Is Laminate Flooring Worth the Hype?

 

Laminate flooring became popular in homes a few decades ago as a cost-effective, attractive, and long-lasting alternative to solid hardwood flooring. Its innovation has progressed significantly since the time it was introduced. It comes with more honed top-quality imaging, further embellishing, better seaming instruments, and a large group of different developments. However, no floor covering is flawless. Laminate flooring has advantages and disadvantages in all significant categories—installation, maintenance, durability, and more.

Under Construction!

Laminate flooring producers have worked very hard to improve their products. However, laminate flooring is still considered a low-cost option even though micro bevels, deeper texturing, and better graphics replication have pushed it closer to solid hardwood and engineered wood floors in terms of performance, appearance, and reputation.

Life expectancy can also vary due to significant quality differences between products. For example, some laminate floors can last up to 25 years in areas with little foot traffic, while in areas with heavy foot traffic, they might need to be replaced in less than ten years.

Pocket Pinch

At big-box home centers, the average material for plastic laminate flooring is between $1 and $3 per square foot, but designer products can cost as much as $10 or $12 per square foot. The cost of high-quality laminate ranges from $2 to $3. The quality of the print layer and the thickness of the wear layer both have an impact on the price differences. Therefore, investing in the best laminate flooring is a low-cost and smart investment.  

Professional installation doesn't cost a lot because this flooring is easy to install. Materials and labor included; laminate flooring installation costs approximately $5 per square foot on average across the country. Because of this, laminate flooring is one of the least expensive types, comparable to a mid-range carpet. Installing hardwood flooring, on the other hand, can easily cost $15 to $20 per square foot.

Maintenance and Repairs

With a vacuum or broom, laminate floorings are simple to clean. Use a laminate floor cleaner or a slightly damp mop to clean. You don’t need to spend a lot of floor waxing. Simply mopping the floor with a wet cloth. While mopping the flooring, avoid using too much water because it can get into the seams between the boards and cause swelling. The standing pools of water that frequently appear in laundry rooms, kitchens, and bathrooms can't be tolerated by laminate flooring. An impervious surface, such as vinyl or porcelain tile, is necessary for moist areas.

The photographic layer beneath laminate flooring is protected by a wear layer, making it somewhat resistant to stains and scratches. Some manufacturers even offer more than ten years of generous warranties on the wear layer. In most cases, getting rid of stains is simple.

Let's Bring in Some Glamour

Designed Laminate flooring can, at least from a distance, faithfully replicate the appearance of wood, stone, and other natural materials. Laminate flooring lacks defects, unlike real hardwood, which has numerous imperfect pieces that must be discarded or trimmed. The appearance and quality of each board are the same. Additionally, deep embossing enhances the appearance of the wood grain.

Because of the repetition of the pattern, laminate flooring looks like real wood. Most brands produce boards with five to ten patterns, whereas cheaper products may only feature three patterns. As a result, it's possible to end up with identical boards next to each other if the installation is not done strategically.

Although laminate flooring can be an excellent way to renovate a shabby floor quickly and cheaply, your home's long-term real estate value will remain the same. Hardwood and engineered wood flooring offer superior value if you want to maximize your home's sale value.

Conclusion 

Laminate installation is quick and simple. In just one weekend, you can lay down hundreds of square feet. In the past, you had to glue the pieces of laminate flooring together. Miter saws are all you need to cut the planks to size because their core is made of particleboard.

Overlay flooring is regularly introduced as a drifting floor — the boards interlocked at the edges, shaping a strong mat that essentially lies on the underlayment, with no pastedown required. Laying a foam underlayment and joining rows of planks edge-to-edge across the floor are all needed for installation. A room can be laid out in about an hour by a professional crew, while a homeowner can do it in the afternoon. Laminate floors are trending. Hope you like information about laminate flooring, Get in touch with us.