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emszxr
30-Jan-07, 17:07
i really want laminate, what with 2 kids, one who is starting to get potty trained and living in the coutryside and the mud that comes in. i think it be a lot easier to keep clean. right now with a sandy colour carpet in living room its murder to keep clean and forever looks like it needs washed even though its done every 2 months ish. but hubby isnt keen to say the least. he thinks it will be cold and noisy. my living room is about 28m square. and i want to do my hall too. how do i convince hubby.
if i do get the go-ahead, which laminate is the best. i know the price range varies so much, is the cheapest really not worth buying or not. please help.

dragonfly
30-Jan-07, 19:25
Laminate wouldn't have been my first choice but the house we moved to had it in the kitchen and living room and must admit although I hated it in the kitchen cos dogs kept sliding all over the place on it, I still have it 5 years on in the living room.

Its not cold, obviously colder than carpet and its easy to keep and it also reduces the amount of dust. wrt noise, I have a large mat in centre of room so that reduces the noise but even without it its not that noisy unless you have a virtually empty living room

Can't say anything about what type, but know that the people we bought house from wouldn't have skipped on quality.


PS, it was us behind you in Tescos when you were buying your dvd player!;)

emszxr
30-Jan-07, 20:23
ahhh, i would never have guessed in a million years with your user name

footie chick
30-Jan-07, 21:09
We had laminate and hated it now have woodeffect vinyl far better. The new flotex looks really good

las123
30-Jan-07, 21:11
we put flooring all downstairs when we bought our house a couple of years ago, and going from capret in our old house to the flooring in the new one i think it is brill, it is in our living room, playroom, front hall and kitchen, and i must admit i think is great, we dont find it cold at all. it is so easy to keep clean with the kids, with their dirty feet, pram wheels, play dough and paint to spilt drinks etc, a quick wipe and no stains, i feel it is so much cleaner than carpets, you cant see what a carpet holds in dirt but you can in the flooring. we got ours from wicks in inverness and i think the best buy we have done.

sms
30-Jan-07, 22:22
I have to say as a mother of 2 kids under 5 i like laminate flooring, easy to keep clean and if they spill ribena or anything you wont be mad as its easily mopped up. I used to hate play do but with laminate i dont mind.

I wouldnt go for the cheapest as it isnt always the best but neither is the most expensive but watch going to home base if you do buy the cheapest it needs glue the easiest to put down is the ones where it clicks into place.

Everyone has their own opinion on laminate flooring, i for one am for it especially with kids as i dont fancy soaking up stains all day from the carpet.

Bobinovich
30-Jan-07, 22:23
We put inexpensive laminate on our kids bedroom floors - it's a piece of cake to lay (especially if you get the Homebase laying kit) and actually worked out a lot cheaper than carpet. We were rudely awoken the first morning by very loud thunder, which actually turned out to be our son emptying his marble collection all over it! Other than that it's been brilliant.

When we got our conservatory put on last year the builders put in a good quality laminate while, at the same time, we put inexpensive beech-effect laminate from Homebase in the sittingroom. To be perfectly honest you'd be hard pushed to notice the difference.

I don't know if there'll be any long-term benefits to the higher priced stuff but so far I can't see them.

WeeBurd
31-Jan-07, 00:26
We've just finished laying carpets in the livingroom and halls which were all laminate, and are even planning carpeting over the real wood floor in our boudoir.

We had laminate down for several years, relatively cheap stuff from B&Q, and we were more than delighted with it. However we decided to move back to carpet as BabyBurd is about to hit the crawling/cruising stage and her big sister really struggled at that stage on the laminate, what with sliding around unable to get a grip. Already we've noticed a huge difference heatwise in our ancient shack. Also, with little feet, mucky paws of the four-legged variety and noisy stroller/walker toys scooting around all the time, the noise is greatly reduced for Daddy who's often sleeping during the day due to shifts. In general, the house seems so much cozier and far more homely.

I found it completely soul-destroying being constantly on guard at the back door with a cloot, poised, ready to clean up all the dirty footprints - and that was with a runner down. As it is, we've gone for a cheaper, but practically coloured carpet in that hall, with additional matting at the door, that way the dirt isn't getting trailled all over the hall, it's getting caught as people/dogs come in, and is far more managable.

