We look at why laminate flooring is so popular, whether you should consider buying it for your home, and how to install around one of the more challenging obstacles – radiator pipes.
Laminate flooring has been around in one form or another since the late 1970’s. However, it was only in the 1990’s that it came into its own when the range of colours and finishes exploded. Now you can buy it in a huge array of natural wood colours and species, tile, and stone finishes and even water resistant versions for bathrooms and kitchens. What is so special about this type of flooring that’s made it the number one selling product on the market today, eclipsing natural wood, tiles, and carpet?
- Cleanliness
Aside from hotels, carpets are rarely seen in the average home in countries like Spain, Italy and Portugal. The reason is that is that they are considered dirty, harbouring as they do, dust, dirt and bacteria. They are also hellishly difficult to keep clean. The preferred option is normally stone or ceramic tiles. Since those options are relatively expensive, laminate flooring offers a lower cost option that can be easily brushed and mopped to keep pristine. If you drop red wine on your laminate planks, it’s a simple process to wipe the stain away. With carpet, you are on your hands and knees for days, sponging, vaxing and drying, and even then, the stains can persist.
- Versatility
The top part of modern laminate is a protected photographic layer that can mimic anything. If you want a white tiled floor, then there’s a laminate that looks identical, natural wood? There’s a laminate for that too; in fact, you can buy it in any wood colour or finish, from pure white, to lightly brushed oak and dark glossy walnut. The choices are limited only by the manufacturer’s imagination. As such you can use it anywhere, in any room, to match any décor.
- Practicality
The average laminate is non-slip, scratch resistant, pet friendly and hypoallergenic. This means that for kitchens and bathrooms where there is a chance of spillages, you won’t be slipping over like you can on wet tiles. It’s great if you have pets because they can’t scratch the surface, and any dog or cat hairs that may cause allergic reactions can be wiped away, rather than getting trapped in the pile of a carpet.
- Easy To Install
Installation is simple and can be managed by the average handyman. The less experienced may need to watch the odd YouTube video, but it is a straightforward process as long as the room is properly prepared. The floor (and any subfloor) needs to be stable, so if it’s concrete and there is a hole or a flaky surface, then it needs to be finished in a self-levelling screed before laying begins. If floorboards or parquet are unstable, then they need screwing down or glueing in place beforehand. The laminate is installed over laminate underlay, which is rolled out and taped in place. There is no glueing involved; the planks are simply slotted into place, one-by-one until the floor is completely covered, and apart from a decent saw, a pencil, spacers, a pull-bar (to shove the planks into place) and a ruler, little else is required, apart from a little elbow grease and time!
- Top Hack – Cutting Around Pipes
This is a relatively straightforward process as long as you follow some basic instructions:
- Lay your flooring up to the pipe.
- Bring the next board up to the pipe and put a pencil mark either side – the width.
- Lay the board up to the wall, next to the pipe, (leaving a 10mm expansion gap)
- Make a two pencil marks corresponding with the front and back of the pipe – the depth.
- Cut backwards from the end up the two width lines, then drill a circular hole that corresponds to the thickness of the pipe. (remembering to leave a gap for expansion around). Cut the back bit away up to the drill hole and keep hold of it.
- Slot the board into place bringing it up to the pipe and slot the last piece in behind the pipe. (Use a squirt of clear silicone to keep it in place behind the pipe).
6 Potential Problems
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While laminate flooring seems like the ideal choice for every room in the house, you do need to be aware of potential pitfalls. For example, if the planks are not fitted closely together, then spills can seep through the cracks; so make full use of that pull-bar and ensure that they are fitted snugly together, as tightly as possible. Make sure than any spills are wiped or mopped up as quickly as possible.
Choose a decent quality underlay with a thick foam layer. Like tiles, laminate flooring can be noisier underfoot than carpet, so investing in laminate underlay is a great idea. It’s not expensive and will make all the difference.
Finally, always check out the alternatives. LVT flooring is more expensive but more suitable in humid and wet areas. Engineered wooden flooring may be more suitable for hallways or places with high footfall, but some of the thicker varieties are expensive. Laminate flooring offers a good all round solution for most rooms in the house, but as with everything it’s down to personal taste, and if your partner insists on porcelain tiles, then there’s little you can do about it!