What areas need a waterproof floor?

The answer to this may seem obvious, but if it were so obvious then we would never see the wrong type of flooring in the wrong areas of a home. Areas such as the kitchen, bathrooms, laundry rooms, mud rooms, etc. are all rooms that should have waterproof floors.  Any area that has open plumbing access (sinks, bathtubs, showers, appliances that have water hookups) should have a waterproof floor. Yet we still see carpet in bathrooms and even laundry rooms. We also see hardwoods in bathrooms, laundry rooms, and kitchens.  Some might ask why hardwood floors are not appropriate in these areas. The answer to this would be that hardwoods are not waterproof floors. Small leaks from appliances can destroy hardwoods in a very short time and often do because they go undetected. Refrigerators and dishwashers are notorious for ruining the floors beneath them without anyone knowing until the buckling of the floor extends past the appliance. Also, pipes do rupture, and when they do an entire hardwood floor can be ruined in a few short hours.

What materials need to be used to create a waterproof floor?

Materials such as ceramic or porcelain tile, stone, concrete, linoleum, and laminate flooring are all examples of materials that can be used to waterproof a floor. Now, just because you use these materials doesn’t mean that your floor is waterproof.

Other then using the correct flooring, what must be done to waterproof a floor?

The best defense against problems is often redundancy. Data storage companies have back up drives, hospitals have back-up generators if the power goes out, etc. The same is true with flooring. If for whatever reason water does get past your flooring, you want to be sure that the underlayment under that flooring is water resistant as well. Tile and stone type materials should always be laid on a type of cement board or product similar to it. New products now exist to lay laminate flooring and linoleum over that is also water resistant.

Now, the wood structuring under the underlayment is still vulnerable to rot if the water gets past the underlayment. Therefore, step must be taken to ensure that water cannot travel past the underlayment. Caulking can be used and liquid pan material can be brushed on the bottom wall plate to keep water from soaking into the wall structuring. Baseboards can also be caulked to the flooring to ensure that water cannot get behind the baseboards. Using tile as base is the best option as it is more water resistant that wood, or heaven forbid, MDF baseboards.

So why waterproof floors?

The answer is simple – to protect your floors and the wood structuring holding them up!

 

 

 

 

 

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