When you’re choosing materials for a home renovation, you’ll have a great many options to browse. At About Floors n’ More, our showroom professionals are often asked the difference between water resistant and waterproof flooring. As such, we’ve come up with this post, so homeowners can better understand their options.

Is there a difference between these two options?
Though in some ways they are quite similar, there is indeed a difference between water resistant and waterproof flooring. While both have the ability to repel water, a great feature for rooms like the kitchen and bathroom, these two materials and their terms are certainly not interchangeable.

With waterproof flooring, we’re talking about planks that will withstand water penetration, regardless of how long you’ve had them in your home. On the other hand, with water resistant slats, we’re referring to the ability to resist water from getting absorbed into the material itself. Without a doubt, there are more advantages to having waterproof materials, than planks that are merely water resistant or repellent.

Two key advantages of waterproof flooring
Although the fact that it is impervious to water is a big plus, waterproof flooring is indeed more expensive than its resistant counterpart in general. However, the difference in costs may be entirely worth it, depending upon which room you want to install it in. If we’re talking about a space that does see a lot of water mishaps, like the kitchen and bathroom, then indeed this would be worth absorbing the extra expense, since the planks will save you a lot of problems in the long run.

Another great advantage is its appearance and style. Nowadays, you can pretty much get whatever design you want in the form of waterproof flooring. Materials that are typically less impervious to water, such as hardwood, are now a possibility in water prone rooms, because you can buy the look in a waterproof flooring version. Also, there’s no need to worry about discoloration or fading when exposed to water, when you opt for this great hard surfacing material.