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POLL: Wood Floors in the Kitchen?

Emily H
10 years ago
last modified: 7 years ago

We see a lot of discussions about whether or not hardwood is an appropriate floor covering for a kitchen area with the potential for water always present. What do you think about it?
VOTE and share your experience in the comments!

Yes - Love them!
No - I'd never put wood in a kitchen!
Other - Tell us below!
Featured Answer
  • joycealaina
    10 years ago
    I have had wooden kitchen floors in 3 homes. I like the 'feel' of wooden floors on my feet and I am usually barefoot or in socks. They look great with any kitchen style. they last. if they are gouged they can be sanded or left as they add character. Lino can look cheap and it is cold. Tile has no give whatsoever, and is therefore is hard one'a legs. For a place we spend the most time in, you just cannot beat hardwood floors. Accidental water damage can be repaired, whereas linoleum and tile are not easily matched. If the entire kitchen floor is flooded, any floor requires replacement. My advice is to judge for yourself. Stand of every floor you are considering. How does it look and feel to you?

    Comments (243)

    • rupertthecat
      7 years ago

      I agree with everything you say...makes sense to me!!

    • whambette
      7 years ago

      I love wood floors in a kitchen. I discovered recently that my 1949 bungalow has original oak flooring under several layers of various flooring types. We were shocked to find that the first layer on top of the beautiful oak is a very fake looking pine. Part of my current kitchen update is to uncover the floors. I can't wait.

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    • Lisadoll
      7 years ago

      I have wood in every room except the bathrooms, and I wouldn't have it any other way. Easy to clean. In a jiffy. Kid and pet friendly. Warm and beautiful!

    • PRO
      Gerety Building and Restoration
      7 years ago

      Wood floors are a great way to go in the kitchen. Light water damage can easily be fixed. Wood has so many upsides that the risk of water damage kind of takes a back seat. Put some wood down in your kitchen, just be sure to take good care of it!

    • Eileen Eads
      7 years ago

      I love wood floors and wanted to put them in our kitchen when we remodeled last year. But we have a pool and have to go through the kitchen to the bathroom and it just wouldn't be practical. We went with travertine.

    • Hope Anderson
      7 years ago

      My kitchen floors are the original oak from 1937. When I moved in there was a leak from the dishwasher--the guy who flipped the house didn't connect the drain--that caused some warping, but it was sanded out when I had the floors refinished in 2012. Since then I've had no problems, and the good things about wood (comfort underfoot, esthetics) greatly outweigh the bad (water). I do keep an old towel on the floor by the sink at all times--that way I can wipe up any drips immediately.

    • User
      7 years ago
      last modified: 7 years ago

      Living in New Orleans, we have had our share of problems with wood floors and water. We have encountered some flooding from heavy rains causing damage to the wood floors both in the back of the house and in the front office area. We have also encountered damage caused by a pipe bursting.

      While I love the look of hardwood floors throughout a home, I don't think I would put them in my kitchen, as well. Luckily, my kitchen is a bit offset from the living area, so the transition is seamless and ceramic tiles work there. When and if I change the floors in the kitchen to something more updated, I will go with a porcelain tile instead of wood.

    • PRO
      Decor & More, LLC
      7 years ago

      I love the wood look but the practicality of the luxury vinyl planks.

    • Sheila Rumsey
      7 years ago
      We had wood floors in the kitchen of our last house. We put them in ourselves- backbreaking work and not for the faint of heart! But they were amazing, and I would do it again. As long as they have a couple good coats of urethane or something on them, and you don't let big puddles sit, water isn't usually an issue. That said- I would keep a pallet extra and use a water based finish, just in case something does ever happen. My parents had their ice maker leak and it isn't too bad, but you can definitely see the damage if you know where to look. It would be nice if they had some extra boards so that section could be replaced.
    • Sheila Rumsey
      7 years ago
      @monika2024 use warm water and vinegar. Vinegar is highly acidic, so it kills most microbes as well as bleach, though it does take a few minutes longer. It is safe for the floor and many other surfaces in the home, plus it is naturally deodorizing once it dries. Don't use it on granite, marble, or travertine, as it can etch the surface, but it is perfectly safe for most other surfaces. It is also non-toxic, so is safe for pets and kiddos. I put a couple drops of Castile soap and some essential oils in mine to cut greasy grime and leave a fragrance behind. Many essential oils are also antimicrobial. Try eucalyptus, lemon, and peppermint for a sweet and clean smelling home. Plus, mice and many other pests hate those smells!
    • PRO
      Lunada Consulting & Design, Inc.
      7 years ago

