Whether your conservatory is for relaxation, entertainment or even a home office, you should take the purpose into consideration when you’re looking at flooring.
You’ll want to choose a material that’s aesthetically pleasing and functional for your space. Think about how active your conservatory is, how much sunlight it gets and how much moisture it gets. Consider your budget too!
Laminate Flooring
A popular choice for conservatories is laminate flooring due to its durability, affordability and minimal maintenance requirements.
There’s a variety of styles and colours available too, allowing you to replicate natural materials such as wood or stone without the cost – laminate is budget-friendly.
Not only is it scratch and stain resistant, but laminate is also easy to clean with just a simple sweep/vacuum and wipe down. This makes it an ideal choice for homes with pets, children or just active lives.
The downside to laminate flooring is that it can shrink and swell when exposed to extreme temperature changes. This can lead to damaging your floor and having to replace or repair it. Too much sunlight can lead to discolouration and there’s a likelihood of moisture damage.
Luxury Vinyl Tiles (LVT)
Another popular choice for conservatories is luxury vinyl tiles.
It’s resistant to moisture and durable, it won’t be affected by temperature changes, making it a smart choice for conservatories. Due to its durability, LVT is also able to withstand daily wear and tear and a lot of activity.
Like laminate, LVT comes in a wide range of styles. It mimics the appearance of natural materials such as wood and tile, but the image is higher quality than laminate. Similarly, it’s another affordable flooring!
Some LVT’s are prone to fading or discolouration from direct sunlight. Whilst it’s generally scratch-resistant, it can be susceptible to scratches from heavy or sharp objects.
Tiles
Floor tiles come in a wide range of materials such as natural stone, ceramic and porcelain. You can also get a variety of shapes, sizes, colours and patterns, making them even more appealing.
These are a great choice for your conservatory due to their durability and resistance to scratches, stains and moisture. Tiles are easy to clean too!
The downsides to tiles are that they can be slippery when wet, cold underfoot and uncomfortable to stand or sit on. They’re also quite expensive!
Carpet
Carpet can be a cosy and comfortable choice for your conservatory floor.
It provides insulation against cold and damp floors, which is great for the chilly winter months; it also absorbs sound quite well, which is good as conservatories can be noisy. Carpet is a non-slip surface too, which reduces the risk of falls and accidents; it’s also incredibly soft underfoot.
However, carpet can be more difficult to clean and is prone to stains. Direct sunlight can lead to fading too. It can also be costly.
Bamboo Flooring
If you’re after a more environmentally friendly flooring, then you could consider bamboo flooring.
Bamboo is a sustainable material known for its durability and stability; it’s resistant to temperature and moisture fluctuations, which makes it an ideal choice for a conservatory. As bamboo is a natural material, it will expand and contract with humidity changes, but it can do this safely and without damaging your floor.
Avoid Wood Flooring
When it comes to conservatories, you should avoid using wood flooring as it isn’t practical. Wood naturally shrinks and swells in response to temperature and moisture fluctuations. This can lead to the floor warping and buckling. Additionally, whilst this can be prevented with treatments, too much direct sunlight can bleach real wood.
Engineered wood flooring is designed to be temperature and moisture resistant, but its best to avoid it as well. Instead keep wooden flooring to the rest of your home!
Choosing the Best Flooring
If you don’t want carpet, but you’re worried about the floor being too cold, you can layer it with rugs! These not only offer some warmth underfoot, but they also act as a focal point to your conservatory. Plus, rugs are easy to replace once they start to fade with time, showing their wear and tear.
With careful consideration of durability, style, maintenance requirements and budget, you can choose the best floor for your conservatory.
