Laminate flooring can be a beautiful addition to your home! It’s durable, easy to clean, and easy on your wallet. Like every type of flooring, it has its advantages and its disadvantages. Take a look at the 5 things you may not have known about Laminate flooring!

1. Laminate and water do not mix!

When laminate flooring is installed properly, a little water on the surface is not a problem.  There is a water-resistant layer along the top of laminate that is easy to clean with a dry mop or vacuum. For those extra sticky situations, you can use a mild soap and a bit of water to clean it. Water becomes a problem when puddles of water are left on the surface of laminate. This can  cause warping and swelling and your laminate could end up looking terrible! If installed improperly there’s more chance for water to get in between boards which can be a major issue.

Laminate is not a great choice for places with a lot of moisture. This includes bathrooms, laundry rooms, and rooms with drains. If you’re not sure whether laminate is right for you, please feel free to contact us through www.nexstepconstruction.com. We can help clear up any confusion!

2. Laminate has 5 Abrasion Class Ratings.

When deciding on what laminate to put in your space think of how many people will be using the space? Will there be chairs scraping the floor? This will help you when deciding what abrasion rating to get. An abrasion rating is used to understand how durable a laminate board is.

The Abrasion Class Ratings start from 1 to 5. 1 is a low abrasion class rating, and is used for closets or low traffic residential areas.  This would be for closets, guest rooms, storage rooms and other rooms that aren’t used very often.

An Abrasion Class Rating of 3 is good for any area of the home and some commercial settings. High traffic areas like hallways, living rooms, and business lobbies would be a good place to put his type of laminate flooring.

Laminate with an Abrasion Class Rating of 5 is used in very high traffic, commercial buildings. This is public buildings like department stores, art galleries, showrooms, etc.

3. Laminate flooring is great for people with pets!

Laminate flooring is great for people with pets because it is a very durable and easy to clean type of flooring. It is also scratch resistant and easy to replace if needed. Unlike carpets that are glued down and take a lot of work to remove, most laminates click in to place, or are glued to each other, and aren’t glued to the ground.

4. Some laminates are textured!

There are textured laminates so that they not only look like hard wood, they feel like hardwood as well! There is a huge variety of colours, textures, and types of laminate flooring. You can now get slip resistant laminate and laminate that has a stone effect. There are so many options to choose from.

5. You cannot refinish laminate.

Here is the good news: “Unlike wood, which can dent, laminate flooring is almost impervious to dents and scratches. Laminate flooring has a ‘wear layer’ that protects the photographic layer underneath. Some manufacturers, DuPont in particular, give very generous 10+ year warranties on the wear layer.” (https://www.thespruce.com/laminate-flooring-pros-and-cons-1821644)

If your laminate gets badly damaged, you cannot sand it down and then refinish it. Underneath the top layer of laminate is completely different material. If you damage that top layer your only option is to replace it.

If you have questions about laminate flooring, please feel free to leave a comment or contact us through our website at www.nexstepconstruction.com.