1,808 posts, read 5,048,805 times DH and I just purchased our first home in December. It is a bungalow dating from the early 1940s. The previous owners did a fair amount of renovations and updating, including a large addition off of the back of the house. This addition includes the master bedroom and bathroom, a large closet, the laundry room, and part of the expanded kitchen. In the kitchen and the laundry room, they put down 12 by 12 ceramic tiles. However, the house sits on piers, and there is a bit of movement and settlement between the original house and the addition. We have already had two of these large tiles crack, and we spent the weekend making the necessary repairs. We now have a love affair with grout - ha ha! At some point in the future, we would like to re-do the kitchen and laundry room floors because we can see how these tiles can continue to crack and require replacement moving forward. However, we don't know what kind of flooring to put down! We don't want to put down hardwood floors, as the entire rest of the house has the original hardwoods in them.

While I love these floors and appreciate their character, I think it might be hard to match them, plus, it might turn out to be hardwood overkill. We are intrigued by cork floors, but I hesitate because I'm not sure how to keep them clean (isn't cork kind of spongy? Wouldn't it soak up stains?). Also, we have a dog and I don't want his toenails to puncture the floor. Does anyone have cork floors that could chime in with how they maintain them? Or, if you have other suggestions for flooring, I'd love to hear it. BTW, no budget in mind right now - we are just beginning to research and have no plans of doing the work immediately. We would just like to know what options are out there. TIA for your help. 1,149 posts, read 3,269,015 times Thanks for your reply! When we had house inspected before we bought it, the inspector was pleasantly surprised by the strength of the piers - he said that the quality of the construction was very good, and he didn't foresee a need to do any work underneath the house.

So my concern is not over the settlement issues, but rather over finding a more flexible flooring that can "move with" the house and not crack like our tiles. Ah homeownership - good times! Originally Posted by StarryEyedSurprise 5,286 posts, read 14,865,034 times 1,570 posts, read 4,363,004 times 161 posts, read 416,048 times I was just reading about a product called marmoleum (by forbo, they have a website if you google it) --it's made of natural products if that appeals to you. It comes in a traditional glue-on tile and also a click (floating) install version in planks or tiles, lots of colors too. I've ordered samples (up to 6 colors for free), but from what I've read on different sites, people either love this stuff or despise it....some people say you can never get it clean enough and others say it's a breeze (I think there is a "shine" issue--perhaps this product reads more matte than some are used to and to them that reads dirty?). Anyway, could give you a nifty retro look in the right pattern and I believe it is pretty forgiving.

The samples feel forgiving (cushioned) but the top surface feels well sealed. Used Salon Equipment For Sale Houston TxI've read for all of these floor or countertop samples you should put stuff on them like water, red wine, etc and see how they do overnight--do they stain, can you clean them, etc.Remove Scratches From A Bathtub Good luck--your home is lovely!Day Spa With Hot Tub Philadelphia Thanks to all that have replied - I appreciate the feedback! lucyhoneychurch - thanks for that Web site. Just spent my lunch hour clicking away! 3,539 posts, read 5,012,238 times If you like the looks of the ceramic, there is a new product out there - floating ceramic tile. SnapStone is one brand. Snapstone It has a flexible grout and it is not cemented down.

37,336 posts, read 18,062,362 times Originally Posted by ctribucher They will only crack again. Movement is tiles enemy. Cork tiles have a finish just like hardwood flooring. A waterbased finish like Bona: Traffic, or Basic Coatings: StreetShoe, is used because of its elastic properties, and unsurpassed site finished durability. Torley's: Recycled Leather Flooring 19,182 posts, read 22,317,755 times my small bathroom floor keeps cracking (ceramic tile). what are my best options. must tolerate moisture from shower.I'm okay with linoleum, but want to see other options as well. Does anyone install vinyl anymore? Do you have the same question?  Ceramic tile will crack 99% of the time on a floor, especially if on a wood framed substructure. Porcelain and stone are much better options but the subfloor must be framed and secured properly. Is this on a concrete slab or a wooden frame? If it is a concrete slab you have bigger problems and need to have it stabilized.

If wooden, such as pier and beam or second floor framing, you need to have adequate joists with glued and screwed plywood subflooring no matter the floor covering. I occassionally still install vinyl or linoleum but not very often. There are some new vinyl products that better resemble tile or wood you can install and hold up well in bathrooms. No matter what the manufacturers claim laminate does not work in wet areas. I've seen bathrooms with it installed that were supposed to be approved for kitchen and bath use and they do not last. I turn down jobs on those installs rather than taking the customer's money for what I know to be a bad job even though they are determined to do it. It sounds like you've been mislead by a poor contractor who has twice now not taken the appropriate measures to install the tile and not warned you about the use of the softest tile available, ceramic. They may have been unknowledgable or just too lazy to reframe the floor properly. Answered 4 years ago by Todd's Home Services

One of the main reasons bathroom floor tiles crack is if the floor is not stiff enough to resist bending slightly when walked on. Preventing this can require installing the tiles on top of either ¾ inch waterproof plywood over the existing subfloor, or plywood with another layer of cement tile backer board. Older houses (or high end new construction) may have an inch of actual cement between the sub flooring and the tile.Another problem can be that the tiles are too large. If you look in many older –pre 1950 homes- the bathroom floors are made up of a large numbers of very small tiles often less than two inches square. Today many contractors and homeowners prefer large tiles that may be as big as 12 inches square. Larger tiles are much much more likely to crack. If a floor with small tiles does flex slightly, the cracks are most likely to happen in the grout between the tiles which is easier to repair, and harder to notice.A third problem is that your contractor used wall tiles rather than floor tiles.