Finding the right flooring for your man cave is just as important as what will go in it after. I spent a long time looking for the right type of flooring. Since my man cave was created in an unfinished attic space, I had a lot of decisions to make.
When I first started to choose the flooring for my man cave, I was shocked at all the options. Some of the best flooring options for your man cave are:
- Wood Flooring
- Laminate Wood Flooring
- Tile
- Carpet
- Painted Cement Sealed With Poly
- Peel and Stick Tiles
- Rubber Tiles
This article will look at all kinds of different options for flooring your new man cave. They won’t all be for you, but sometimes being able to cross some off of the list is just as important as picking one! Some of the important questions you need to ask yourself are how expensive of flooring do you want, what type of room is it going into (indoor, garage, lots of temperature fluctuation?), how rugged do you need it to be, and what look are you going for.
Should You Use Wood Flooring In Your Man Cave?
Wood flooring is a great option for the mancave that is in a room that stays pretty consistent temperature-wise. You also want to avoid wearing shoes on it/having other abrasive things on it. But that being said, few things look as nice as real wood floors. If you want a similar look with a cheaper price tag, check out engineered wood flooring.
Wood Flooring Cost Per Square Foot:
Home Advisor suggests that wood flooring can cost anywhere from $3 (pine flooring) to $14 (hardwood) per square foot for materials. Once you take into account labor, wood floors can cost anywhere from $6 to $22 per square foot.
Why Someone Would Want Wood Flooring :
Personally, I think there are few things that look better than a well-cared-for hardwood floor. A lot of people go with this option because its look can really bring a room together. If you are less concerned with keeping your budget down, and plan on using your man cave as an entertainment center hub, wood floors may be a good choice for you.
If you properly take care of your floor, wood floors can last a long time.
Drawbacks Of Wood Flooring :
By far the biggest drawback to going with wood floors is the care they need. It is important to take the necessary steps to ensure your floor lasts a long time. If the floor is not taken care of, it can easily become scratched and gauged which can look pretty bad.
The other drawback of wood floors is how expensive they are. If you are trying to stick to a lower budget, I would definitely be looking elsewhere. Because the floor is so expensive, I would be a little nervous about installing it myself. I installed the current floating engineered wood floor in my man cave. Mistakes are inevitable when it comes to cutting the flooring and leaving the right amount of float space. If I had made those mistakes on a real wood floor, I would have wasted a lot of money.
Should You Use Laminate Wood Flooring In Your Man Cave? (Great Budget Option):
This is the option I went with for my man cave. It is a great option for those of you who like the look of real wood, but don’t want to pay for its steep cost. It is a good option for a man caves that have decent temperature control. This stuff will expand and contract like a regular wood floor.
Because it is cheaper than real wood flooring, I felt a little better about installing it myself. Sure I made some mistakes, but I still saved a lot of money. This would be a good option for you if you had a few friends that wanted to come to help you out. That being said, you will still need a miter saw and a tapping block.
Laminate Wood Cost Per Square Foot:
Home Advisor suggests depending on the type of laminate wood you are looking at, the materials can cost from $.70 (maple or oak) to $2 (hickory) dollars per square inch. After accounting for the pad that goes under the flooring and the labor cost, you could expect to pay anywhere from $2.70 to $10 to have it installed. As you can tell, the labor costs for installations are impressive.
Why Someone Would Want Laminate Wood Flooring:
Like I mentioned earlier, the actual material cost of laminate flooring is pretty low. So, if you install it yourself, you can save a lot of money. Despite its cheap cost, there are some great looking laminate options. They also install much like hardwood, so they are a nice smooth surface if done right.
Like I said, I installed this flooring in my man cave. I was a little nervous about how cheap it was. But after using it for as long as I have, I am impressed. Sure there are a few scuff marks, but overall it has held up very well.
Drawbacks Of It Laminate Wood Flooring :
Because of the material, this flooring is made out of, it is not as durable as regular hardwood. So if you drop something, it may dent or gauge. This is something to consider when installing this floor around a dartboard. If you want to learn more about this, I wrote an article that talks more about what types of darts and dartboards are best for your man cave.
Another downside of going with this flooring option is that they are all locked together. So, if one of your panels is damaged, and you want to change it out, you will need to remove a good number of planks.
Should You Use Tile Flooring In Your Man Cave?
When looking around, tile does not seem to be the most popular option for man caves. My guess is that its look doesn’t jive with the feeling that guys are going for in their man cave. That being said, I think there is a lot of potential for tile flooring in man caves. At the very least, it would look good around the bar.
