The New Laminate Flooring

The first laminate flooring most people ever saw came from a Swedish company called Pergo. In fact laminate floors were called “Pergo Floors” for many years afterward. They weren’t a snap-lock design but had to be glued together.

Laminate floor is basically a picture of a wood plank that is embossed with a hard finish and fused to a particle board backing. It is incredibly durable and easy to install. In fact it has taken over many of the duties that were once the domain of carpet, hardwood and vinyl flooring. The finish that protects the decorative layer is actually aluminum oxide and can have a satin, gloss or low gloss appearance.

The new laminate flooring products are available in a square-edged or beveled edge tongue-and-groove planks or as square tiles which mimic rock and ceramic tile. Most planking is about 4-feet long but other sizes and lengths are available.

In addition the thickness of the planks is increasing. They started at 6mm, or 1/4″, but the new planking is a hefty 12 millimeters, or 1/2″. As with many other products thickness does affect durability. Laminate flooring price is also geared to thickness. Planking goes from a low 50 cents a square foot to over $2.50.

The styles have also improved. The old standard Pergo was a stock, busy, oak finish with few substitutes. Now the styles and textures have gone to almost every wood species as well as ceramic tile and even vinyl floor designs. Depending on the grade and subfloor treatment it can be used in basements, kitchens and even bathrooms.

Choosing Laminate Flooring

Laminate flooring is quickly becoming the most popular floor covering on the market. It is inexpensive, attractive and relatively easy to install. So that, down the road, if your home design changes the flooring can be taken up and replaced. The other perk is that if the flooring is carefully removed it can be reinstalled in another area

Originally from Europe this flooring has a body of a moisture-resistant layer topped by fiber board. This is then capped with a special clear aluminum oxide finish that protects the photo image of the wood species or tile on the flooring. The flooring pieces can be snapped together and “floated” on a thin foam sheet or glued down.

Thickness: You often see this in the advertising and the price (the thicker the more expensive) but this is not really a good determining factor for a good laminate. Some thicker types have an inferior “swell rate” meaning that moisture can penetrate the paper core.

Look for:

• Joining System: This is commonly called a “click joint” allows the installation of the floor up to 3 times – so, if you decide to change the location of the product down the road you would be warranted);
• Core: This is for stability and will have a low swell rate. Sometimes a 7mm floor from one company can outlast the 10mm product of another.

When it comes to style you can go with almost any design. For purists there are 4 foot pieces which imitate a pine or oak plank. So when these go down the floor actually looks like a plank floor whereas the other pieces incorporate pictures of several small strips and the joints are obvious. This gives “fake effect” is also found in engineered flooring.

What many flooring contractors agree is that it is a waste of time to put down anything less than 8mm which is why you will probably see 7mm going for as low as 75 cents a square foot. This is true for any wood, tile or laminate because the big expense is in the installation. And sometimes it takes longer to mess around with cheap flooring which ups the price even more.

Laminate Floor Repair

Many problems with laminate floors begin with the installation process. Someone didn’t read the directions properly and no there are gaps or bulges in the floor. Here are a few tips to fix a laminate floor.

1. Laminate Floor Kit: Most manufacturers have repair kits available include either an acrylic or latex putty and wax crayons or pencils. Follow the instructions to repair dents or nicks.

2. Bulges: These occur when the the flooring is put in too tight against the walls. The installation instructions require that there should spacers on the edges to absorb any expansion because of heat or moisture. Walls may also move, even if slightly, and will affect the floor. To fix this take the molding off the entire floor and save it. Then take the spacers out and replace them with smaller spacers. If the floor is tight against the wall take out the row of planks against the wall and cut 1/2.” Put the planks back and restore the molding.

3. Replacing a Piece: There is a good chance (or bad chance) that you don’t have spare pieces for your laminate floor. In this case go to the home supply store and get some pieces that are very close to you pattern. Take off the molding in the room and remove all boards until you get to the offender. Replace the bad plank with one of its brothers and re-click the molding back to the wall. When you replace the planks put the new one in where it will not be noticeable: under a curtain, chair or stereo.

4. Gaps: This occurs when the floor was put down before the plank had a chance to acclimatize to the moisture and temperature of the room or there were gaps (no spacers) between the wall and the floor and the planks cam apart by normal use. Take off the molding at both ends of the plank (perpendicular walls). Use a pry bar and, starting at the center of the room, push on the end of plank next to the wall. You may want to use a block as a fulcrum and to protect the wall from denting. The planks should slide together tightly. Now do the rest of the rows. Before you put the molding back down make sure there are the right spacers in place. You don’t the same thing to happen again.

The main idea is to catch the problems while they are still small problems.

Lovable Laminate Floors

Not since the invention of linoleum has one flooring product dominated the market so quickly and with so many styles and designs. Because of its versatility, wearing ability and price laminate flooring is one of the fastest selling flooring products in stores. Like many composite building materials was invented in Europe. Pergo, a Swedish company Pergo brought its laminated product to the United States in 1994.

To begin with, laminate flooring is manufactured to mimic natural woods, tile and stone but is made up of composite materials, both natural and recycled wood, which is coated with hard finish. The design is actually a picture of the wood type or other material and it is fused to a dense, composite plank.

A natural for the do-it-yourselfer laminate floors have interlocking seams which “snap” together and form one huge flooring piece. Spaces have to be allowed on the edges for expansion and contraction and small wood strips hold them floor in place. Other wise it “floats” on a cushion of thin foam underlay .
The cost is the big plus. Starting around $1.00 a square foot it is one of the cheapest materials available, even cheaper in some cases than linoleum. All types, cheap or expensive finish off a floor very nicely and the more expensive types resemble real planks or tile flooring.

For large areas its good to have a professional do the job for a spectacular surface.