The first phase of most flooring projects is to decide on hallway flooring. Hallway flooring tends to get a lot of daily use due to entrances being used by everyone in the household, including pets. This means flooring in the hallway has to look good and be durable enough to handle more daily use than any other flooring in the house.
This means the most important factor for corridor flooring is how the hallway is used. For example, a narrow hallway with the door opening to the outside will experience completely different use to a large mains entrance which has a covered porch. For best practice, flooring should be chosen based on how the hallway is used, not how it is pictured in advertisements.
Vinyl flooring is a good option for busy hallways due to how easy it is to clean and its natural water resistance. Vinyl flooring comes in a number of designs that can include modern wood and stone patterns. This allows you to have the appearance of expensive flooring, without the hassle that comes with the maintenance of that type of flooring. Vinyl flooring tends to feel warmer than tile flooring, which makes it a good choice for a hallway that doesn’t have a heating system.
Engineered or solid oak floors can bring that touch of warmth and character. Wood floors should be sealed to protect against scratching and a grit trap door mat is a must. Wood floors and all flooring for that matter love a mat and grit is the enemy when it comes to wood because it scratches over time.
Tile is by far the most durable flooring option for a high traffic space like a hallway. Porcelain tiles are particularly resistant to scratching, moisture, and stains. Consider tile if you have a hallway that leads straight out to the outside, such as via a utility room or side entrance, as spills and wet footprints are easily cleaned by a simply swipe of a mop. The biggest trade-off to consider with tile is that it is cold and unforgiving on the feet; most people trade comfort for beauty by utilizing under floor heating or placing a runner rug.
For a softer, quieter finish, low-pile carpeting is commonly used and is less traffic intensive than its deep, plush counterpart. A low pile carpet that has a stain resistant treatment is far more suitable to daily wear than deep plush carpeting that will stain easier.
The hallway is the link between the rooms. It’s also hard to design because it can connect flooring of various heights, such as carpet in the living room and tile in the kitchen. A flooring height and a transition strip will both mitigate a trip hazard and look much nicer.
The hallway floorings can also be of different colors, making the hallway look bigger if it’s a lighter color. However, light colored flooring also gets dirty very easily. An easy way to keep the floor looking good while also maintaining a less used room is to have a floor with a low texture and a subtle pattern.
A hallway floor has to look good every single day, so take comfort in considering how well the floor will hold up and be easy to clean. A sample of flooring you’re looking at can live in your hallway for a few days. After that, taking everything you’ve learned about the floor, you will be able to make the best decision.