"davefr" wrote in message
...
: Either train the dogs, clip their fingernails, or use throw rugs.
: When laminate flooring gets scratched it looks like crap.
:
: Wilsonart and Mannington get good feedback.
:
: To save money, try and minimize use of any specialty moldiings. These
: things are outragously priced. (often costing again as much as the
: flooring). You need to insure the floor floats w/clearance around the
: entire perimeter but that doesn't mean you have to use to
: manufacturer's moldings.

It could be wise to reinforce the walls so *they* stand up to the body slams
of large dogs that lose it on the turns! (Splat! Thunk!)

Any better-line laminate top layer will out last any dawg and survive
tremendous abuse without scratching. The stuff is tough.

Our Pergo Original has easily stood up to over seven years of rough service
and "sluffed off" attacks from a thundering heard of cats, cactus needles
and sand and stones. (Even if you should manage to do the extremely
difficult and scratch the surface layer, a plank can be replaced.)

The engineered wood flooring *can* be sanded down (likely only one time
before grinding the veneer away) and refinished in-place. And that's a good
feature since the (actually good!) top finish surface can't compare to the
laminates such as Wilsonart, Pergo, Monsanto etc. (Good luck on matching the
original finish!) Solid woods, naturally, allow far more sanding depth.

I Totally Agree on avoiding the money trap of using the mfr's speciality
trim work -- not only is it horridly over-priced but it usually looks
crappy. If you have a table saw & a router you can mill your own and get a
far better fit and finish :-) I went so far as to totally remove all of the
original baseboards when the laminate went down this allowed the required
gap for the floating floor to be concealed under the new baseboard without
any "build-out".

++ Side Note: Pergo used to sell a 1/4" underlayment material they called
"Whisper Walk". It's a sound-deadening material that goes between the
plastic vapor barrier sheeting and the actual flooring. It's truly worth
while to use it -- all it really was is re-branded Homosote. The Homosote
is *much* better at providing a cushion effect (and absorbing sound) than
the standard-issue underlayments with the styrofoam "BBs" in it.
--
Steve
www.ApacheTrail.com/ww/
Mesa, AZ
Penury Is the Mother of Invention