Most people believe that choosing kitchen appliances, cabinets, or the kitchen sink is what they need to pay attention to the most when designing their kitchen. While this is definitely important, the type of flooring you put in your kitchen is also an essential factor. If the floors are not durable and heat-resistant, your kitchen’s overall efficiency and appearance could be significantly undermined. For this reason, we will discuss how to choose the best flooring for the kitchen in line with different budgets and preferences.
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Essentially, floor maintenance should be as easy as possible. Yet, there are many kitchen flooring materials on the market, each with its own set of advantages and disadvantages. This means that making the right choice requires some research. But don’t worry – we are here to break down the pros and cons for you.
What should you look for if you want to choose the best flooring for your kitchen?
When you start looking into flooring materials and designs, it helps to make a checklist of characteristics associated with quality kitchen flooring. This way, you will know how to shortlist possible options in line with your needs and budget.
Also, as much as the choice of flooring material is essential, you also have to find a good contractor to ensure that the flooring is installed appropriately. If you cut corners here, your kitchen floor may deteriorate no matter how expensive or durable material you purchase.
So, let’s take a look at the characteristics a good kitchen floor should have:
Low-maintenance
No one wants to spend more than a few minutes cleaning breadcrumbs, spilled liquids, and sticky food off their kitchen floor. Hence, your kitchen floor should be easy to clean and maintain.
You need a surface that you can mop up in no time. Choose a material that can handle water and one that does not get damaged easily in case you drop a pan or a glass.
A reasonable price
Of course, it also makes sense to think of your budget. If you are doing a major kitchen remodel, you may want to plan out your spending so that the flooring price does not leave you broke before buying the kitchen appliances, cabinets, kitchenware, etc.
Even if you intend to change only the kitchen floor, you need to know the dimensions of your kitchen. Most flooring retailers express the pricing of the flooring material per square meter, which can be slightly misleading. Note down the measurements while you are browsing through catalogs to do the calculations and find out how much the material will cost. In this way, you will never go over your flooring budget unintentionally!
Durability
On top of maintenance and the price point, the material should be highly durable. It is not every day that you have the time, resources, and patience to install new flooring.
It is not easy to live with construction work going on in your kitchen. You also may have to remove your appliances and cabinets from the kitchen temporarily so that you can set the flooring. This is why people usually do this kind of time-consuming and large-scale renovations before relocating to their new home. You can easily remove items from your old kitchen while packing for your move and simply place them onto the freshly installed flooring that will stay in place for years to come.
Essentially, the kitchen is a source of a lot of mess-producing activities. You need to be sure your floor is resilient enough to handle frequent contact with heat, liquids, and foods of all kinds. The kitchen floor needs to be able to remain intact for years, even decades, without showing major signs of wear and tear. In light of this, avoid materials that are prone to indentations or cracking!
Design
Aside from the pragmatic considerations, we have listed, you should also choose the flooring that appeals to you aesthetically. The color and pattern of the material should create a pleasant, cozy atmosphere that will beckon you to enter your kitchen and start cooking! It is best if you set aside current color trends. Instead, choose a color and material that you will find pleasing for years to come.
Choose the best flooring material for your kitchen
Laminate, tiles, or hardwood flooring? Let’s see how each material fares as a kitchen floor.
Laminate kitchen floor
In the past, laminate had a bad reputation because it used to be a not-so-stylish, cheap flooring material. However, laminate checks off most of our list – it is durable, water-resistant, affordable, and easy to clean. It is also very easy to install, so you can even layer laminate on top of the existing flooring if you are in a hurry.
Although an attractive design is usually not associated with this material, depending on the color, type, and brand, there can be many choices. Furthermore, you can choose a laminate pattern that resembles stone or wood surfaces for a fraction of the cost.
One of the downsides of choosing laminate is that it is not as durable as tiles or wood. In addition, when it gets damaged or worn out, you cannot refinish it. So, take into account that you will need to purchase new flooring after some time. Also, you will have to invest a little bit more if you want your laminate to be appealing to the eye.
Tiles
Kitchen tiles are also a great option as they do not get worn as quickly as laminate does. Ceramic or porcelain tiles come in a variety of shapes, sizes, designs, and price points. This means you can mix and match different tiles to create a fantastic kitchen floor on a budget.
However, installing tiles require time and skill. That means that they need to be installed by a tiling professional so that they do not fall out or stand unevenly after some time. If you do not have a suitable subfloor, then this might lead to more construction work to level out the surface. Also, if something heavy falls on the tiles, they can crack or chip as a result.
Hardwood kitchen flooring
Hardwood flooring is a go-to for homeowners who are all about design and durability. With a well-done finish, wood can withstand spills and scratches easily. Furthermore, it can be renewed by sanding and placing a new finish if it gets damaged or worn. Hardwood floors are built to last, so you get an alluring floor that will last for years.
However, hardwood flooring costs more in comparison to other flooring options. Also, if your pipes burst, the wood could soak up the water and start to rot, which is something you should keep in mind before you decide to install hardwood into your kitchen.
All in all, we hope this short article helped you choose the best flooring for your kitchen!