      Allowing for a seamless transition into the kitchen floor makes wood such any easy choice.

    • Mary Weaver
      7 years ago

      I've had wood in a kitchen, high traffic areas became worn and tired looking quickly. We moved and the first thing I did was to spend the money to have porcelain tile put in the new kitchen. We have horses on the property. The correct porcelain tile hides dirt well and can take a lickin and still look good. Yes, tile can be hard on your feet but I have my indoor shoes that I wear while working in the kitchen.

    • joaybear
      7 years ago

      I installed dark walnut floors in my kitchen 11 years ago and love them. They are easier on the feet and back than tile, and wear beautifully. We have kids, grandkids, and pets on them and the traffic has only enhanced the patina on the floor. We wipe up spills immediately (but wouldn't you do that anyway?) and have even had a plumbing leak under the fridge that was not noticed until the next morning and you would never know. I am very happy with my decision.

    • schmidth
      7 years ago
      Birch,5" planking lumber liquidators, 10 years over vinyl floor,jell-rubber mat under foot at sink. Steam cleaned about every two weeks-no young kids, water in small amount-no problem. House 4 had tile-never again, hard,cold dirty grout lines.
    • Sheri and Kate Thompson
      7 years ago

      Laminate! It's stronger than wood, looks great and, best of all, you can replace individual "boards" if you ever need to. I've had people get on their stomach on the floor insisting "This CAN'T be fake!" It's not---it's Pergo, and I'd never have anything else!

    • Delora Dickey
      7 years ago

      It seems this is quite the controversial subject! Might as well have opened a forum on current politics (ha,ha). Having 1/2 our house in high gloss white ceramic tile (with bits of soft cream/grays) for 20 years, I would do it again and again...except now I would choose the wood-look tile (Tesoro). 2' x 5' throw rugs are used in front of the kitchen sink/dishwasher and refrigerator to catch most spills/slops. Hard on the feet? Only on the holidays when one spends 6 straight hours in the kitchen. Day-to-day activities have no impact at all. Cold? No. Can be cool in the winter, but I wear slippers in the winter, anyway. Drop something? Rarely, but from the height of holding something over 4' off the floor, most anything breakable will...break. I have seen the results of dog nail scratches on wood floors, messes that went unnoticed and left their mark on wood floors, and seen horrific damage from water leakages by icemakers and dishwashers. The wood flooring conditions (after only 5-8 years) of others was the best lesson for me. An active house like mine will always have tile!

    • lesleystein
      7 years ago

      Wood floors are a healthy choice just like real foods are a healthy choice.

    • Joan Read
      7 years ago

      I've had linoleum, Italian tile and hardwoods in my kitchens, and by far the most gentle on my body are the hardwoods. I love to cook. Standing on tile in particular can take a toll on one's back. I did have a water leak from a faulty refrigerator, which required that my hardwoods be refinished. Frankly, that was a real plus, given the age the floor had on it at that point. Hardwoods really warm a room, especially when just refinished.

    • pimms1967
      7 years ago

      I did a gut renovation and addition on my kitchen in 2013. My house is a 1929 Tudor cottage, I was going to do slate tile, but my contractor convinced me to do hardwood to flow with house and said wood would be softer on feet and back. Glad I took his advice, very pleased with it, looks nice against the white cabinets, and maintenance has been no problem, still looks like new, and he did a great job matching the color. I also have a rug runner between sink and island, and LL Bean waterhog mat by back entry door, which helps. Awhile back, a friend of my sister's replaced all the flooring in their southern California house with tile for ease of maintenance and they quickly grew to hate it for several reasons. So I'm a fan of wood for kitchen floors.

