Transitioning from hardwood to tile in an open floor plan

5 years ago

We are building a custom home and need some advice on how to best transition from hardwood flooring in the foyer and main living areas to the tile in the kitchen. It is an open floor plan. We considered putting wood-look tile in the kitchen that was similar to the hardwood in the rest of the house, but we worry that they will wear differently over time and will look worse next to each other. We are hesitant to put hardwood in the kitchen because of the moisture and possible spills from the sink, appliances, etc. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Featured Answer

Kathryn P

5 years ago

I agree that if you want the look of wood, extend actual wood into the kitchen. If you're deadset on tile, do NOT go with wood look tile. Pick something that compliments your wood.

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Comments (11)

grapefruit1_ar
5 years ago
It is a personal choice, for sure. But, we have had hardwood in our kitchen for 32 years without any issue. It is very easy to care for ( we have a light color). I much prefer one flooring throughout a space.
hummingalong2
5 years ago
Extend the wood I to the kitchen, add a few rugs.
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I had the same problem. Had old strip flooring that was over 100 yrs old. At one point someone replaced a section with 3/4 thick wood floor but you wouldnt know until it was tore up. When I laid all the flooring an got to the the hallway I was up about 1/2 in. I shimmed up an 1/8 in then stripped a blank of the new floor on the table saw to build a thin transition piece. There is a slight raise but everything is the same level and looks nice. So in short just use a reducer.
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Sorry, I completely misunderstood your post. I thought you meant a transition piece between the two floors (ie, schluter, t strip molding). Don't grout that joint between the two floors. It needs to be caulked if you go that route. Otherwise, the difference in expansion/contraction between the two materials will cause the grout to crack. As far as grout color, look at lots of pictures. I would think you'd lose a lot of the beautiful herringbone pattern if you tried to match the dominant color. The tones of the two floors are very similar, so they already connect on that level. I don't think you have an issue of transitioning in terms of grout color. I guess the more natural selection for a wood look would be a little darker than the main color, like a shadow between the boards. A lighter color or a gray will look more like a tile floor with grout. I wouldn't do something lighter, as in peachy. You can kind of see what it would look like lighter right now. The higher the contrast you have with the tile will affect how busy or pronounced the floor pattern will look. Maybe you could cut strips of colored construction paper to lay over the joints to see what appeals to you more. You've got some variation in the tile colors, but when you use a grout color that matches the flooring, the floor becomes one big solid mass of color. Here is a link that might be useful: herringbone tile pictures This post was edited by snookums2 on Thu, Aug 8, 13 at 23:15
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The thickness varies depending on the area. Some places is are as high as 1/4 inch. Existing tile flooring is dug up and re leveled with dry pack. We made the mistake several years ago to replace the carpet with hardwood first, and we weren't made aware that they could of raised the wood floor to the tiles at that time. The hardwood people just put little strips of wood where the tiles where higher than the wood as transitions. They basically just nailed the thing to the sub floor. And we had gotten 5 quotes too! But didn't research on the internet. When we were getting quotes to replace the tiles, everyone is telling us we should of done tile first! Anyways..... There is 3 areas with a door, 2 (60inches x 3) pieces will be to an entrance to a sunken room, 1 piece will be at the end of the service stairs, and the largest piece which I quoted wrong earlier is actually 81 inches x 3 1/2 and goes to the living room. The wood floors in the living room already has the wood transition piece like Unique Wood Floor's pic, where one piece of the wood is across all the other pieces. The space I'm retiling is the main foyer which connects to all the rooms, continues into the kitchen and eat in area, powder room, laundry area, service stairs, and the entrance to the garage. The space is 700sq. Standing from the entrance,I will be able to see 4 transition pieces. The tillers was telling me that he can make the transition pieces like Creative tile eastern pics, but the transition for the sunken living room and the staircase will still have to be a solid finished piece because I will be able to see the sides. If he cuts the tile, I can see it's unfinished. So I would have quartz pieces in some areas and the custom tile threshold in others. I would rather have one uniformed look. I will try to take some pics, but everything is a mess, and I need to find my camera too! I will ask the tiler if he's planning to use the Schluter Dilex . Thanks for all the advice everyone! This tiler is highly recommended. Plus he said if you don't like it don't pay me! We have not paid him a penny. And I feel kinda bad about it too.
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I prefer to stop the tile in the kitchen/nook. The hardwood can then flow from the formal dining area down the steps and into the living space. The ONLY thing that would cause any concerns would be the ability to find MATCHING stair treads for the hardwood you choose. Sometimes this is a BIG problem...if that is the case, then moving the tile all the way into the dining area would be the way around it. But you have to find this out BEFORE you choose/order your flooring. You do NOT want to make this decision on the fly...only to find out that you cannot find more of the tile in the same dye lot...that's WORSE than having miss-matched treads. Much, much worse. All of these decisions/questions MUST be answered WELL before you put pen to paper. A designer who is well connected in the building industry would be able to do all the leg work for you - without much effort. S/He would have already run into these issues DOZENS of times in their career and will know the ins and outs of working around these issues. And s/he will have ALL the needed professionals on speed dial. Which then becomes the NEXT dilemma which MUST BE dealt with before pen is put to paper. Whew! Lots of things to do before anything is decided. A well versed designer can be worth his/her weight in GOLD at this point.
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Cole Man
5 years ago
last modified: 5 years ago
Wood-look tile goes best in smaller areas like bathrooms or a small kitchen, but I don't like large expanses of it. Personally, I think it's smart to put tile in the kitchen, but not wood-look. Obviously my opinion is mine and probably weird.
chispa
5 years ago
Tile/grout is not waterproof, and your kitchen floor isn't built like a waterproof shower, so if you constantly spill large quantities of liquids you will also end up having problems with a tile floor.

