If you choose to remodel your kitchen and changing the flooring is one part that you’re looking into, select something that has elements of beauty and durability. Kitchen flooring can accent the counters, cabinets, and appliances. It can have a big influence on the overall look and feel of the kitchen. The right flooring can make a big difference in a kitchen. For instance flooring with light or neutral tones creates an impression of light and space. Stronger colors might work in a small kitchen, but not in a larger one. It must also be able to stand up to everyday wear, such as spills and heavy foot traffic. If you have children, then consider a flooring that can easily resist spills. If you will be spending a lot of time on your feet in the kitchen then comfort will play a role in deciding what kind of flooring you should have.
Take into consideration both your budget and lifestyle. The choice of kitchen flooring material can be quite broad. Among the choices are vinyl in sheet or tiles, ceramic tile, wood floors and new laminate materials. How to you decide the best one for your kitchen flooring?
You need to do your own research and get the best advice you can from professional contractors and kitchen designers.
Popular Flooring Options:
For durable and more cost-effective flooring materials then look into vinyl or ceramic tiles. Vinyl is durable, inexpensive and available in sheets or tiles, in smooth or knobby. It is the most popular choice when it comes to kitchen flooring, and is available in a large selection of styles, colors and patterns. Vinyl kitchen flooring is generally popular all over the country.
Laminate kitchen flooring is also popular across the country as well. This is a new product that has grown out of the countertop business. It is created by laminating a photograph of wood grain, stone, or other surfaces, directly to the flooring material. It has the advantage of a quick installation time and is very durable.
Bamboo kitchen flooring is made from the fastest growing plant on earth. It grows faster that hardwood. Bamboo flooring is rapidly becoming the hottest trend in kitchen design today. Because of the rising cost of hardwood and the problems of deforestation bamboo is being seen as a good alternative to hardwood. Besides being quite beautiful it is a more renewable resource. Although bamboo, like wood, is firm and strong, it is actually a grass, which grows much faster than most trees. The stalks of bamboo reach maturity in only a few years, as opposed to the decades it takes for trees to develop and mature. Certain wood species can take as long as 50 years to mature. The bamboo tree will usually mature in about five or six years.
Ceramic Tile is beautiful and sturdy, and is the ideal material to clean up spills. Another thing to consider is that some of these choices are probably more common in one part of the country than others. For instance ceramic tile is used for kitchen flooring in the West and South. Wood floors are more prevalent in the Northeast and Midwest.
Stone type is a good choice if you are looking to create a unique, beautiful kitchen floor. However because stone tile is cut out of boulders, they generally come in odd and inconsistent sizes and shapes, and they are expensive.
Hardwood kitchen flooring lasts much longer than many options, however it does need to undergo refinishing from time to time. It is available in a wide variety of colors and grains and it can be installed in strips, planks, or parquet squares.