    • TC Hudson
      7 years ago

      We stained and installed our oak kitchen floor. I decided on Waterlox for the finish. It can be touched-up in spots as needed instead of needing a whole-floor refinish. Love it!

    • PRO
      Lisa Ephrat
      7 years ago
      I build about 10 homes a year and I always do wood in the kitchen because it flows with the home. I always design open concept. Wood in kitchen is fine. But always tile the powder room and bathrooms. Here's some examples of my homes I build. Wood holds up in kitchens. But def not bathrooms.
    • nmowers
      7 years ago

      From relatively new home owner. I hate my wood look laminate. The rest of the house has real wood floors and the difference is painfully obvious. I think wood look porcelain tile flooring may be just a trend that may not last, but I would love it truly if it looked like petrified wood instead of wood planks. Would fit right in with my quirky kitchen. Otherwise I'd rather go back to real wood. I miss my old apartment refrigerator that was no frills but had tons of space. As someone else mentioned, the ice and water dispensers tend to leak over time, (mine did 2nd year in.) And I need to finish replacing all the old plumbing that's anywhere near that kitchen, including the washer, dishwasher and sink, (ouch!) Once the plumbing's done I'll be ripping out that fake wood laminate. Definitely leaning toward replacing with real wood, but I know it'll require special care.

    • mhfallon
      7 years ago

      I Have had hardwood in 2 kitchens & currently building a house also with hardwood in the kitchen. I like the continuity it gives with the rest of the house & the feel of it but you do have to be more vigilant wiping up water drips. So far I haven't had a problem even when I spilled a quantity of water on a pre-finished maple floor. The wood did start to cup after I had sopped up the water but it flattened again after it dried. Phew!

    • Alex R
      7 years ago
      I did a guy renovation in my home 5 years ago and it was the perfect opportunity to install hardwood flooring everywhere. Including the powder room. I love it !! And everyone who's visited has loved it as well. And I haven't had any issues with water damage yet.
    • elevenarrows13
      7 years ago

      I live on a farm and have eleven kids. I have wood throughout my house, including the kitchen with the exception of a slate-type tile in the master bath and foyer. We also home school and work from home so lots of people are on my floors 24/7. Our floors are also wide planks and a very dark finish. I LOVE them! I've never had any water damage, haven't noticed any scuffs or marks, etc.--even when my 130 pound Pyrenees slips inside and has to be dragged out every once in awhile! People will usually comment on the floors when they visit for the first time. Everyone loves them. I will mention that we clean them with hot water and distilled vinegar. I use natural cleaners in my home, but all the natural floor cleaners I've tried leave a greasy film. Vinegar is easier. I like to add essential oils to avoid the smell of the vinegar.

    • Jonathan Cardwell
      7 years ago

      All the pics I see are pre fab/engineered wood (the ones that snap together). This is not 1 solid piece of wood. It has a vaneer coating in the top layer and works much better with humidity. Wood in the kitchen will work fine with this type of wood. If your have solid wood planks that are screwed into the floor board it's a whole different animal. I learned this the hard way. In Cali we can no longer use the thick polyurethane coating (it's ugly anyway imo) it's a no go in the kitchen or bathroom.

    • schmidth
      7 years ago
      Tile vericose veins. Tile on concrete, cold in winter (heat sink)!
      Don't care what you use on your floor just don't do it to other people.
    • janislj
      7 years ago

      Coming from a linoleum floor, the wood floor in the kitchen of my newly built home seemed luxurious. I do like the look and it is fairly easy to keep clean. But I did have a serious water accident where a pool of water sat on the floor for most of the day before I got home from work. Luckily the floor is light colored maple and the water marks are not noticeable, except to me! I have also dented the floor in a couple of areas where I have dropped heavy items. If I have to choose a floor covering again, I will look at other choices, but the look and feel of the floor under my feet would be a huge consideration, and for that, I do like wood.

