Bathroom Floor Safety Tips Part 2

Of all rooms in the home, bathrooms present the greatest fall risks.

Therefore, all discussions regarding bathroom safety are priority.

When it comes to slipping and falling though, the floor will most likely be the culprit. And if it wasn’t a slippery floor that caused the issue, landing on an unsafe flooring material can potentially only worsen an already devastating situation.

Taking all this into consideration, we have created this discussion where we go through safety considerations for bathroom flooring so that we can prevent unwanted circumstances.

 

Introduction

In our discussion about safe bathroom floors we discuss which floor materials are the best when putting down a new floor as well as solutions for incorporating anti-slip to an existing floor.

Check out Bathroom Floor Safety Tips Part 1 for our discussion on the basic flooring materials that are commonly used in bathrooms with their advantages and disadvantages in the realm of bathroom safety.

But, we are quite aware that most people are not necessarily ready to jump into replacing floors in their home. Whether you like your current floor aesthetically, it has just been replaced recently, it’s simply in good condition, or practically speaking your finances won’t allow for it right now, we know that installing a new floor might just not be the route you are looking for.

Therefore, we have decided to go through some basic solutions which can be implemented on to your current floors to improve safety conditions without actually putting down a new floor.

Follow along with us as we go through them.

 

Solutions

Like most of the topics we go through, if you type “anti-slip bathroom floor solutions” into google, you’ll get a huge list of results. Many are not what you are looking for, and within the ones that are actually relevant, it is just plain and simply daunting to sift through and figure out which products are actually suited for you and your situation.

That’s where I come in:)

I did a lot of research and spoke with a number of companies about their products so that my list here is as comprehensive as it gets when it comes to slip-resistant solutions for bathroom floors. First I have listed the options that are out there, and then following I have listed some tips from the companies.

The most common solutions are:

 

Anti-slip Tape

Anti-slip tape is, exactly as it sounds, an adhesive roll of material which increases the traction of a given surface. Anti-slip tape is most often used on steps rather than in actual rooms in the home.

 

Treads

Similar to anti-slip tape, treads are adhesive sheets which increase the traction on the surface they are placed. They are commonly used on the surfaces and in the same places as the anti-slip tape.

 

Non-skid Paint

Non-skid paint is a paint which is applied on top of a surface to increase the traction. It’s a kind of paint which comes in many colors to be applied on top of the existing surface. Non-skid paint is generally used on outdoor surfaces as in ramps, garages, boat decks, and stairs.

 

Non-slip Flooring Sprays/Coats

Similar to the paint option, there are coatings and sprays which can be applied on top of a floor surface to increase its traction. These are generally quite specific to the floor surface they are going to be applied to; featuring different products for the different surface materials. Also good to know, these often have clear/transparent color options which are less bold as compared to the non-skid paint and are therefore more indoor-friendly.

 

Floor Treatments

There are specialized floor treatments which can be applied to most floor surfaces by trained professionals which increases the traction of the floor via chemical properties of the top layer of the floor. This procedure is the most permanent, comfortable and aesthetic from all other options; and also the most costly (estimating roughly a few hundred dollars per medium sized room). Check down below at Certified Safety Solutions for more info.

 

Inside Scoop From the Companies

 

Slip Doctors

Slip Doctors (I love the name!) is one of the big companies out there when it comes to anti-slip products on the market. Their products and services have been used by some major corporations i.e. Disneyland, Four Seasons Hotel, Amtrak etc.

What I specifically liked about their website is the organization and consumer-friendly navigation. It categorizes the products and then provides lots of info on each product so that you can make educated decisions.

A professional representative from the company informed me that there is no one specific product that is recommended for all floor types. He strongly advises all consumers to look at the recommended surfaces for use under the product info to ensure that it will be a good match for your floor. It is therefore difficult for me to provide a specific tape or spray which is considered the ‘most recommended’. Feel free to check out their site for more specifics and find the product that is best suited for you.

 

Certified Safety Solutions

Certified Safety Solutions is a specialized company which performs quality flooring treatments to decrease the slip factor on a given floor surface. Their trained team performs an assessment of the existing floor to determine the type of treatment suited for the surface. They offer a variety of options with their specialized treatment as the most recommended. The treatment they perform is in essence a process which causes a reaction with the top layer of the existing floor to increase traction without affecting the appearance and feel of the floor. Treatments range in prices but can be as low as a few hundred dollars for room (custom quotes are required as each job requires specialized care).

Just as an added note, the professional who I spoke with at the company informed me that as opposed to a standard coating atop a floor surface which generally requires maintenance and care for preservation, the specialized treatment they perform generally survives quite well without regular care.

For more information contact Mayer at mayergleiberman@gmail.com.

 

Conclusion

Flooring is an integral component of bathroom safety. There are a bunch of solutions out there to help decrease the slip factor on your existing floor to maximize your safety conditions. We hope that at least one of them is a practical solution that you can apply to increase the safety of your living space!

 

That’s that for Bathroom Floor Safety Tips Part 2.

As always, feel free to contact us with any comments/questions.

 

To safe and happy homes,

Golda