Changed days, eh, I'm sure I was raving about it one time before:lol: ! I still think it looks great though, it's just not for me :) .

emszxr
31-Jan-07, 15:15
well the almighty has spoken and has agreed i can have laminate if he can have wood burning stove.
we already have a stove in the bar in the house but we just have a coal fire in living room. suppose it will save on coal as we get wood for free.
just have to go laminate shopping some time. i need about 45m2 between bottom hall and living room, ouch.

98elite
31-Jan-07, 16:12
"Click" glueless laminate is great to work with, you can have a floor down really quick, bought ours from B&Q, they have a wide range of wood effect and some great tile effect click laminate for kitchens and bathrooms, Homebase probably do something similar.

Tristan
31-Jan-07, 22:28
I would go for Real Wood flooring. Like laminate with a 1 - 6 mm veneer of hardwood on top.

debs
31-Jan-07, 22:41
im looking for someone to put my laminate flooring in my lobby,anyone know anyone?

Bobinovich
01-Feb-07, 00:26
Debs trust me it really is a piece of cake! My wife put down our whole sitting room flooring in around 3 hours. She fitted each board and markied the next one for cutting - I was working on another project so all I did for her was cut the boards with an electric jigsaw.

Anyone with even a passing interest in DIY should be able to do it especially if the proper kit is used.

I would suggest, for best effect, removing the skirting boards and re-fitting after the laminate goes down - that way they cover the gaps. Otherwise you'll need beading to cover the gap instead which doesn't look half as good.

debs
01-Feb-07, 11:32
thanks for that but its for my lobby an dont really trust myself doing it would prefer to pay someone do it for me

Penelope Pitstop
01-Feb-07, 13:54
I would go for Real Wood flooring. Like laminate with a 1 - 6 mm veneer of hardwood on top.

We've got solid wood flooring in our house. We looked into the wood with the laminate top and also the pre laquered boards, but was put off them when reminded that if a piece gets damaged they won't look very good. Any damage to solid wood boarding can just be sanded down and touched up with wax oil.:Razz

rockchick
02-Feb-07, 20:48
We've just finished laying carpets in the livingroom and halls which were all laminate, and are even planning carpeting over the real wood floor in our boudoir.

Why would you want to put laminate over a wood floor???? I can see replacing carpet with laminate, for financial reasons, but I would have thought that a wood floor was superior to laminate every time!??

I'd go for the wood over laminate, but maybe I'm biased...

WeeBurd
04-Feb-07, 01:18
Why would you want to put laminate over a wood floor???? I can see replacing carpet with laminate, for financial reasons, but I would have thought that a wood floor was superior to laminate every time!??

I'd go for the wood over laminate, but maybe I'm biased...

We're planning carpeting over the wood floor, as post says ;). You're confusing me now, Rockchick!! [lol]

johno
18-Feb-07, 17:52
thanks for that but its for my lobby an dont really trust myself doing it would prefer to pay someone do it for me
Debs whatever else you do ,leave the laminate in the home a few days before laying to climatise it and do remove the skirtings and make sure that there is a gap all around as this floor does expand & contract when down.

:)

ŠAmethyst
25-Feb-07, 16:53
A friend of mine, Aaron, is the manager of direct flooring in Inverness... give them a call. All the staff, as I undestand it, are well trained. Can probably answer any questions you may have and give you plenty of advice! Their number is 01463 243857

steeko
13-Mar-07, 16:03
Id check out Uniclic Quickstep flooring, the new range comes with a lifetime guarantee.

FirmFoundation
09-Jul-09, 20:53
Debs whatever else you do ,leave the laminate in the home a few days before laying to climatise it and do remove the skirtings and make sure that there is a gap all around as this floor does expand & contract when down.

:)

I know this is an old thread but it is worth repeating this good advice in case anyone else is following this thread.


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http://www.jgpwoodfloors.com/laminate.htm

FirmFoundation
20-Jul-09, 20:57
Not sure how to edit the above. The URL for the link I added has changed but I think it is too late to edit the previous message.



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http://www.jgpwoodfloors.com//floor-types/laminate.htm