    • PRO
      Roca Tile USA
      6 years ago

      What about Porcelain Wood? :) http://rocatilegroup.com/collections/bergen-wood-look-tile/


    • harvey4754
      6 years ago

      Best kitchen floor we've had! No nasty grout to keep clean, much more durable (pets, dropped knives,etc) than vinyl. Ours are solid wood, finished on site so cracks are filled in. A good decision for us.

    • momvo
      6 years ago
      I've had wood kitchens 3 out of 4 homes and this last one we put in a wood till we fully reno'd... yeah no more wood. Dishwasher leak and the back of a freezer unit completely froze and defrosted water all over the floor...uh its a frost free...but whirlpool side kick nightmare that under warranty still won't replace. so no way will the do our floors... just noooo more wood floors in our kitchen ever now...to many appliance nightmares... matching the wood ends up expensive esp...when its 8wide Booo.
    • PRO
      HIDEAGATE
      6 years ago

      If you want to put wood floors in your kitchen but are afraid of them getting destroyed by a pet, HIDEAGATE is perfect for custom homes or renovations.

      Badminton House project · More Info

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      You can tuck it right into the wall whenever you don't need it!

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    • PRO
      Kitchen Ideas, LLC
      6 years ago

      Wood for sure. However, if you're concerned about wear on a wood floor, luxury vinyl flooring is incredible today. You can't even tell the difference if you go with a solid brand. It holds up to virtually anything.

    • No Name
      6 years ago

      I like wood for the living room and bedrooms (where a life expectancy of over 100 years is realistic), but it looks out of place to me in a kitchen or bathroom. And there is good reason for that; it's only a matter of time before something leaks and makes a mess of it. My tile floors have handled some formidable, but not overwhelming leaks; they are dished just enough that water has never leaked into the space below; if they had been wood, I'd have spent a lot of time and/or money sanding them back into shape and refinishing them. Even then, they would have lost a lot of thickness in some places, potentially shortening their life expectancy. Of the people I know who have put wood floors in their kitchens, about half have already had to make major repairs from things like leaky ice makers and even wet foot traffic. "cozy" just isn't worth that kind of hassle.

    • Emilie Bova
      6 years ago

      No name, I have had tile kitchen floors and wood kitchen floors. The most beautiful and comfortable floor by far is the wood floor. I have horrid memories of sealing and cleaning grout lines every few months! I have spilled water, wine, grease on the wood and just wipe it up. No problem, no staining and so much more relaxing to stand on.

    • Kristel Quintana
      6 years ago

      Love wood, there's nothing like it. But I won't have it in the kitchen. All it takes is one leak. They don't make refrigerators like they used to. My inlaws had a leak in the middle of the night that warped their hardwood floor and they couldn't afford to fix it. I know many people that have had their ice cube/water dispensers leak. I even had a friend who's dog decided one day that pushing the ice cube dispenser (covering the floor in ice cubes) was the best thing ever. I think it's not a matter of if something will leak, it's when. If you love hardwood and have enough disposable cash to repair the inevitable then go for it. I know I would.

    • elevenarrows13
      5 years ago

      Always YES to the wood floors and NO to an ice maker/water dispenser! lol

    • Jean Sutton
      5 years ago

      When we bought our spec house it came with a red oak floor. It did okay in the kitchen, but from day one was showing scratches and dings. We upgraded eventually to Mirage Santo Mahogany flooring. Now, 4 years in, we still have beautiful flooring. So, my advice is, if you're going to have wood floors, go as hard and high quality as possible to make living on it stress free.

    • PRO
      User
      5 years ago

      We love the look that hardwood floors provide, but for durability purposes LVP (laminate vinyl planks) is what we see becoming more popular in our area. It offers the wood floor appearance people are looking for, as well as being a bit warmer on the feet than what you would find with tile or stone.

