no major problems except under the fridge where the ice-maker sprung a leak which I didn't notice for a bit.

posted by Alice on 2008-03-21 17:24:28
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