# Forum Home Renovation Bathrooms  hardwood floorboards in bathroom

## manofaus

just wondering how we can get away with having timber floorboards (polished) in our bathroom. Do we have to have a subfloor that is waterproof and then lay the floorboards on top? there will be a tiled shower area, but as for around the bath and rest of bathroom we would like it to be polished floorboards. It would make it hard as we would like the rest of the floorboards to extend from the rest of the house and flow into the bathroom.

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## SilentButDeadly

We 'got away' with it...but I couldn't tell you how.  Because I've no idea...we just did it and no-one that was supposed to have an opinion said anything.

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## Oldsaltoz

There are some new homes with bathrooms and all timber floors but to meet the standard the floor of the bathroom (or other wet area) is set down far enough for the joists to remain above the recessed floor and a waste outlet located will falls from all sides to ensure no water remains. 
One option is to Waterproof the whole floor and glue down boards made of timber look alike waterproof materials (no nails through the waterproofing). 
The advantage of this method and material is no maintenance and no wood rot or stains from contact with water and it meets the standards. 
Good luck.   :Smilie:

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## RhonaV

So did you do it? Would also like the polished floorboards as in the rest of the house look. We have a shower over the bath and horrid overlay on top of beautiful wooden floor. What would you (did you? )use to maximise the polished /waterproofed effect?

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## r3nov8or

I have seen it done (i.e. original hardwood boards as bathroom flooring), and it's standing up to time very well. It was also approved by the council inspector as being 'in keeping' with the original house (polished boards throughout). But this is a 'grown-ups' house who understand that minimising water pooling is important. Given that, personally I wouldn't suggest this in a family bathroom where the kids think the floor is a better place for the water than the bath.

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## smallhouse

I got the wooden floor, just needed a statutory declaration signed by a jp.  ( owner builder )

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## ajm

hang on a minute. we have a house (in Qld) with hardwood floors that are in the bathroom also. we have a shower with a plastic pan which sits above the floor. we bought the house with the bathroom this way and successive builders have not said anything. is there anything we should be looking at?

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## ringtail

Ive seen bulk new houses with timber floors, no set down, just a floor waste with NO fall to it, walk in shower has a 100 mm hob though. Ive got timber boards in my ensuite with no drama, again 100 mm hob

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## ajm

so your shower is 10cm above the floor. ours wouldn't be 3cm to the top of the acrylic pan. and the house is a post war box basic on the northside of brisbane. i am just about to redo it and replace the shower with a bath for the kids, so this shouldn't be an issue in a month or so. am curious about the waterproofing of the gap between bath hob and floor, wall and floors though.

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## ringtail

> so your shower is 10cm above the floor. ours wouldn't be 3cm to the top of the acrylic pan. and the house is a post war box basic on the northside of brisbane. i am just about to redo it and replace the shower with a bath for the kids, so this shouldn't be an issue in a month or so. am curious about the waterproofing of the gap between bath hob and floor, wall and floors though.

  Nah the shower is separated from the rest of the bathroom/ensuite by a 100 mm tiled over hebel hob. The actual finished floor level of the tiles in the shower is probably 30 mm higher than the timber floor. When I built it, the toilet was existing but I enclosed the rear stair landing to become the ensuite shower, knocked a doorway through a wall = 1 x ensuite. The stair landing was already set down 20 mm from the rest of the house so with tile underlay, wet seal, motar bed and tiles the FFL is higher than the house floor. But, in the event of a drain failure the water has to rise 100 mm to get out of the shower enclosure.

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## dayle_bct

Just stumbled upon this thread - I'm renovating a bathroom and we found that the beautiful timber flooring throughout the rest of the house was under the cement screeded floor that we ripped out.  I was surprised to see the floorboards and really like the look of them.  Do you think that it's feasible to keep them as the flooring for the bathroom?  There will be a shower over bath, toilet and vanity on the floor.... 
Also, would the floor finish have to be a high gloss finish to keep it waterproof?  I was hoping to have more of a matte, natural finish throughout the rest of the house which might complicate things! 
Cheers

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