Choosing the best floor for the kitchen is hardly easy. Truth be told, no kitchen remodeling is easy. And no two households are exactly alike, in terms of traffic, activities, habits. And so, selecting the right floor for a particular kitchen becomes even more difficult. And while all kitchen floors must be resistant and durable, the question remains: which one would be the best kitchen flooring for your home?
Kitchen floor considerations (first things first)
Kitchen renovation projects aim at either selling the house higher or making life simpler. And the kitchen floor will make a huge difference in both cases. Why? Because everything that’s happening above counter affects the surface underfoot.
So, what’s happening in your kitchen? Lots of cooking, spilling, dragging stools, making cakes, frequent traffic – the dishwasher or fridge leaking??? And while you are having all the fun during the various daily activities (pipe and appliance leaks excluded), your floor gets all the beating: lots of moisture, spills, dirt, mud, chocolate, oil, sauce – just name it and you’ll find it.
What do you need to do to have all the fun without worrying about the kitchen floor? A durable floor that will take the beating, a floor resistant to moisture and water that won’t be slippery either? A beautiful floor that will match the kitchen design and style, a floor that will feel good and look great? Quite a few considerations! Wouldn’t you think?
How to choose the best kitchen flooring for your home?
You can always get the advice of a kitchen renovation contractor. Overall, you need to consider your family’s habits.
Let’s make a pause here. Families vary in size and there’s no doubt that the more the members, the more the traffic, the more the activities, the higher the possibility of floor damage. But small families, homes where one or two people live, households that hardly use the kitchen may still face a leak, will still cook at one point, things are bound to land on the floor.
What to do? Take into account your own home, family, habits, activities – how much time you spend in the kitchen, how often you cook, if there are children and pets – the works. The more the people and the activity, the more durable the kitchen flooring must be.
Which are the most popular kitchen floor options?
Wood
• Pros: hardwood floors are extremely beautiful, bring warmth to the kitchen, and become water-resistant when sealed.
• Cons: even sealed, wood is not a water-proof choice. It may resist some spills but won’t resist water splashes and leaks. It will rot. You need to wipe moisture right away, maintain the floor, and be careful since some woods may become slippery – unless this is distressed wood.
Laminate
• Pros: Laminate is the next best thing if you like wood but cannot afford it. It’s not as beautiful and durable, but it can still be water-resistant, while the design and color options are plenty.
• Cons: While laminate nicely mimics hardwood, it’s still not the real thing. It’s much weaker than wood and lacks the solid, good looks of oak or ipe, for example.
Vinyl
• Pros: It’s the absolute must for kitchen floors that suffer a lot and repeatedly. Today, you can find luxury vinyl tile or plank options, wood-like vinyl floors, wood or stone plastic composite choices. In short, vinyl is extremely durable and softer under the feet than ceramic tiles, for example.
• Cons: While strong and inexpensive, vinyl will most likely need to be replaced in about a decade. But this depends on usage too and may not be a shortcoming if you do kitchen makeovers every ten years.
Tiles
• Pros: Tiles are the best solutions for kitchen floors when full resistance to water is the priority. Today, there are many kitchen tile floor options – porcelain, ceramic, and even more designs, shapes, sizes, and colors. Vintage tiles have become very popular lately.
• Cons: While the advantage of tiles is that they are water-proof, that is challenged by the fact that the grout is not. So, grout must be sealed well since it’s absorbent. Another downside of tiles is their susceptibility to cracking. They may break upon impact, although they can be easily replaced.
