Asked on Mar 27, 2017
What's better: Manufactured hardwood planking or faux wood planking?
Manufactured hardwood planking VS faux wood planking for floors??? Does anyone know which of these wears better ? Is the thin veneer of real wood manufactured planks brittle, subject to cracking?. Is either one better in regard to potential VOC off gasses?
6 answers
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Hillela G.on Mar 28, 2017I found this really helpful- http://freshome.com/2010/11/01/the-pros-and-cons-of-hardwood-vs-laminate-wood-flooring/ it lays out the pros and cons of both options- good luck!!HelpfulReply
- Hillela G.on Mar 29, 2017great!!! good luck!!HelpfulReply
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Debbie Gartneron Mar 28, 2017I think you may be getting terms mixed up. I'm thinking you mean engineered hardwood flooring (not manufactured flooring...as all of these items are manufactured.You can read more about solid vs engineered hardwood flooring here. http://theflooringgirl.com/hardwood-flooring/solid-vs-engineered-hardwood-better.htmlFor "faux" woods, you have laminate and luxury vinyl. Both tend to hold up better to scratches then engineered wood. Luxury vinyl is waterproof; laminate isn't. One of the newer luxury vinyl planks introduced to the market is Coretec Plus. You can read my full review of Coretec plus here. http://theflooringgirl.com/blog/review-coretec-plus-luxury-vinyl-waterproof-hardwood-planks.htmlI hope that helps.HelpfulReply
- Debbie Gartneron Mar 29, 2017Reply to Debbie Gartner...So glad to hear it. Coretec is really an innovative product. Both my customers and installers have loved it.HelpfulReply
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Touchedpainteron Mar 28, 2017The Pergo laminate type is Formica. It is noisy & cold & continuously exhausts toxic fumes. My favorite is either bamboo or cork. Both these look just like hardwood floors. Cork is my favorite, it is warm & muffles what ever is dropped on it, short of dropping an old fashioned TV from the ceiling on it, it will handle what ever you throw at it. Easy install, with heavy duty sticky glue ship-lap type installation. It floats but I highly recommend putting down the fiber paper between the sub floor & flooring. General care will last generations.HelpfulReply
- JeannieTaberGreenon Mar 29, 2017RE cork: how is it available? As "tiles" or "planks"? Do you have a product name or brand in mind? Thanks.HelpfulReply
- Touchedpainteron Mar 28, 2017Oh ya... Cork & Bamboo is renewable & green with no ecological footprint.HelpfulReply
- Debbie Gartneron Mar 29, 2017Yes, cork is another good option. Generally, it's more expensive and colors are a bit limited. Most often these are done as floating planks, but glue down tiles are also available. I would avoid bamboo at all costs. It does not hold up well to water, moisture, scratches, dents. We no longer install it (and haven't for the last 5 yrs). We get tons of people complaining about their bamboo (not ones we installed). It's very challenging to find customers that have it that are happy with it. (and, yes, when I was on appointments and saw they had bamboo, even the strand woven, and asked them, I consistently got negative feedback.HelpfulReply
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Touchedpainteron Mar 29, 2017Just go to or call any lumber yard. They can answer the questions for the specific Companie's products. Cork & bamboo has been around for decades, and a lot of technology has gone into flooring to make it DIY friendly. It is in long planks that is not too long so it is weekend warrior friendly, & it looks just like real hardwood flooring, for less cost & is in a finished state & ready to be walked on immediately. You can choose oak, walnut, cherry, pine, etc & mixed woods which looks awesome.HelpfulReply
- JeannieTaberGreenon Mar 30, 2017Thanks for your input---I'm going to do just that--go to a few stores that handle these products, and get a lot of information to make the comparison.HelpfulReply