Bathroom Floor

[bond]

Hello, I am about to have my tiny bathroom totally refurbished. Should I have this new modern vinyl floor covering (which looks nice/comfortable/practical I have seen in other places) or go for hard floor tiles? I am on a medium/low budget. Maybe it depends on the underlying surface? its just wooden joists and panels. Is there a big difference in labour costs of fitting one or the other. Thank you.

[ummmm]

Tiles will be much more expensive fit.

In a tiny bathroom I would go for vinyl. We had our tiny bathroom done not so long ago and it looks great.

[bond]

Thanks, I'm just a bit worried that the vinyl will start to curl up in corners or go bad in areas where splashes go or where water lands on it. I guess they are made better these days to cope with that?

[ummmm]

We had our sink and toilet removed and vinyl was butted up to the wall and skirtings placed over it and then sealed.


It's been about 2 years and it looks like new.

[society]

You said it's a tiny bathroom; couldn't you could make the sacrifice and do the floor in tiles? It'd last much longer. You could shop around and get different bids on the workmanship, you never know, you might just be able to afford it.

[Ratty2E]

Vinyl every time. We had tiles when we moved in and I couldn't wait to get rid of them, horrible, cold and slippery things. THe vinyls been down about 6 years and still looks pretty good to me.

[ummmm]

I agree with Ratty2E. You'll just have to cover them up with a mat.

[237SJ]

If you are putting tiles onto a wooden floor they can crack as the floor is flexible. They can lay some sort of flexible lining underneath but that is what I had in my upstairs bathroom and I have noticed a couple of tiles have hairline cracks. They are much better on a solid, downstairs floor. You can get quite nice cushion vinyl tiles (can`t remember the brand names) which my friends have in their kitchen and they look like tiles but are warmer to the touch. I`d probably go for those.

[edwardgordy]

According to me, you should go for vinyl floor covering for you tiny bathroom as I am also using the same for my own.

[Mosaic]

Can't work out why more people don't comment on the fact that tiles with grout between them are an ideal habitat for grot, dust, germs, other people's skin-scales, bogie flecks and pubes. Oh, and urine splashes.
Just sharing my mania.

[The Builder]

For a good job with tiles, you'll need a special flexible underlay, and latex type adhesive.

For vinyl, I agree with ummmm. Better to remove skirtings etc, lay vinyl before WC, basin, bath panel etc. Then, seal all perimeter edges with a bead of clear silicone.

Ask to see some "end of roll" pieces at your suppliers. The price will come down dramatically.

Labour for tiles... a day's work. For vinyl... about an hour.