Laminate Flooring

[treg50]

I saw "Real Estate" and thought hmm, I wonder if this will be off-topic?

I was wondering what people think of Laminate Flooring vs. hardwood? It's "established itself as an innovative and cost-efficient alternative to hardwood flooring. This attractive flooring solution is available in a wide range of prices, colours and grains. It's also more scratch and dent resistant than hardwood flooring, which makes it the perfect choice for homes with active children or pets."

My main concern is price and value. The say it's got some better properties than wood. Of course, wood is classic, everyone knows about it. Laminate has only recently proven that it's a good alternative, so it has less of a trackrecord in some people's minds.

Anyone have experiences with modern laminate floors?

[Euro838]

Depends on the look you want and the application. You are looking at anywhere from $1-2 per sqft for laminate and $5-10 for hardwood. Laminate is easier to install. Laminate is good for pets as they can scratch it up and you can just replace it for a lot cheaper than hardwood. You also have less of a concern for moisture too so it will work good in kitchens and basement. This comparion is similar to the tile vs lino debate. Different uses and purposes as well as costs and maintenance. You get what you pay for.

[Gspotracer]

I put about 650 SQ ft of higher end laminate into a house I flipped, it cost 1.99 SQ ft, and was single plank with beveled edges, so it actually looked pretty good, had lots of people ask if it was real hardwood that came through my open house.

Definitly a cost effective alternative to real hardwood, plus its quick and easy to install yourself.

[FD22]

If you are looking for a easy, low maintenance and very durable floor than laminate is a good choice. I personally would only put laminate in a basement. Since laminate is a floating floor it is great for basements due to the fact that the concrete floors are never level and you don't have to nail or glue the floor down. In terms of re-sale it all depends on the buyer. I know a tonne of people who can't stand laminate, others that dont mind it, and some that love it. If it is for your own house, and its for upstairs spend the extra bit and buy hardwood. You can find it for around $3.50/sq.ft at hardwood auctions and it really isn't that hard to install. It just requires more tools.

[Mangina]

I originally put laminate in my place about 3-4 years ago, and alot of the veneer is chipping off. It looks like crap.

I'm in the process of ripping it out and replacing it with slate tile, which is about the same price. I wish I would have done that in the first place.

Keep in mind, you can't "fix" laminate. You have to rip it all out just to replace one plank with a chip. Hardwood can be sanded and restained, especially small scratches.

[rc2002]

I echo what is said about using it in basements. I wouldn't use it anywhere else. It costs less but you can tell that the quality is not as good as true hard wood.

It's very simple to install. I did it without any special tools at all - just a hammer, saw, and some tapping blocks.

[Fivewayradio]

I think laminate looks cheap. It even sounds cheap when you walk on it. Hardwood is worth the expense.

Think about it this way--if you're trying to sell a place you want to give your potential buyers the fewest amount of things they can pick apart and the most amount of things they feel are high quality. Laminate floors tell buyers that you wanted to save money and that begs the question about what else you skimped on. Hardwood floors said you cared enough to put a lasting, quality product in.

[QuasarCav]

Originally posted by Fivewayradio
I think laminate looks cheap. It even sounds cheap when you walk on it. Hardwood is worth the expense.

Think about it this way--if you're trying to sell a place you want to give your potential buyers the fewest amount of things they can pick apart and the most amount of things they feel are high quality. Laminate floors tell buyers that you wanted to save money and that begs the question about what else you skimped on. Hardwood floors said you cared enough to put a lasting, quality product in.

They don't sell champagne at Wal-mart.

[Mangina]

Originally posted by Fivewayradio
I think laminate looks cheap. It even sounds cheap when you walk on it. Hardwood is worth the expense.

Think about it this way--if you're trying to sell a place you want to give your potential buyers the fewest amount of things they can pick apart and the most amount of things they feel are high quality. Laminate floors tell buyers that you wanted to save money and that begs the question about what else you skimped on. Hardwood floors said you cared enough to put a lasting, quality product in.

I agree. You can tell right away that your on laminate. The sound gives it away. It makes your home feel cheap.

[Weapon_R]

It looks cheap and you can easily see the difference. Good hardwood doesnt scratch easily, but laminate is more durable strictly speaking.

[Euro838]

Well, like other people have posted, it all depends on what you want to accomplish. Laminate flooring is awesome for rental properties but you'd never find it (even on counters) in a million dollar home! (well, at least I hope not)

It is a cheap product but it does have it's purpose.

