Please help me choose a kitchen floor!

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TranquilityAndPeace

Mon, Jun 10 2013, 4:53 am

Hi! Yesterday, in Home Depot, DH and I were going back and forth about what type of floor to buy for the kitchen and entrance area of our house -- they both need to be replaced.

We looked at ceramic tiles, porcelain tiles, and all kinds of sticky tiles, some of which really look like stone and can even be put down with grout. I could not make up my mind, so I told DH that I'd ask the friendly and knowledgable imamother women for their wisdom and then decide.

Here's my problem: I'm terrible at washing floors. My cleaning lady will give the floors a mop-over (not hands and knees scrubbing) once a week. I hate the look of dirty grout, but I will not scrub the grout.

So I was thinking that it may be smartest to get sticky tiles without grout, this way I can just sweep and it will be pretty clean without mopping. (assuming that nothing sticky has spilled...) Then I was thinking that the ceramic and porcelain tiles seem less absorbent than the sticky tiles (probably made of plastic?), so they would look better after being swept than the sticky tiles. (kinda like washing glass versus china; the glass doesn't absorb the dirt as much as other materials..)

So, which type of flooring is the lowest maintenance, and will look good with the least maintenance? And if you get a dark colored grout, does that stay clean-looking??

TIA!!!

Tablepoetry

Mon, Jun 10 2013, 5:15 am

Get porcelain with a minimal grout line, and choose darker greyish grout. Porcelain is better than ceramic because the colour runs the whole way through, so if it chips it won't be as visible.
Choose something that isn't too slippery, but smooth enough that it can be cleaned easily. I would research finishes thoroughly, there are different types and they make a big difference.

alef12

Mon, Jun 10 2013, 5:21 am

Porcelain is a good choice. Another vote for a dark colored grout. Brown works too. Match to the color of your tiles. In your case I would say don't go with too light of a floor tile either. Pick something that hides the dirt.

TranquilityAndPeace

Mon, Jun 10 2013, 5:25 am

Thank you!!

So dark grout will hide the dirt?

Anyone have suggestions for the types of finishes that are the most low maintenance?

amother

Mon, Jun 10 2013, 5:35 am

I had an uneven textured median goldish brown quary tile. That floor could go without washing for a really long time like months. Even though, I had sick babies and my husband was dying I am still embarrassed to post this under my SN. It never seemed to get dirty.

srbmom

Mon, Jun 10 2013, 5:50 am

I would say don't get textured. I have textured tiles in my kitchen and dirt gets stuck in the crevices. Unless I get down on my hands and knees to scrub, the floor never gets totally clean. It's true that you can't see the dirt as much, but I know that it is definitely always dirty and it grosses me out.

etky

Mon, Jun 10 2013, 5:57 am

This is slightly tricky. Since you're talking about the kitchen, the highest priority is to conceal dirt and smudges. This would seem to indicate a darker floor. However, a dark floor can be oppressive, especially if the kitchen is small and not particularly light. The other solution is to make sure that the color is variegated. This works very well to distract the eye and conceals spots very effectively. Another solution is a reflective surface. Though this sounds counter-intuitive, the shine can also deflect attention from dirty areas and has an overall brightening effect. It all depends on your kitchen and how the light falls in it. Texture also has an effect of hiding dirt. The worst type of flooring for a kitchen IMHO and from what I see in my friends' homes is a light, matte, smooth, solid colored floor (like ceramic).

amother

Mon, Jun 10 2013, 6:51 am

The sticky tiles without grout - are they vinyl?

If yes, the scuff terrible, scratch easily and are very hard to clean. I put them on a floor pesach time because it was way cheaper than parquet, but it looks soooo bad already.

greenfire

Mon, Jun 10 2013, 7:16 am

here's the downside to ceramic tile floors even with dark grout ... they're a pain in the foot ... literally

there is no give and when running back & forth all day cooking ... it puts an unwarranted amount of pressure on the heels of your feet causing terrible pain ... women who might already have bad legs, varicose veins or back will be affected even more

thanks

Mon, Jun 10 2013, 9:00 am

Make sure the tiles are laid really close so they hardly need grout. Grout can also be sealed with a waterproof type coating. That's what they do commercially like in nursing homes.

PinkFridge

Mon, Jun 10 2013, 9:14 am

I'm with Greenfire. I actually got a linoleum for my kitchen (fancy that Wink

) - we couldn't stay out of the kitchen for the week wood would have taken and were steered away from other flooring that could be pourous. It looks like terra cotta, hides dirt marvelously, and I love it.

TranquilityAndPeace

Mon, Jun 10 2013, 12:38 pm

Thanks for all the advice!

It seems that porcelain is the way to go, even though it will hurt my feet. I'd rather have clean floors than a comfortable standing surface...

Simple1

Mon, Jun 10 2013, 12:54 pm

Another downside to harder floors is that things that fall down are more likely to break. And it's also more dangerous when kids fall, than if it's a softer surface.

PinkFridge

Mon, Jun 10 2013, 1:37 pm

Simple1 wrote:

Another downside to harder floors is that things that fall down are more likely to break. .

Forgot this. Another reason ceramic wasn't an option; I'm the family's biggest klutz.

Tablepoetry

Mon, Jun 10 2013, 1:43 pm

I've spent the last many years on terrazzo or porcelain floors and haven't noticed my feet hurting. I just wear crocs or the like around the house, so I'm standing on a flexible surface, not straight on the floor.

amother

Mon, Jun 10 2013, 2:41 pm

Don't tiles crack? Is it just me or wherever I go I see 1 or 2 cracked tiles in a floor?
Not looking to be nosy; trying to decide what to choose for future floor replacement.

The Happy Wife

Mon, Jun 10 2013, 4:54 pm

I have the groutable peel and stick tiles in two different areas of the house. They look like real tiles, are more durable than regular vinyl, but are softer and cheaper. Our only mistake was putting light grout in one area. The tiles and the dark grout don't show any dirt.

We have this: http://reviews.homedepot.ca/19.....s.htm with dark brown grout that looks great
and something similar to this: http://reviews.homedepot.ca/19.....s.htm

Reesa

Mon, Jun 10 2013, 5:01 pm

the tiles don't have to be a very dark color, it should have multi colors running through it so it camouflages the dirt. I agree with dark grout and laying tiles closer together. Also, the larger the tile, the less overall grout you will have throughout your kitchen. Go with the largest tile you can find.

MaBelleVie

Mon, Jun 10 2013, 5:05 pm

I have the peel and stick groutable, although we didn't grout them. I don't remember why, maybe we planned to do it later if we decided we wanted grout? Anyway-

What I like: SOFT. Easy on my feet, on my babies heads, and on fallen dishes. So far nothing has broken on it. This was most important to me, so I'm glad it worked out.

What I don't like: They are textured and the dirt seems to get stuck in them. A few places have tiny craters, no idea what from. I have to get down on my hands and knees to scrub them really clean, and that doesn't happen as often as they need.

In contrast, I have both ceramic and porcelain tiles elsewhere in my home. They clean more easily and are much more durable.

If I was doing it again, I would probably still do the vinyl. It gives me so much peace of mind with the little ones around all the time. BUT I would get a really dark one, so stains are not as apparent.

PinkFridge

Mon, Jun 10 2013, 5:46 pm

MaBelleVie wrote:

If I was doing it again, I would probably still do the vinyl. It gives me so much peace of mind with the little ones around all the time. BUT I would get a really dark one, so stains are not as apparent.

I used to have very light linoleum. It showed EVERYTHING. Now I have darker linoleum and it hides dirt well, but does show the light stuff, like flour spills. I can live with that ;-)

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