Best Flooring for Bathrooms
Bathrooms are where the wrong floor fails quickly: what copes with standing water and steam, how each of our floors is fitted, and where wood fits in.
On this page
Why bathrooms are different
Every other room gets the occasional spill. A bathroom gets water on the floor as part of normal use, every day, plus steam that raises the humidity of the whole room for an hour at a time.
Timber responds to that humidity by taking up moisture and swelling. In a room where that happens daily, the movement never settles into the calm seasonal rhythm a wood floor lives by elsewhere in the house.
What works
Two clear answers and one honest compromise.
Fitting matters more here
The material is only half the answer. In a bathroom the detail around it decides whether it lasts.
Wet floors and slipping
A bathroom floor is walked on wet and barefoot. The HSE grades slip potential by the pendulum test value: 0 to 24 is high, 25 to 35 moderate and 36 or more low. Ask for the figure measured wet.
Of our 11 porcelain tiles, 5 are polished, 4 lappato and 2 matt, and the 2 Wabi lappato tiles carry an R11 rating, which is measured with shoes and oil, not barefoot. 32 of our 36 rigid vinyl floors have a textured surface. The slip resistance guide explains what each rating does and does not tell you.
The walls as well
Grout on a shower wall is the other half of bathroom maintenance. Our 5 Wall and Water shower panels are 10.2 mm thick and fit with an interlocking system, so a bathroom can be finished without tiling the walls.
Keeping it right
Simple, and mostly about not letting water stand.
What the published guidance says
Each entry is quoted from its source and linked to it. The full set is in the standards reference.
Pendulum Test Value — how slip risk is assessed
HSE grades pedestrian slip potential from the pendulum test value (PTV): 0-24 is high slip potential, 25-35 moderate and 36 or above low slip potential, the pendulum coefficient-of-friction test being the subject of BS 7976 Parts 1-3.
The exact wording
“Table 1 Slip potential classification, based on pendulum test values (PTV) PTV High slip potential 0-24 Moderate slip potential 25-35 Low slip potential 36 +”
Cleaning — the manufacturers’ own guidance
For multilayer modular floor coverings the MMFA requires low-moisture cleaning methods and states that pooling of liquid on the floor must be avoided under all circumstances.
The exact wording
“Absolutely avoid ponding in any case!”
Multilayer modular floors: floating, with a gap per metre
The MMFA, the European association for multilayer modular floor coverings, says these floors expand and contract with temperature and humidity and should therefore only be laid as a floating installation, with an expansion gap of at least 1.5 mm per running metre of floor on each side of the room as a rule of thumb.
The exact wording
“As MMF floor coverings expand and contract due to changes in ambient temperature or humidity conditions, the flooring should only be laid as a floating installation. … As a rule of thumb: create an expansion gap of min. 1.5 mm per running meter of flooring on each side of the room (e.g. room width 5 m = 8 mm border joint on each side).”
Maximum floor surface temperature
EN 1264 caps the floor surface temperature at 29 °C in the occupied area, 35 °C in the edge (perimeter) zone and 33 °C in bathrooms.
The exact wording
“Max. surface temperatures in DIN EN 1264: • 29 °C in the occupied area • 35 °C in the edge zone • 33 °C in bathrooms”
Vinyl over underfloor heating: 26 °C
BEAMA advises that most vinyls should not be heated above 26 °C, so the floor temperature should be restricted, and warns that in rooms with high heat losses such as conservatories a restricted floor temperature may not heat the room sufficiently.
The exact wording
“However, as most vinyls should not be heated to above 26°C, the floor temperature should be restricted. Care should be taken in the design of systems in rooms with high heat losses, such as conservatories, as it may not be possible to sufficiently heat the room with a restricted floor temperature limit.”
Tiles over underfloor heating: decoupling membrane and flexible adhesive
With stone, slate and ceramic tiles over underfloor heating, BEAMA advises always using a decoupling membrane and flexible adhesive to reduce the risk of hairline expansion cracks.
The exact wording
“With stone (which includes slate) and ceramic tiles, it is always advisable to use a de-coupling membrane and flexible adhesive to reduce the potential for any hairline expansion cracks.”
Wood takes on moisture from the air
The Wood Handbook of the US Forest Products Laboratory says wood, like many natural materials, is hygroscopic: it takes on moisture from the surrounding environment, and the exchange of moisture between wood and air depends on the relative humidity and temperature of the air and on the water already in the wood.
The exact wording
“Wood, like many natural materials, is hygroscopic; it takes on moisture from the surrounding environment. Moisture exchange between wood and air depends on the relative humidity and temperature of the air and the current amount of water in the wood.”
Standing water and a wood floor
The US National Wood Flooring Association warns against cleaning a wood floor with a traditional mop and bucket that can apply too much moisture, because standing water results in cracks, splits, cupping, warping and degradation of the finish.
The exact wording
“Do not use a traditional mop and bucket that has a potential to apply too much moisture to the wood floor. Standing water will result in cracks, splits, cupping, warping, degradation of the finish, and can leave a discoloring and sometimes sticky residue.”
Read next
Questions about bathroom floors
Can I put wood flooring in a bathroom?
Is LVT or tile better for a bathroom?
Is rigid vinyl waterproof enough for a bathroom?
What matters more, the floor or the sealing?
Can I have underfloor heating in a bathroom?
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