What kind of spills are you expecting from sinks and appliances?

This is my third house with site finished hardwood floors throughout the house and we've never had an issue. I try not to decorate my house based on a catastrophic event that might never happen ... and I live in quake prone CA!
kazmom
5 years ago
I have seen wood look tile in a kitchen that was open to other rooms with actual wood, and I thought it looked strange to have two different “woods” together like that. I would either do wood throughout (my preference) or a different tile in the kitchen.

We had wood in our kitchen for 10 years at our old house. We did have a couple of water incidents, one leak of the fridge waterline and a crack in the dog bowl that caused a slow leak overnight. Both warped some boards, it wasn’t visible but you could feel the edge difference with your feet. Within a few months it had dried sufficiently that you couldn’t tell any difference at all. We are remodeling our new house now and put wood throughout the open living/dining/kitchen area.

If you want to do tile look up some articles on transitioning floor styles. I read a good article a while back, I will try to find it. I believe it said to try and have similar colors so there isn’t an abrupt, noticeable change.
PRO
Cinar Interiors, Inc.
5 years ago
How thick is the wood compared to the tile?

If the wood is 3/8" thick, it will butt up to standard tile without a transition. If the wood is 1/2" butting up to standard tile, a reducer is needed.

1/2" wood butts up to natural stone (which is normally 1/2" or 7/16" thick). No transition.
kazmom
5 years ago
Maybe I misunderstood, I thought she was talking about the “look” of the transition, not how the actual physical transition happens.
PRO
Filipe Custom Woodwork
5 years ago
Do all wood all over it will give you a continuous look throughout the different spaces. No wood look tile against real wood. Wood is more resilient than you think.
Janette
Original Author
5 years ago
Thank you so much for all of the advice! I think the consensus is to go with all hardwood throughout, even into the kitchen. I agree that this is the best look for the floor plan. My husband was just afraid of the maintenance in the kitchen area. Last year (in all my pregnancy-brain glory), I left the freezer door slightly open overnight (it was closed enough to where you could barely tell and the open-door beep alarm didn’t go off but it was open enough that the door seal didn’t engage) and the ice from the door melted onto the surrounding hardwood in front of the fridge. So other than not repeating that mistake and just being more careful in general with wiping up water from spills and such, are there any tips for helping to care for the solid hardwood floor in the kitchen area? I have read to go with light or medium stains instead of darker stains. Will going with a more matte finish over a glossier sheen make a difference in making the wood last longer or look better in that area? Would it be better protection if the wood was installed then finished on site or would the pre-finished flooring have more moisture protection?
mollyshumom
5 years ago
I have had hardwood floors in three kitchens without problems. I have placed small Karastan area rugs with a multicolor Kerman pattern over a pad in front of the stove and sink, which provide extra cushioning where I tend to stand the most. If I spill anything, I wipe it up promptly, and any stains are hidden by the pattern in the rugs. They are pretty and provide a nice splash of color.

Transitioning from hardwood to tile in an open floor plan

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Transitioning from hardwood to tile in an open floor plan

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