What's the best laminate flooring to use?
by
Becky
+11
my son just purchased a small home that he plans to rent out & wants to replace the carpet with a laminate flooring. In researching I've noticed different thicknesses well as a huge difference in price. Pergo has the name recognition but also the higher price. Would appreciate any advice on laminate flooring.
8 answers
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What rooms are we taking about here?...living room? bedrooms? hopefully not a kitchen...laminates are quick and cheap...but they do not hold up like tile or real wood floors.
KMS Woodworks
on Jul 13, 2012
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The kitchen, baths & entrance have ceramic floors so it's just the bedrooms,hallway & den. Tile & real wood are out of the question because of cost.however he does want a durable product. Do u think laminate flooring is the wrong choice? Thank u for your help.
Becky
on Jul 13, 2012
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Laminate flooring is nice, but really hard under foot. There are some really nice wood click and lock type of floors that are a bit thicker, can be refinished if scratched and carry several year warranty. Check in your local yellow pages or Google Lumber Liquidators in your area. They often have good sales that lower their already low prices even more. As far as cost. A good quality laminate floor can be just as expensive as a solid wood pre finished costs.
Woodbridge Environmental Tiptophouse.com
on Jul 14, 2012
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When long term costs are factored tile and real hardwood are actually cheaper... 10 laminate floors at x dollars > than 1 hardwood floor. I have refinished some hardwood floors that were 80 to 100 years old....If you can get 8-10 years out of a laminate you would be very lucky or lead a simple stocking footed life.
KMS Woodworks
on Jul 14, 2012
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For what it's worth, I HATE my laminate flooring. Chosing laminate was a big, expensive mistake I deeply regret for so many reasons. After living with it for 2 years, I don't understand why it is so popular. I would never recommend laminate for rental property, especially if your son is going to allow tenants to have pets. It will never stand up to the moisture of pet *accidents,* it's very slippery and noisy for pets (and people) to walk on, even with the underlayment that is suppose to reduce noise. A little over a year ago, I put TrafficMaster "Allure" 6x36" vinyl planks (purchased at Home Depot) in one of my bathrooms and I absolutely love it! If I could, I would rip out every bit of of my laminate and replace it with the Allure. Allure looks like wood (with lots of colors to chose from) but it's easy to care for, soft, quiet, durable and very inexpensive. As I say, I'd have it throughout my home in a heartbeat but I think it would be an excellent affordable flooring solution in a rental house, especially since some renters don't always take very good care of the property.
Shari
on Jul 15, 2012
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Forgot to mention, Allure is water resistant so any kind of spill, including pet urine, would wipe right up, with no worries about residual stains or odors. Short of a flood (which could affect the glue along the planks edges) or someone intentionally taking sissors or a knife to it, I believe Allure is pretty close to being indestructable!
Shari
on Jul 15, 2012
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I have done a number of "allure" installations...for the money it beats laminate hands down. BTW it is also very DIY friendly.
KMS Woodworks
on Jul 16, 2012
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As with any flooring you need to care for it properly. The only issues I have heard with allure is were it was mopped in a very wet state. This lead to some separations. The only floor that can stand up to massive amounts of water is tile set with thin set. After all this is what many showers of are made of.
KMS Woodworks
on Mar 26, 2014
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