Vinyl or other non-tile bathroom flooring options?

[spunkybaby]

We are thinking about remodeling our master bathroom. I really dislike the cold feeling of tile floors and don't mind the sheet vinyl floors that we have now. But all my friends say that vinyl is icky and that I need to have tile floors.

Do you think this is true? Would vinyl floors in the master bath be a deterrent if you were buying a house? We are not planning on selling any time soon, but you never know how life may change, and I would hate to have a remodeled bath look terrible just because we chose vinyl floors.

Is there another non-tile flooring option for bathrooms?

[nfowife]

How about putting heated tile floors in? The idea of vinyl in a newly remodeled bath would not be the best investment IMO.

[Snow mom]

You might look at "luxury vinyl" but honestly if you don't plan on moving I wouldn't let someone else's tastes dictate what you put in.

[dogmom]

I think tiles sucks, and I'm not sure why people are so stuck on it. Who wants to clean grout? Plus repairing water damage is a pain with tile. But someone tile is a symbol of high end. I have several people that have put this planked vinyl in that looks great. You can get it to look like wood. It really looks great in the couple of bathrooms I've seen. One person put a darker wood vinyl plank in with light walls, lighter bathroom fixtures and it looks great. I think if you were planning to sell in a couple of years I would consider how the flooring would effect resale value. But who knows what it will mean in 10.

http://www.armstrong.com/flooring/luxury-vinyl/luxe-plank.asp

[crl]

I am planning to put linoleum in our master bath because I hate cleaning tile. Not sure it is significantly better for resale though as many people will perceive it as vinyl.

Catherine

[hellokitty]

I too hate tile. I hate how cold it feels, and I hate cleaning it, esp the grout! I am a big fan of vinyl. We got pretty neutral vinyl 7 yrs ago for our mudroom, but we recently replaced the ugly vinyl in our two upstairs bathrooms with high end armstrong vinyl. It looks JUST like tile, in fact, ppl who have seen it, thought it was tile when they saw it (it totally blew our budget, cost more than HW floors), but I love that it is so practical and doesn't feel cold. I can't remember which color we got, but it looks very similar to this...

http://www.armstrong.com/flooring/vinyl-tile/lynnbrook-sand-resilient-vinyl-tile-A7020/floor-117181.asp

[jjordan]

I too hate tile. I hate how cold it feels, and I hate cleaning it, esp the grout! I am a big fan of vinyl. We got pretty neutral vinyl 7 yrs ago for our mudroom, but we recently replaced the ugly vinyl in our two upstairs bathrooms with high end armstrong vinyl. It looks JUST like tile, in fact, ppl who have seen it, thought it was tile when they saw it (it totally blew our budget, cost more than HW floors), but I love that it is so practical and doesn't feel cold. I can't remember which color we got, but it looks very similar to this...

http://www.armstrong.com/flooring/vinyl-tile/lynnbrook-sand-resilient-vinyl-tile-A7020/floor-117181.asp

I think we have what is linked here in "riverbottom," or at any rate, something very similar. We LOVE it.

[hellokitty]

I think we have what is linked here in "riverbottom," or at any rate, something very similar. We LOVE it.

Yes, we love it too. My only regret is that since we did our mudroom vinyl so many yrs ago, I don't think that the higher end vinyl existed back then. Now I kind of feel like we should re-do our mudroom vinyl with the same kind that we did for the two upstairs bathrooms, since they look so nice. Maybe later, lol. Our contractor originally just budgeted us for avg priced vinyl and was surprised when we picked the really nice stuff. If only it were fashionable to do our kitchen backsplash in this vinyl, I'd totally do it, lol. I cannot get myself to invest in a tile backsplash, b/c I hate tile so much.

[Green_Tea]

A good friend redid her kitchen a few years ago and put in vinyl. People gave her a hard time about it, but she didn't want to tile (too cold/hard) and wasn't going to pay $$$ for wood. I think her floor looks lovely - she chose a greyish/brownish stone "tile" pattern, and it totally disappears. Made me reconsider vinyl as an option.

I say do what makes you happy. A bathroom isn't such a huge thing to tile down the road if a future buyer didn't like vinyl. Ours cost less than $600.

[KLD313]

We put vinyl plank flooring that looks like wood in our laundry room. The best thing about it is that it's totally waterproof. We got it at Home Depot. It looks really nice and does look like wood. I would look for something waterproof. This had a lip built into it. I'll see if I can find a link.

[egoldber]

You have to be very careful in a bathroom because exposure to high levels of humidity and moisture can cause the adhesive used to hold the vinyl down to decay rapidly. We had vinyl in our second bath upstairs (used by the kids) and it was totally trashed an peeling up. I guess I figure most people tend to put rugs down on the bathroom floor, so the coolness of the tile doesn't matter so much.

[buttercup]

I just installed 1 inch hex black and white tile in my bathroom and went with a gray grout which was then sealed, in case that helps the decision making. I love the way it looks and I would not do vinyl or some such in a bathroom (but I would never nail down carpet, either, for example)

[katydid1971]

I love the heated tile floors we put into our master bath.
I'm planning on using marloleum in the kids' bath when we redo those floors. Its a greener option and more on trend. http://www.forbo-flooring.us/Residential-Flooring/

[robinsmommy]

I am planning to put linoleum in our master bath because I hate cleaning tile. Not sure it is significantly better for resale though as many people will perceive it as vinyl.

Catherine

We plan on real lino too, after having had it put in our 1st house's bath. I think that it is a bit of a niche thing, but is getting more popular and therefore recognizable. I know it when I see it. And I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE that it doesn't have the icky dimples that vinyl does to catch dirt.

It is a little slick when wet, but the only time we've ever had an issue was when DD was a toddler and ran off naked and dripping right out of the bath. She wasn't hurt, but she did fall.

[spunkybaby]

Thanks so much for the input, everyone! Hmm...much to think about. I would love to see pictures of your bathroom floors if you have a chance to post :)

[SummerBaby]

My aunt has something called Dura Ceramic in her newly remodeled bath. It's not really ceramic, I believe it's vinyl, but it is grouted in and looks just like tile. It feels much softer and warmer though. I hate the vinyl in my bathroom so I was really surprised by how great this looked and felt.

[icunurse]

We put vinyl flooring in our bathrooms to freshen them up when we put out house on the market last Spring. It didn't cost much, but many people are surprised that it isn't tile. If you buy a higher grade, it is even more deceptive. As much as I like the look of tile, I hate the coldness and I always fear the broken tile. My IL's seem to have a broken tile in every room and when I look at it, it drives me crazy!

Our realtor said to use whatever flooring we wanted, but in neutral colors. People can change it for not a lot of money. She also said that the flooring should be comparable to the price point of the home, meaning that if you have a more expensive home, people will probably expect more expensive flooring.

[crl]

Thanks so much for the input, everyone! Hmm...much to think about. I would love to see pictures of your bathroom floors if you have a chance to post :)

Nothing to post here as we are pre-remodel. But if you want a time suck of pictures go look at Houzz. Google Houzz bathroom floor or the like.

Catherine