The two most popular types of tile are ceramic and porcelain. Ceramic is not as strong as porcelain, so it is usually cheaper. A tile floor may be a good option for your man gave if you really don’t want to have to worry about the condition of your floor. There is some real durable stuff out there.
If you plan on using tile, it is important that you are installing it onto the right subfloor. Preferably, you would want to have the layer underneath your tile be outdoor grade plywood. Indoor grade plywood may warp, and installing directly onto cement will cause problems as that cement shifts and cracks.
Tile Flooring Cost Per Square Foot:
Home Advisor suggests that tiles can cost anywhere from $.50 (cheap ceramic tile) to $15 (specialty tile) a square foot for just the tiles themselves. After taking into account the labor costs and the cost for the extra materials, the total cost for tiling a floor can anywhere from $13.5 to $63 per square foot.
Why Someone Would Want Tile Flooring:
Tile can add a really unique look to a man cave. The nice thing about tile is that you are able to use it in specific areas of space if you do not want to use it for the entire room. I stay away from ceramic tile, your flooring can be really durable.
Drawbacks Of Tile Flooring:
Tile as a decent list of drawbacks for use in a man cave. Because of all the pieces, tile floors can be extremely hard to lay dead flat. Because of this, depending on where and what tile you use, seating may be a little wobbly. If you plan on having a pool table or a card table this is probably not the flooring option for you.
This is probably not the best DIY project if you have never installed tile before. Installing tiles can be very messy and precise. Depending on your confidence, you may want to pay someone to install this flooring for you. Another small but important thing to remember is that your seating will not be able to slide on the tile.
Should You Use Carpet In Your Man Cave?
Carpet is another one of those choices that you don’t see in many man caves. You are going to want to only use carpet indoors. If you use it in a garage man cave, the moisture in there may cause it to smell. Like the tiles, this may not be a popular option because it does not line up with what people want in their man cave.
Carpets usually won’t goal well with a rustic man cave, but they can get really well in a more contemporary room. Carpet is really a feel thing, you will know if it’s right for you and your man cave or not.
Carpet Cost Per Square Foot:
Home Advisor suggests that carpet can cost anywhere from $3 to $7 per square foot for the middle of the road quality rug. After taking into account the other expenses, installing carpet, in total, can cost you anywhere from $4.30 to $10.60 a square foot.
Why Someone Would Want Carpet:
Carpet can be a good addition to a man cave that is focused more on comfort. Besides the aesthetic look of carpet, it actually can help reduce the noise in your man cave, and it can also help better insulate your room.
Another great reason to install carpet in your man cave is because of its affordability. This will let you spend your money on other things to furnish your man cave. Not only is it an affordable option, but it is also easy to maintain. In a lot of ways, it’s also the opposite of hardwood floors…
Drawbacks Of Carpet:
Using carpet in your man cave is not without its drawbacks. If the carpet you choose does not really go with the overall look of your man cave, it can look cheap or dingy. So it is important you visualize your room first. Also, this may be a personal thing, but sometimes rugs can feel a little dirty.
The reason they can feel dirty is that they tend to stain. If your guests spill a drink on your rug, it can be hard to get that stain out. Compare that to a wood floor, there all you need to do is wipe it up.
The last thing to consider is this is another flooring option that may not lend itself to being a DIY project. There are a lot of special tools you need that honestly, are pretty difficult to use. Another thing that is worth mentioning, once you start the DIY project, you need to finish it. If you decide halfway through you need someone else to do it professionally, and you did a nasty hack job, you will need to buy all new carpet… Gross.
Should You Use Painted Cement Sealed With Poly In Your Man Cave?:
If you are really looking to keep your budget as low as possible, directly painting your concrete and then sealing it with several layers of poly may be your best bet. This is a cool option because you can paint the concrete however you want. Do you want a football field floor? Go for it.
As the header suggests, this option really only works for cement. So, this will probably only work if your man cave is in the basement or garage. If you live in a place with a warmer climate, this is a great budget DIY option.
Painted Cement Sealed With Poly Cost Per Square Foot:
Because this isn’t a super popular option, I had to do the math myself. From what I can find, you can expect a polyurethane cement sealing kit that covers 50 square feet to cost around $75. Then a can of cement paint will cost you about $35. So that math out, and this flooring option will cost you about $2.20 per square foot. Can’t beat that.
Why Someone Would Want Painted Cement Sealed With Poly:
As I have made clear, this can be a great option because of HOW CHEAP IT IS. You really can’t beat $2.20 per square foot when it comes to materials and installation. It also doesn’t get much easier for DIY projects. Just don’t rush the steps and you should be all set. If your install goes well, it will be nice and smooth. This is what makes the floor so easy to clean.
