Short answer: Yes, you can usually do hardwood (or a wood-look floor) and tile in the same project, and it’s often easier than doing them separately because the transitions between rooms get planned once. As a general rule: tile in bathrooms and other wet areas, wood or wood-look floors in living spaces, and vinyl plank or tile in basements. The details below explain why, with examples from our own jobs.
The main options, in plain terms
Solid hardwood. Real wood all the way through. It can be sanded and refinished several times over its life, which is why it lasts so long in older homes. It doesn’t like water or big swings in humidity, so most manufacturers don’t recommend it for bathrooms or below grade.
Engineered wood. A real wood top layer over a layered base. It looks like hardwood and is more stable when humidity changes. Depending on how thick the top layer is, it can be refinished fewer times or not at all. Some products are rated for basements; check the manufacturer’s instructions.
Laminate. A printed image of wood under a clear wear layer, on a fiberboard core. It’s durable against scratches, but it can’t be sanded or refinished, and water resistance varies a lot from product to product.
Vinyl plank. A wood-look plank made of vinyl or a composite core. Many products are sold as waterproof, which makes it a common choice for basements, where the floor sits on concrete.
Tile. Porcelain, ceramic or stone. It handles water better than anything else and is the standard choice for bathrooms. It needs a stiff, flat base underneath and, in a bathroom, the right backing layer.
Which floor goes where
Bathrooms: tile. In Lincoln, Dedham, Lexington, Walpole and Newton, the bathroom floors got new tile. In Dedham, the first bathroom had old carpet, which came out and was replaced with tile. In Newton, the bathroom floors were covered in cement board before tile went down. If you want a warm floor, an electric heating cable can go under the tile: in Lincoln, an uncoupling membrane with an in-floor heating cable was laid across the bathroom floor before the tile.
Basements: vinyl plank or tile. In Boxborough, the finished basement got vinyl plank flooring throughout. In Weston, the room set up as a gym got gym floor tile. Basement floors sit on concrete, so pick products the manufacturer rates for below-grade use, and deal with any moisture first. We covered that order in the stages of finishing a basement.
Living areas, bedrooms and hallways: hardwood or a wood-look floor. Many older Greater Boston houses already have hardwood in these rooms. In Dedham, where a hallway/bedroom wall was removed as part of the bathroom job, the hallway’s hardwood floor was repaired rather than replaced.
Laundry rooms: it depends. Tile is the safest choice around water. But it isn’t the only one: in Walpole, the new laundry room built next to the remodeled bathroom got a hardwood floor, while the bathroom got tile. If you choose wood near a washer, think about leaks and how quickly you’d notice one.
Doing two floor types in one project
Can hardwood and tile be done in one go? Yes. A few things make it go smoothly:
- Order the work. Wet work and tile usually come before the wood floors are finished, so the wood isn’t exposed to mortar, grout and water. Any sanding and finishing of hardwood is typically one of the last steps.
- Plan the height where they meet. Tile plus its backing and a wood floor rarely end up at exactly the same height. Decide early how the transition will be handled at each doorway, so you don’t end up with an awkward lip.
- Choose the transitions on purpose. A threshold or transition strip at the doorway is normal. Pick its material and color along with the floors, not after.
- Order materials early. Tile and flooring often take time to arrive. Having both on site before work starts keeps one floor from holding up the other.
- Protect what’s finished. Once one floor is down, it needs to be covered while other work goes on around it.
Matching new and old wood floors
If you’re adding hardwood next to existing hardwood, matching is the hard part: species, board width, the direction of the boards, and the color after years of sunlight all matter. Repairing or weaving new boards into an existing floor, then refinishing the whole area so it reads as one floor, often looks better than a new floor butting into an old one.
Questions to settle before you choose
- Which rooms get water on the floor, even occasionally?
- Is any of it below grade, on concrete?
- Do you want to be able to refinish the floor in ten or twenty years?
- Where will two different floors meet, and what will the transition look like?
- Do you want heat under the tile in the bathroom?
FAQ
Can I put hardwood in a bathroom? It’s possible, but most manufacturers don’t recommend solid hardwood in a full bathroom, and tile is the standard choice for a reason. If you want the look of wood, wood-look porcelain tile is a common alternative.
Is laminate the same as engineered wood? No. Engineered wood has a real wood top layer. Laminate has a printed image of wood under a protective layer, and it can’t be refinished.
What affects the cost of new flooring? The material, the size and shape of the rooms, how much prep the subfloor needs, removing the old floor, stairs, and the number of transitions between rooms.
Should the floors go in before or after the cabinets and vanities? It depends on the floor type and the product’s instructions. Settle it with your contractor before work starts, since it affects both the schedule and what happens if a vanity is changed later.
Liang Yu works in marketing at Sun Shore Construction and has been with the team for three years.
Planning new floors? Get a free in-home estimate: call us or fill out the form on sunshoreconstruction.com.
