Laminate Flooring?

[Whaler]

LOML and I are talking about having the carpet in our family room replaced with laminate flooring. It is the most used room in the house and with 2 dogs tracking in pine needles it is a real pain to keep the carpet clean.

Any pros or cons out there and what brand?

[Larryl]

Our house had Pergo flooring in the den, kitchen, dining and laundry rooms when we bought the house almost seven years ago. I believe the flooring had been down about 2-3 years then. It holds up well unless it gets wet, then it buckles. We were considering doing the bedrooms couple years back and I did quite a bit of looking on the web. I don't have the links(changed laptops since then) but one of the highest rated on one of the sites was WilsonArt laminate, plus it was one of the least expensive. HTH.

[Mr__Bill]

We have laminate flooring and we have a dog. The noise of nails on laminate is driving me crazy. It is however fun to toss a toy and watch him run then slide as he tries to stop and grab it. Like the animals in the cartoons we grew up with, the feet go in one direction and the dog in another.

Installing new I would look for a floor that advertised as being quiet and made out of real wood on the surface. My flooring came with the house and at the time we could not afford to replace it so we have to live with it a while. Ours is the picture of wood on mystery material. It is similar to one I put down in our rental and it has survived 5 years of tenants.

Another thing to consider is if your on a slab. Moisture will be a problem regardless of what the sales folk tell you. In my neck of the woods, and I'm about 12 hours south of you, it's expected that laminate on slab needs replacement in about 5 or 6 years. The moisture attacks it from the bottom and it gets a washboard texture.

I know this is not an answer to your question but is something more to think about. When it stops raining out I"ll walk cross the street and see what brand my friend installed in his house. His is real wood with a sound deadening pad on the bottom. It looks nice and makes about half the noise with his dogs as mine makes.

Bill, just down the road from you on US 101

[bruce hylton]

I have had it in the restaurant we own for three and a half years just laid over the existing commercial carpet that was there. I bought the 8mm that was on sale at a surplus center for less than $1.00 a square foot. Standing water will swell it up, but it is the best wearing floor I have ever seen. And mine gets way more traffic than a home will ever get. Just remember it has to float and leave the proper amount of stretch room or it will really buckle.

[Uncle Cracker]

I would have to add that you need to use flooring with proven surface durability, as I have seen some pretty bad scratching result from doggie nails...

[Richard in Smithville]

as I have seen some pretty bad scratching result from doggie nails...

Interesting, I have a 95 lb dog along with the lesser priced floor in my livingroom and there are no scratches.

[Richard in Smithville]

I have been looking at vinyl plank flooring also. It is supposed to be as strong as laminate and easier to lay down.

BTW: The above is the Canadian site.

[jackellis]

We're having engineered wood floors installed in our new house. The substrate is a high quality hardwood plywood. Top is what appears to be 1/4 inch real wood that can be sanded at least twice. It's not really expensive but it's not inexpensive either. Looks very well made. The brand is Owens Plank.

[JoeyGee]

We did our kitchen 2 years ago with the Tarkett brand from Menards. It's the cheapest brand they carry, and we went with the cheapest of the line. So far it has held up very well to 3 young kids and constant spills. I would use it again.

Keep in mind, I believe this is 100% synthetic, with no real wood on top. It just looks like wood. We get a lot of positive comments on it.

We have Pergo in our foyer that a previous owner put in, and that isn't holding up very well, but it has been down a few years longer.

[Slik Geek]

The only installation that I have seen of "pergo-style" flooring was done over a concrete slab. The installers laid down a thin foam sheet under the laminate.

The end result was horrible. The floor compressed as one stepped on it. It felt very cheap and made noise with each step. If you didn't know there was concrete below, you would think that the floor joists were undersized - that was the effect.

Perhaps this was an incorrect installation????

[messmaker]

I have laminate and have never liked it. It does handle pets well though.

[drumpriest]

I redid our house in laminate a few years back. I wish I had waited, as 2 years later a lumber liquidators moved here, and I could easily have done hardwood for the same money. Having said that, it's mostly very good. I have 2 spots in the house that are a bit spongy, but mostly it's solid (installed over concrete, important to test for moisture first though). The type that I have is an industrial grade with aluminum tabs, and is wax impregnated to allow for water spills etc. No standing water, of course, but you just mop up spills with little to no worry of damage.

We don't have pets, as I'm horrifically allergic, but it's pretty scratch resistant, have not had a scratch yet, and in my shop tests on the left overs, it's pretty darn tough.

I'd probably do bamboo though, if I were to do it again.

[crokett]

We have laminate in the living room/hallway. Not my first choice but at the time we needed to replace carpeting of unknown age before my MIL who is allergic came to visit. It has held up very well to 5 years of dogs+2 kids and all the spills they make. The only trouble spots are where the installer (I didn't have time at the time to install it) messed up and chipped a few edges.

[pbui3057]

We just installed Pergo brand laminate in our sunroom. Lowes was having a clearance on it. Approx. $20 a box. They still had some colors that were that cheap. I used my bts21 with a Skil 7 1/4 inch 60t blade. Lasted long enough to do a 300 sqft. room. So far it has been great. The kids in our daycare don't seem to mind it at all and it seems to be very durable. We bought extra boxes just in case.

[mpc]

I've seen two different Pergo installations. My folks installed it in their house... the "old" style Pergo that is glued along the tongue-n-groove edges. Installation takes a while but is not complex... just back-and-knee-tiring. That floor is holding up quite well and is quiet. It's installed on the first floor of a house with a basement - no "slab" issues. They used the foam sheet underneath too. Dogs toes do go clickity-clickity-clickity though.

The second is a SoCal condo belonging to a friend... they used the newer style Pergo that "clicks" and snaps together - no glue. This one is not staying flat, and it squeeks when you walk on it. It's a major step backwards from the stuff my folks used. It's installed on a slab; I don't know if they used foam, paper, or what underneath.

mpc