Stone flooring, especially that of dark stone has a charm about it that cannot be matched, but it can also make a winter’s day colder. Warming it is the only solution.

The dark floor conundrum

Unfortunately, dark stone flooring is not used as often as it could be. This is all thanks to the common misconception that the presence of dark paint or furniture completely rules out the use of dark stone for a floor. This could not be farther from the truth. Dark stone adds an authenticity and richness to a room, that a light floor would not be able to. Light or dark, stone floors can make the winter’s chillier than they are. Thankfully, these floors are relatively easy to warm, and the best part is – they retain heat particularly well. Here are some tips on warming them.

The living room

The size of your living room will determine the most effective way to warm your dark stone flooring. Stone floors retain heat just as easily as they warm up, so if you have a fireplace you may already have a warming solution in place as the heat from it will keep the tiles warmer longer. In fact, you may be lucky enough to have warm tiles the next morning. Another option that can be explored is a floor rug. Rugs come in all sizes and are an excellent way of keeping the floor beneath your feet warm. However, this option will cost you the look of your lovely stone floor. Underfloor heating wins hands down when it comes to heating a living room. This type of heating gives you warm floors without compromising on the overall look of the room.

Warming the kitchen

Rugs and fireplaces are not practical options for the kitchen. So how do you keep the dark stone flooring in the kitchen warm? Underfloor heating here as well. When it comes to kitchens this is the most practical option. Not only does it save 15% to 50% on heating costs but it also keeps ugly heating units and radiators at bay. Electric mats are a cheaper option, but like rugs, these would compromise the look of the floor.

The bathroom

Underfloor heating is the only option for a bathroom. The recommended option here is wet / hot water underfloor heating. It is kind of a central heating system for your floor. Plastic pipes are installed under the flooring and hot water flows around them. While radiators also use the concept of hot water, this type of heating uses hot water at a lower temperature and could therefore save on heating costs too.

The two minutes take away therefore is, underfloor heating is the best option when it comes to stone floors. So, if you plan to install stone floors in your home, you must initiate the installation of underfloor heating simultaneously.