Another thing to like about this option is the flexibility of this flooring. You can basically do anything on this floor. You won’t have to feel bad if you are rough with it. Also, if down the road you decide the cement isn’t for you, you can go with another option over the top of this one. No harm, no foul.
Drawbacks Of Painted Cement Sealed With Poly:
Like all of the flooring options, this one is not without its substantial drawbacks. The first, and probably the most important one is the floor will not do anything to help insulate the room. If you live in a cooler climate, using this option may cause your room to be colder than you want it to be. This is why this is a more popular option in warmer locations.
If you plan on putting a lot of resources into the other parts of your man cave, this type of flooring may feel a little out of place. If everything else in your man cave is higher end, it would be a shame to use this type of flooring. It may send the wrong message to your guests.
Also, if you choose to keep the cement exposed, you are going to need to find some other ways to minimize the sound/echoing in your man cave. It would at least be worth buying some type of area rug.
Should You Use Peel and Stick Tiles In Your Man Cave?
Stick on tiles are probably one of the least popular budget options for flooring a man cave, but I wanted to let you make your own decision. They are pretty cheap but can add a little extra to your man cave.
Compared to other options, these are an incredibly easy DIY project for you. All you have to do is take off the sheet on the back of the tile that is protecting the adhesive, and place it where you want. You don’t need any extra equipment, just a good eye, and a steady hand. Well, I suppose you may need a pair of box cutters, but I am sure you have a pair of those lying around.
Peel and Stick Tiles Cost Per Square Foot:
Of all the options being presented ion this article, stick tiles are by far the cheapest option. It is not hard to find a decent looking option for $.97 a square foot.
Why Someone Would Want Peel and Stick Tiles:
Although not many people plan on this being a permanent solution, plenty uses these peel and stick tiles. There are a couple of great things about them. The first is that they come in wood and tile styles. You can get just about any look you want.
The next reason to use these is that they are incredibly cheap. For $.97 per square foot, you could install multiple rooms before you even get close to the cost of carpet. They are also an easy DIY project. There are no special tools you need to buy, just peel and stick.
Drawbacks Of Peel and Stick Tiles:
As you may have guessed, we often get what we pay for. I used these to put some type of flooring in a crawl space, and probably the worst part about these things is their sticky residue. I found that after putting them down, that tacky glue would seep out of the crack in between the tiles. It isn’t the best… On top of that, it is nearly impossible to lay every one of these perfectly straight. If you go with these, your flooring will not be perfect.
Another important drawback is floors covered by these are hard to clean. That tacky residue will start to catch all the dirt that is tracked into your man cave. This will likely get worse as time goes on because the corners of the tiles will eventually start to lift and not look great.
Should You Use Rubber Tiles In Your Man Cave?
If you have a bare cement floor, using rubber tiles are another great option for you. Honestly, I hardly even call this a DIY, because all you need to do is go buy the tiles and put them together like a puzzle on your floor.
It adds a little bit of a layer between you and the cement and adds a little bit of padding. If you buy good quality ones, they make a pretty solid feeling floor with no cracks.
Rubber Tiles Cost Per Square Foot:
You can get a 48 pack of these tiles (which are 1 square foot each) for about $115. So if we do the math, that equals $2.40 per square foot. That’s a pretty affordable option when compared to the other options provided.
Why Someone Would Want Rubber Tiles:
If you are looking for a cheap and durable option that requires no headaches, this is your best bet. These tiles are at their best in your basement man cave or in your garage man cave. These will fit together without any cracks, and they will not shift around on you.
The nice thing is if one of your tiles gets damaged, you can easily just replace that one tile. Although I doubt that would happen because they things are built like a tank. They are also super easy to clean, so that is a nice benefit.
Drawbacks Of Rubber Tiles:
As many nice things as I have said about these rubber tiles, I would not be putting them in my man cave. These are not a good choice if you have the ability to go rug or laminate. At the end of the day, these tiles may be super rugged, but they look pretty rough.
They may cause your man cave to look like a gym to your visitors. If you care about the looks of the appearance of your man cave, these tiles probably aren’t your best bet.
Final Thoughts:
Each flooring has its things it adds to a man cave, and its drawbacks. At the end of the day, the best flooring for you may not be the best option for the next person. Take the time to figure out what you want to get out of your room, what your plans are for it, and choose the floor that best matches up with that.
Until next time,