    • rupertthecat
      5 years ago

      I have wood floors in my kitchen, and the water spots drive me insane. I just don't think it's a great idea for the kitchen....

    • Amber Webb
      5 years ago

      We are on our 3rd home reno and were considering putting wood in the kitchen and dining are in order to create that beautiful continuity. We did tile in the first and vinyl in the second reno we did. I loved the tile because it seemed indestructible when moving appliances around and large dogs had no effect. The vinyl was inexpensive, but I will never do it again due to puncture and rips. As much as I love the look of wood, I think I will stick with tile in the kitchen and dining. Tile appeals to my sensibilities for many reasons. We do the installs ourselves and there is nothing more frustrating than spending days of work and a lot of money to make something look perfect just to have it ruined within a few years. I used to clean houses when I was younger and every kitchen wood floor was damaged. Every....single.....one.

    • HU-85011647
      3 years ago

      We enjoy hardwood floors in the kitchen, and we are planning to install wood floors in our new construction home too. The last house we bought had them installed already, and they worked out well with no obvious wear over the 7 years we lived in that house. As far as water damage, we would wipe up spills immediately by default so no water stains etc. I thought that it wiped up better than tile, which can be very beautiful, but I hate trying to get stains out of the grout (imagining tomato sauce spills on grout!). We have an active cat and the claw scratches throughout the wood floors from him careening about is a different story however...

    • Emilie Bova
      3 years ago

      I have been in my home seven years and the kitchen floor is wood. I love it and it still looks brand new.

    • millmacc
      3 years ago

      Emilie, do you know what type of wood you have?

    • mhfallon
      3 years ago

      I have had 3 different hardwood floors in 3 different kitchens. All were pre-sealed. The first one was maple & I found it very fragile, dented easily. The next 1 was solid hand scraped oak in a dark stain that worked well & I could cover any slight marks with a dark stain pen. The one I have now is engineered hand scraped oak & is the best. I've dropped things on it with no marks & as it's engineered it doesn't shrink in dry weather so it doesn't squeak at all. Had it for 4 years & I'm still very happy with it. Hope this helps.

    • Emilie Bova
      3 years ago

      millmacc I have engineered wood. It’s in a piling house.

    • Kristina Longo
      2 years ago

      @mhfallon i know this is an old thread but curious what brand of wood flooring you have?

    • Emilie Bova
      2 years ago

      I have been nine years in my house now with engineered wood in the kitchen, looks brand new!

    • momvo
      2 years ago

      We have an engineered product from Mohawk. If we need to it can be sanded maybe twice. Knots are left and imperfections. It's nice and every board is different. We get compliments however some think it's LVP which make me sick I'm not a fan of "fancy linoleum". They think that because we put an underlayment down first. We are on a slab...wanted the "feel" of old floors that were soft growing up. I stand do dishes etc my back does not hurt and no issues with water yet. Fridge leaked out and product held up. Disclaimer my husband's in the flooring industry.

    • Susan Whitten
      last year
      last modified: last year

      I put beautiful wood floors through out my home, except for the laundry room and bathrooms. Wow, do I wish I had tiled the kitchen floor. The refrigerator has been leaking but, usually not enough to see. The wood is ruined by the fridge and also where the cat's water bowl is. I have a large mat under the cat's water to catch an spills but they have somehow managed to get water under the mat. I am debating whether to get it repaired or pull it up and replace it with tile. I love the seamless look of wood throughout but it isn't worth the mess and expense to repair.

      The wood is Eucalyptus and is very hard and has lots of variety. My installer had to get a special nail gun because the wood is so hard he broke his usual nail-gun. Fantastic wood that shows no dings or scratches, it just doesn't do well with water.. I wanted wood because it is easier on my legs. It's just not worth it and I got on of those gel-pads to stand on. It is works great on any type of floor and there are some very nice looking ones now.

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