laminate flooring

Laminate flooring has undoubtedly evolved with modern technological marvels that enable better seaming, embossing, and high-definition photography. These innovations keep making it a terrific, affordable, and highly realistic echo of wood, stone, or tile. This highly affordable alternative is also durable, low maintenance, and even has a new, additional waterproof version that eliminates all concerns about soaking and staining. Please read further to see why it could be the right choice for you.

High-definition photography creates true-to-life, vibrant and clear images of wood, stone, or tile, cut into planks or tile-sized squares, with knots, grains, swirls, veining variations, and bright colors and patterns. What's more, the surfaces don't just look authentic but feel that way underfoot because you'll have the firm, rigid feeling of wood or stone. There are hundreds of wood species and colors: marble, travertine, slate, terrazzo, limestone, or quartz surfaces. If ceramic tile is your preference, you can find geometric, chevron, herringbone, block and hexagon patterns, and more with laminate flooring. 

We all do it and can get attracted to those ultra-low bargain-basement prices. However, that usually leads to costly repairs or premature replacement because those prices generally translate to inferior products. While it comes in a range of thicknesses, the best laminate flooring is at least 9-mm in thickness, not counting the wear layer, which is a separate measurement. A more robust surface is more durable, quieter, hides subfloor imperfections better, and if you want a truly authentic hard surface feeling go as high as 20-mm. 

Different laminate floors are suitable for various types of installations. The AC Rating stands for Abrasion Criteria, and it's a one-to-five rating system broken down into residential and commercial applications. Each product goes through tests administered by a third party and, as the numbers increase, so does the strength. The most commonly chosen rating for residential use is AC3, suitable for all floor levels. AC4 is selected for hefty residential use and some light commercial applications such as small offices. Finally, AC5 isn't recommended for residential use but, instead, heavy commercial installations. 

We all do it and can get attracted to those ultra-low bargain-basement prices. However, that usually leads to costly repairs or premature replacement because those prices generally translate to inferior products. While it comes in a range of thicknesses, the best laminate flooring is at least 9-mm in thickness, not counting the wear layer, which is a separate measurement. A more robust surface is more durable, quieter, hides subfloor imperfections better, and if you want a truly authentic hard surface feeling go as high as 20-mm.