What Floor Registers Won't Rust?

Wood

• The continuing popularity of wood floors brings with it the availability of floor registers in matching woods. Red oak, white oak, white ash, yellow pine, cherry and maple are the woods most commonly available in floor registers. At least one American company offers other woods in its stylish flush-mount floor registers -- including white pine, heart pine, hickory, mahogany and walnut. Most wooden registers come bare, so they can be finished to match the floor. They also can be painted to match or contrast with painted floors.

Stone

• Marble, terrazzo, slate, ceramic tile and other masonry floors are enduring and also immensely popular. Stone floor registers in neutral colors are available to coordinate with natural shades of stone and ceramic flooring. These are particular useful in bathrooms, gyms and other places where humidity is often high. Otherwise, wood might be equally effective in terms of natural appearance.

Brass

• An alloy of zinc and copper used for centuries on ships, brass might oxidize or tarnish without special coatings, but it will never rust. Standard polished brass is shiny and gold-colored. Brass floor registers and grilles also come in a wide variety of styles and several special finishes. These include an oil-rubbed bronze finish, for a rich brown color; chrome, for a shiny silver look; and satin nickel, for a more subdued silver tone. When buying brass floor registers, make sure they are solid brass rather than metal merely painted to look like brass.

Aluminum

• Durable, rust-proof floor registers and heater grilles are made from heavy duty extruded anodized aluminum and cast aluminum. Aluminum registers come in a variety of styles, from contemporary to Victorian, and are virtually carefree. They come in untreated aluminum finish, or bright silver-toned and also painted. If you want something snazzier than standard colors such as white, black and pale gray, you can always repaint them to suit your decor.

Plastic

• Plastic is strong, durable and also quite inexpensive, in additional to being completely rust-free. Registers made from plastic can tolerate harsh cleaning agents or frequent cleaning, which makes them suitable for commercial situations. Most plastic floor registers come in pale neutral colors – so consider something that can be painted, such as aluminum or wood, for brighter or deeper colors.