Snap laminate flooring?

[john70t]

Originally Posted by widebody911

The edges are starting to curl up just ever so slightly, and it's even worse on the ends where the pieces meet. I will have to rip it all out,

What about sanding it smooth and poly?
(like oil base Minwax you'll have to get in free Nv or AZ)
I though some of the laminate-type products have a 1/4-1/2" layer of real wood on top to work with.

Before buying all new again I would personally try to save it for less $.

[red-beard]

We bought a medium cost laminate (Home Depot) but put the high dollar underlay in our offices, except for the bathrooms (tile). This was 6 years ago and in most areas, it still looks great. My "office" has some wear from my chair. But technically, it is a closet.

[john70t]

Originally Posted by Mark Wilson

Walk across it with hard soled shoes. Clonk, clonk, clonk. Hell no

Using the heavy duty foam pad taped together underneath will definitely help with the sound, and feels like a 'softer' step.
When using laminate tile on plywood, you can do padding/luan board/tile.
Seal the edge cracks to stop water and you should be good.

Having an absolutely dead-flat floor to lay on top of is required.

There are self-leveling compounds available, which I suspect are basically made of inexpensive latex primer and cement...

[MysticLlama]

Our house was remodeled right before we bought it 9 years ago and has this stuff in the kitchen:

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Home-Decorators-Collection-Tuscan-Stone-Bronze-8-mm-Thick-x-15-5-in-Wide-x-47-1-2-in-Length-Click-Lock-Laminate-Flooring-20-02-sq-ft-case-934063/205871651

Dunno how it was to install, but durability-wise it seems pretty indestructible. The dogs have worn the hardwood pretty well, but this shows no scratches, drag chairs across it, drop stuff while cooking on it, spill water, put rugs on it to steam clean them, roll kegs around on it, etc. etc. and it still looks great.

[A930Rocket]

We installed laminate from Armstrong at one builder I worked for. It was the bottom of the barrel. The top finished laminate was like paper. You could look at it and it would tear. I’d stay away from it

We installed LVT at the apartments and it seemed to be a much better product. Not sure about long term, as I left when the project was completed.

We live in Charleston and have had no issues with engineered flooring. Before we moved here, we had always used sand in place wood, but heard there were issues with it here. That was 18 years ago.

[look 171]

I switched to Vinyl flooring in a couple of my rentals. The lam floor wears ok, but after a few years, they just look cheap. My floor installer recommended that I buy this Lifeproof floor at, care I say, Home Depot. Easy install, feels and looks great, waterproof (I still do not trust it in a bath, but that's just me), and lift time guarantee (Of course, that doesn't mean doggy poo). Comes with a backing that will go directly onto the sub floor. I like it that its thick, not the cheap think stuff. Check it out https://www.homedepot.com/b/Flooring/LifeProof/N-5yc1vZaq7rZets

[KFC911]

Originally Posted by widebody911

....

So, if you're flipping a house or fluffing a tired section-8 rental, by all means use it, but if it's a dwelling that you care about....

I've had an atty (& family) in one of my "section-8 doll houses" for 6 years now, and another retired atty (and wife) will likely rent another until the day I sell it to them...but why sell a "golden goose" when I don't want to (yet)? I'm pretty picky too...these aren't high $ houses, but the snap laminates that have been in place for ten years now in each still look like the day I installed them...but not in wet areas. These weren't even a brand name like Pergo...mebbe I got lucky? Yep...I rent to attys...stupid...I know !

[RSBob]

I installed Pergo XP the winter before last in my office, hall, kitchen and family room. It was a two week process. The only issue we have are cracking sounds this summer. Hopefully it is humidity related.

[Soterik]

This is what you want...
Drop & Done - XL Flooring

Vinyl plank flooring with no "groove" click in.
We are using it now in all of our rentals, looks great, wears great, you can literally soak it with zero issues. We also just installed it in our basement at the cabin. This is NOT the click together kind. You glue the pieces that fit around the perimeter of the floor and all the other pieces simply "drop" into place. When/if you need to replace a piece you use a toilet plunger that gets suction, and simply pull it up.

I think the warranty is 10 years commercial and 20 years residential.

[RKDinOKC]

Put the snap together vinyl plank wood looking stuff 4 years ago. Installer floor guy said the snap together stuff was what they were using now in high traffic areas like Walmart and restaurants. Said the snap together planks took water without problems. Ripped up horrible looking linoleum tile that was scratched up and peeling. Planking is much thicker. Put some kind of glue on the backs as he put it down. Have slab floors. Put in kitchen, dining, family, hall and utility rooms.


Mom almost ducked out of the picture, LOL

Picked it because of the durability. Have a big dog and take care of my elderly Mother with walker/wheelchair/spills. Has handled the kitchen and other spills well. Especially the wetness around the dog's water bowl. Dog traffic with everything they drag in and gets ground into the floors between cleanings does not effect it. No sun. Has held up better than the hardwood my brother put in his house four years before I did mine. They do not have pets and have refinished theirs already and have throw rug paths everywhere.

After seeing my floors a couple of friends have done theirs as well.

