Hardwood flooring is a beautiful addition to any home, but it’s not the best for busy households or the Central Florida climate. Fortunately, there are plenty of wood-look flooring options that look – and almost feel – like the “real thing.” Plus, they require far less maintenance and replacement.
If you’re interested in using wood-look tile flooring planks, one of our Creative Floors showrooms to view your options in person. This is the best way to ensure you choose a product that matches the home’s other fixtures and finishes. This also protects your investment down the road since we guarantee everything from the quality of the product to the quality of the installation.
Warm Wood-Look Tile Flooring Options
Typically, when people hear the word “tile,” they picture square tiles with lots of exposed grout. However, tile made to look like wood is different. Also called “wood plank tiles” or “wood look tiles,” this hard flooring option is designed to replicate wood planks. Once installed, you can’t tell the difference between natural hardwood and wood-look plank tiles due to the incredibly detailed wood grain patterns and sculpted textures.
The finished result is a series of long tile planks adhered to the floor substrate with minimal grout lines (typically about 1/8th or 3/16th of an inch). The grout is carefully selected to not detract from the overall look. Instead, it becomes a part of that natural wood grain look people know and love.
Benefits of Selecting Wood Look Tiles Over Hardwood
There are several benefits to selecting wood look tiles over hardwood to get the look you want.
1. It’s ultra-durable
These tiles are some of the most durable flooring options on the market. They are:
- Waterproof
- Stainproof
- UV resistant
- Resistant to scratching
- Fire resistant
Ceramic and porcelain floor tiles are non-porous, which makes them far less vulnerable to wear and tear. This is the opposite of natural hardwoods, which are inherently porous – leaving them susceptible to damage via moisture, hard wear, spills, or a lifetime of sun fading.
So unlike natural wood, which needs to be sealed and then sanded and refinished every ten years, wood-look flooring lasts a lifetime without any rehabbing necessary.
2. Seriously low-maintenance
Once plank tiles are installed, they are there for the duration of your home’s lifetime. With regular cleaning (no special instructions required), they’ll look like new year after year.
A morning time spill that you didn’t catch until the end of the day? No problem. Muddy dog prints left a week ago while you were on vacation? Easily wiped up when you return. A vase spilled and dropped from an upper bookcase? Nobody will ever know once you’ve cleaned up the spill. Is there a corner of the room that gets continuous sun exposure? Don’t worry about it because your tiles won’t fade. Did the kids decide to rearrange their bedroom furniture without permission? Odds are there’s not a single “scratch” of evidence on the floor.
None of this is the case with a natural wood floor, which is why more and more families are turning to wood-look flooring alternatives that can take a beating, last for decades, and cost less than hardwood.
4. Easy to replace if necessary
On the rare occasion that a tile plank or two does crack or chip, it’s easy to fix. As with any tile installation, individual planks can be cut out and replaced without affecting the tiles around them. That is not possible with a hardwood floor.
5. You can get creative
Wood-look tiles can be installed in a traditional, linear layout. Or, you can get creative, laying them on a diagonal, in a chevron pattern, or in custom patterns from room to room depending on the size of the tile.
Better yet, tiles can also be installed on the walls, creating gorgeous wood-look accents around fireplace surrounds to mimic wainscoting or whatever creative accents you or your interior designer dream up.
Visit Creative Floors For All Your Flooring Needs
Would you like to see wood-look flooring tiles in person? Online photos don’t do the products justice, and there’s no way to ensure how a particular style will look in your home without experimenting with “real-life” samples.
Come on down for an in-person visit at the Creative Floors showroom, or schedule a Shop-At-Home appointment where our design experts bring the samples to you. Seeing flooring options in person and having all your questions answered by real-time flooring experts is the only way to know you’re making the right flooring decision for your home.
