Bathroom Remodel Part 3 - Trampled Under Foot
While replacing the deck and subfloor we researched bathroom flooring choices. Our criteria for the floor were: low maintenance and water resistant, not cold underfoot, moderate to low price, and preferably a sustainable product. Those requirements quickly narrowed the choices to linoleum. Yes, the institutional floor of the past is the eco-friendly floor of today. Fortunately, the color selection for linoleum is greatly expanded from the pea green grade school floors I remember.
We found a local flooring store that carries a "recognized brand" of linoleum with 67 colors / textures to choose from. Sorting through the wide color palette we chose a neutral, light gray speckled pattern that won't clash with the bathtub or tile. If we want to add some visual excitement we can add a bright paint color or shower curtain. I do recommend borrowing the linoleum samples from the retailer so you can look at the colors in the light of your own home.
Though I'm a dedicated DIY'er the flooring store staff convinced me that cutting and installing a large sheet of linoleum is not an ideal DIY project. When the installer arrived with a roll of cold, stiff linoleum we had to point a space heater down the roll to warm it up enough to work with. Watching the installer I quickly figured out that experience is key to installing linoleum. I am happy to have had a more practiced hand handling the unwieldy material. Our compact bathroom floor is now covered with one seamless sheet of linoleum. Now that the holidays are past our bathroom remodel adventure continues.
More Info:
Fine Homebuilding - Smart Choices in Bathroom Flooring
Wikipedia - Sustainable Flooring
Wikipedia - Linoleum
Resilient Flooring: A Comparison of Vinyl, Linoleum and Cork .pdf