[aigel]

I have pergo in the kitchen - 20 years old. Looks good except for in front of the dishwasher where it got soaked apparently.

The rest of the house I did with Wilsonart laminate and it has held up great, 10 years, 2 tenants, one with 3 kids.

It is NOT correct that modern laminate scratches. I tried on a piece. The stuff has a ceramic coating. It will dull the saw blades in no time - sparks flying.

Apparently there has been some developments in the floor materials, but a high quality laminate is easy to install and holds up great, unless it gets wet on a regular basis.

G

[Tobra]

I don't know what brand my friend used, not Pergo. He did the family room and kitchen a few years ago, did the rest more recently. He was able to locate what was apparently the rest of the stock of that flooring and finished the rest of the house. He used my dremel to do the part around the doors and corners. Turned out pretty sweet, a little dark in color for my taste. I am not sure what exactly the material was, aside from very heavy. It looks like wood, smelled like wood, bu t on the damaged boxes you could tell it was a pressed material.

The stuff at the office is toast. A/C leaked on it and it is done. In the waiting room the faux wood looks pretty much perfect, and that is with a great big fish tank out there, not much water spilled, promptly cleaned up if it is.

I am liking the vinyl plank look

[KFC911]

Originally Posted by Tobra

I don't know what brand my friend used....

I am liking the vinyl plank look

I might be confused...laminate vs vinyl, the stuff looks just like RKD's pic above...looks great and holds up well imo. Even in my friend's kitchen, bath, dawg rooms. I'd do it again...

As our experiences indicate...it varies...buy a box, lay some down and test (abuse) it for a brief period...water, etc....just a thought.

[Shaun @ Tru6]

Those of you who have used faux wood flooring and been happy with the wear, please post product name and any details.

[wdfifteen]

Our floor is only 4 months old. When we remodeled our media room we used Home Depot's best laminate with a mid-grade foam vapor barrier underlayment over 3/8 inch plywood which we installed on top of the existing 3/4" plywood. We "picture framed" the room because we knew we would have an area rug in the center. It went down relatively easily and looks good, even next to the 3/4 solid cherry floor in the adjacent room. The foam vapor barrier made a little noise at first, but all is quiet now.

[billybek]

I put down about 700 square feet of laminate in the basement during the renovation. Bought what was sold as a commercial quality high traffic product.
It has lasted 4 or 5 years with only one little hitch. Water. Small leak from my furnace room blistered a couple of boards that are now located under a rug.....
Mine will chip if a hard sharp object hits it just right but I think there is only one chip after all the use.
I wouldn't use a laminate in the kitchen unless I was flipping the house.
I also have real hardwood (oak) in the kitchen. After almost 20 years it looks a bit rough and I am not sure that I would do hardwood in a kitchen again. I would go with some sort of tile that could take some punishment.

[Deschodt]

Originally Posted by freeform911

Need some help...again!
Does it look cheap when installed?
Hows it hold up to foot traffic?
Hows it hold up to dogs?
Hows it hold up to sun on it daily?

Yes it does hold up, but in the same way a Toyota Prius will be reliable. Do you want a prius though ?

It can look cheap depending on installation (some gaps may appear at the end of planks later on when it moves a little, after a while). Mostly it "Feels" cheap and sends a signal you went cheap on the reno. You get what you pay for. It's OK for some, and in some places, I guess... depends on your threshold for quality. I would never use laminate again personally, especially not in a kitchen. I'd tile or use real wood.

[scottmandue]

Originally Posted by look 171

I switched to Vinyl flooring in a couple of my rentals. The lam floor wears ok, but after a few years, they just look cheap. My floor installer recommended that I buy this Lifeproof floor at, care I say, Home Depot. Easy install, feels and looks great, waterproof (I still do not trust it in a bath, but that's just me), and lift time guarantee (Of course, that doesn't mean doggy poo). Comes with a backing that will go directly onto the sub floor. I like it that its thick, not the cheap think stuff. Check it out https://www.homedepot.com/b/Flooring/LifeProof/N-5yc1vZaq7rZets

Very interesting, our rental has hardwood floors but they are too thin after many redo's so for a quick fix we just threw down carpet. I am considering tile but this looks interesting. Can it be laid down on a wood floor?

[freeform911]

Originally Posted by scottmandue

Very interesting, our rental has hardwood floors but they are too thin after many redo's so for a quick fix we just threw down carpet. I am considering tile but this looks interesting. Can it be laid down on a wood floor?

The product look 171 showed is the same vinyl floor we looked at, just different brand name. It's a floating floor so you can lay it on hardwood. Its also waterproof.

We've decided that the look, over all of vinyl just isn't what we like, so we're going with porcelain tile.

[911 Rod]

You get what you pay for.
I installed engineered hardwood floor in my family room and the sales person was trying to talk me into the vinyl stuff. Both are pricey, but the vinyl will stand up to any beating you can throw at it. He said 80% of what he sells is vinyl. This was a proper flooring store, not Home Depot.
To me the laminate is like peel and stick floor tiles as far as quality goes.