[Scottie403]

as an installer, laminate flooring is great. but you get what you pay for as with everything... personally cause i handle the stuff almost everyday, i would not spend less then $4 per square foot. its quite easy to install your self and very easy to maintain. its not hardwood thats for sure, but if you have pet and children, i would definitly take it over hardwood. due to the fact that it is way more durable. not very easy to scrath or mark, easy to keep clean and very little dust. plus you can get stuff that has 40yr warrentys and such... i highly reccomnd it, but only if you are willing to put out some money and buy a quality product... otherwise it can be a real hassle.

[black_2.5RS]

Has anyone used a laminate brand called Trafficmaster Ceramica? It's a laminate floor that has bevelled edges and is meant to be grouted - so it looks a hell of a lot like tile. Saw a bunch at Home depot this weekend and won't give me that 6am cold feet feeling that tile gives.

[Mangina]

Originally posted by black_2.5RS
Has anyone used a laminate brand called Trafficmaster Ceramica? It's a laminate floor that has bevelled edges and is meant to be grouted - so it looks a hell of a lot like tile. Saw a bunch at Home depot this weekend and won't give me that 6am cold feet feeling that tile gives.

No but I did see a pretty cool electrical heating pad that you put in your tile mortar bed. In floor heating!!

[TrevorK]

Originally posted by Mangina
I originally put laminate in my place about 3-4 years ago, and alot of the veneer is chipping off. It looks like crap.

I'm in the process of ripping it out and replacing it with slate tile, which is about the same price. I wish I would have done that in the first place.

Actually slate tile does not cost anywhere near the same price as a laminate floor when properly installed.

As well, there are many properties (Especially older ones) where the structure does not meet the minimum specifications for deflection when installing slate.

[Mangina]

Originally posted by TrevorK


Actually slate tile does not cost anywhere near the same price as a laminate floor when properly installed.

As well, there are many properties (Especially older ones) where the structure does not meet the minimum specifications for deflection when installing slate.

$3 / square foot by my count. The laminate I put in was more than that. Is that what you meant?

[TrevorK]

Originally posted by Mangina


$3 / square foot by my count. The laminate I put in was more than that. Is that what you meant?

There are more costs to slate than just the slate itself.

You will need:
Tile
Thinset
Grout
Sealant
Plywood to beef up subfloor to recommended specs
Concrete board/waterproof membrane (For wet/damp areas)

Further, if your structure itself isn't strong enough (Spacing between the joists, distance unsupported, etc...) then you would need to resolve that before it would be 'recommended' to install slate. Because slate is a natural stone it has higher requirements than ceramic tile.

You can put tile into an area whereby it doesn't meet the minimum engineering specifications, but if the grout/tile start to crack you'll know why. And when the floor is all laid down it's not always an easy fix.

[Mangina]

Originally posted by TrevorK


There are more costs to slate than just the slate itself.

You will need:
Tile
Thinset
Grout
Sealant
Plywood to beef up subfloor to recommended specs
Concrete board/waterproof membrane (For wet/damp areas)

Further, if your structure itself isn't strong enough (Spacing between the joists, distance unsupported, etc...) then you would need to resolve that before it would be 'recommended' to install slate. Because slate is a natural stone it has higher requirements than ceramic tile.

You can put tile into an area whereby it doesn't meet the minimum engineering specifications, but if the grout/tile start to crack you'll know why. And when the floor is all laid down it's not always an easy fix.

Hmmm...I put mine right down on concrete so no subfloor or cement board was needed. And the thinset and grout was pretty cheap. That sealer is expensive stuff though!

[FD22]

Thats cause you put it directly on concrete. If you put tile on a wood floor, without putting any subfloor down you run the risk of having too much flex in the floor and popping tiles.

[Zero102]

I am replacing about half of the flooring in my house with laminate right now. We are using Scenic Plus by Tarkett, in the champagne maple color. The front room was already done when we bought the house, so we are just matching what was in it, but every day I look at it I like it more and more. We did one bedroom in it so far, and I can just put my office chair right on it, and not mark it a bit. I've had hardwood before, and you are ALWAYS worried about marking it up, this laminate is seriously tough, and super easy to install. I've been in the trades for a while, but never installed any flooring before.

I agree it never belongs in a $1,000,000 home, but let's face it, mine is $200k on good days and laminate is a hell of a lot nicer than what was in here.

Plus, I am going for a nice clean feeling with low maintenance, and laminate is very good for that. You no longer need to own a vacuum too