Wood floors....
 

Anyone out there ever install hardwood flooring? In a bathroom?

I'm toying with the idea of installing it and was wondering if it can be glued over existing tile, then waterproofed so's not to get messed up.

I have installed pergo in other parts of the house and have spilled large glasses of water, whihc were promptly picked up and have not had any damage, so I would imagine 3/4 inch flooring that is properly stained/sealed should hold up.

Any thoughts, as always are appreciated.

I say why not continue the pergo trend? That stuff is EXELENT!!! Just dont put the boards together and take them apart to check for fit... THIS RUINS THE BOARD, AND THEYRE DESIGNED TO HAVE THAT HAPPEN 3 TIMES IN THEIR LIFETIME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I had a guy install some pergo on his own time (500+ sq ft) and they "didnt all fit right"... Contrary to semi-popular beielf, this is total BS, they seadle, and they sometimes do that because one box was in the sun, and another wasnt... The whole floor comes together and expands/contracts as a group... AFTER its installed....
also make sure your floor's leval... or else it squeeks.


I seriously hated that guy, because he "watched the vid, and knew more then us certified pergo installers"

We replaced his entire floor on warenttee, because he installed it wrong, on uneven subfloor... He also MADE us "check the fit", which ruined many of the boards (which we told him... 3 times max... OVER THEIR LIFETIME)
And he was an ******* to boot... But pergo replaced the floor, not us...


Anyways, I love pergo, because it installs easly, and if your floor's leval and you leave the right gap (1/4" expantion gap) it is awesome... It also wears like iron...

~Nate (who said u should do pergo)

I've put down lots of hardwood flooring (never Pergo--I wont use it). I've never put oak in a bathroom but I have put fir in a bathroom and painted it. I don't see why it would be a huge problem. I prefer to put vinyl or tile in a bath if possible, but sometimes wood is better. I put fir in a bath because I could design the floor in sections that were invisible to the eye but could be lifted out to access the plumbing underneath without having to cut the drywall/plaster below.
I have some fir bathroom floors in rental properties that have bee there for 100 yrs and are still holding up except for directly under the toilet. They all have to be redone, when I remove a toilet for repair. My brother in law has an ideal set up. He has maple hardwood in his bathroom, except for directly under the toilet which sits on a marble insert.

just curious, but why dont you like pergo? Is there something I, as a installer, should know?

O yeah, since I accually read the post word for word (skimmed last time) I realize that pergo (OR wood) wouldnt really be good in a bathroom, because of mold and water damage (glued pergo would seperate, pressfit pergo would pop up, mabey)

~Nate

I was thinking 3/4 " hardwood. I noticed that Home Depot has some tongue in groove glooring planks in the limber section. Can't remember the type of wood or the thickness. The 3/4 inch hardwood I mentioned earlier would have been the hardwood flooring you see on a basketball court.

I don't see much of a diference between that and the unfinished sections at Home depot.

It occured to me that I could counter sink a tapcon screw, along with some liquid nails or other adhesive, then cover the holes with wood putty and stain.

How's that sound?

Wood is wood I guess and if I properly seal and stain it, with limited exposure to moisture(area rug etc..) I think it would be fine in my limited experience.

I recently redid my fathers 80 year old house's bathroom. There was water damage on a few planks where there was a leak under the toilet, but the rest was fine.

ever seen what happens to a wood floor when water breaches the finish?

Pergo can't be refinished. 3/4 hardwood should be good for at least 100 yrs with a few sandings. Our local Home Depot put Pergo down in the floor sales dept when they first built it. They took it up a couple of years later because they realized it was a terrible advertistement--it looked like crap from all the traffic. You mention the other problems. It's essentially particle board with formica on top of it.

I'd use a floor nailer to install the wood unless you wanted to get it up easily, in which case screwing it down would work. It's what I did with the fir that I wanted to be able to pull up to access the plumbing.

Sure have, that's why I'm asking.

In a worst case scenario(a plumbing disaster) I would have to redo 92 sq ft of floor so I'm not real worried about that.

What I do nowadays if I have to replace wood under a toilet is coat all 4 sides of the wood that is directly under the toilet with epoxy during installation.

3/4 solid hardwood is less likely to warp and bow when wet than thinner solid hardwoods or thinner laminates, and it wont swell up like the particle board in Pergo.

Do you have small (younger than 15) children? I say this because we had a wood floor in the kitchen (where there is water but not in the amounts that one will find in a bathroom) and the planks directly under the sink and the water fountain were ruined within the first two years. we tried everything from constant vigilence to covering the floor completely (biggest mistake). We simply couldn't keep the water off of the floor enough to maintain it's beauty. I can imagine that when the shower splashes consistently or when a wet towel finds it's way onto the floor enough times you may regret the decision ot put wood in a bath.

Just my .02

Half-bath for guests? Sure.

A full bath? No way; too much moisture, not just from drips and spills, but also steam from the shower, etc. I would replace the old tile with new tile in a different style if you just don't like the old tile.

Yeah but it's ugly. :)

3/4 T+G oakflooring, red oak is usually cheaper and nailed down with a flooring nailer that you can rent with a couple of coats of Polyurathane will do fine.
Been there done that 10 yrs ago still fine.

Bachelor's flooring
 

I think that a floor covered in breast implants would be perfect. Nice to walk on barefoot. Not bad if you slipped and fell. Waterproof too :D

I think I will forgo the wood and install tile. I'll probably install tile over the existing tile. I understand if the grout or tile is not cracked that it can easily be done as long as you roughen up the surface.

I really do not want to remove that tile, back gets too stiff.