Wood In The Bathroom - But Of Course!

Floors, bathroom furniture or accessories made of wood fit perfectly into homely bathroom design. When choosing a suitable type of wood and good care, the long-lasting natural material also feels at home in a damp room.

Hardly any other material can be used more versatile than wood. This applies not only to living spaces, but also to the bathroom. Whether as flooring or wall panelling, as a bathroom shelf or bathroom cabinet for a wide variety of bathroom accessories - wood creates a warm and homely flair in the bathroom. As a renewable raw material, it also stands for natural and sustainable bathroom design.

Wood And Moisture

Despite these good qualities, there are still reservations about wood in the bathroom. Some builders and modernizers fear that they will not enjoy wooden floors or bathroom furniture made of real wood for long because of the inevitable humidity in the bathroom. But with the choice of suitable types of wood, professional processing and treatment as well as the right care, the use of the natural material is no problem even in damp rooms. Neither short-term splashing water nor increased humidity damage the wood as long as the room is well ventilated. However, this should be the case with every bathroom today.

Wood Species For Bathrooms

Wood species that react only slowly to moisture fluctuations are particularly suitable for large-scale use. This is known as the moisture change time. This is for example quite long with the oak with approximately 40 days. Woods with a short moisture-change time, for example, beech or maple with only about 15 days, tend to swell and shrink when damp. In addition to oak, larch, Swiss stone pine, Douglas fir and teak are also relatively insensitive to moisture. Another option is the use of thermowood, which is resistant to moisture through heat impregnation.

Wood Under The Feet

Walking on wooden floors is a special feeling, especially in the bathroom. Medium width planks should be used for the floor. Small parquets are unfavourable because their many joints allow easy access to the wet. With extremely wide planks, on the other hand, more water collects in the few joints. All joints must be sealed and the entire floor must be underlaid with moisture-resistant carrier boards. Wax or water-repellent oil varnishes have proven their worth for surface treatment. With lacquered floors, there is a risk that moisture may penetrate the lacquer layer through even the finest hairline cracks. If this is the case, we recommend lacquering with insensitive boat lacquer. With wooden panels on walls and ceilings, good ventilation is important: this should be taken into account when planning the bathroom.

Wood For Bathroom Furniture And Accessories

Shelves, vanity units and wall units, chests of drawers or other bathroom furniture made of wood lend the bathroom fittings elegance and exclusivity. The structure and grain of the natural product make each piece of furniture unique. Accessories made of wood - from towel holders to cosmetic boxes - lend the bathroom design an additional natural flair. Ventilation is important when cupboards or chests of drawers are closed: ventilation slits ensure that humidity can escape even when the cupboard doors are closed.

Maintaining Wood Surfaces

Wooden washbasin tops are very attractive as a substructure for ceramic basins. Here the wood is particularly frequently in contact with moisture, which is why the right surface treatment and care is important, just like for floors: oiled, waxed or sealed with resistant varnish. Splash water should always be wiped off quickly, soap residues rinsed off and the surface gently dried with a clean, soft cloth. Scratches in the paint should be resealed as quickly as possible, waxed or oiled surfaces should be treated regularly. The same applies to bathtub linings made of real wood.

Bathe In Wood?

A special luxury - at the appropriate price - are bathtubs or washbasins completely made of wood. However, modern wooden bathtubs have little to do with the rustic wooden tubs of the past: they are formed from small pieces of wood glued together or from pressed veneers. Impregnating the finished bathtub with resin makes the wood as moisture-resistant as conventional bathroom ceramics.