Is there any consensus on these forums as to whether one brand of laminate
flooring is better than another? Specifially I am loking at Sams Club and
Costco. Everything says that you can't beat their prices. Do any of you
have personal testmony to share. Are they still the best value in laminate
flooring? Is the quality of both brands very good?

Also, is it really hard to see the joints between "planks" or have they
really improved the products to look like real wood.

Thanks.


--
David Jensen
Change the xx in my email address to MJ for my real email address. Thanks.

"David Jensen" wrote in message


Something else will win every time.

Check out the engineered wood floors at www.mannington.com and see a local
dealer for other brands and selection. It saving $25 all that important
over getting something you REALLY want and will live with for many more
years?

David Jensen wrote:

Is there any consensus on these forums as to whether one brand of laminate
flooring is better than another? Specifially I am loking at Sams Club and
Costco. Everything says that you can't beat their prices. Do any of you
have personal testmony to share. Are they still the best value in laminate
flooring? Is the quality of both brands very good?

Also, is it really hard to see the joints between "planks" or have they
really improved the products to look like real wood.

Thanks.


Habitat for Humanity has stores with some good bargains sometimes.

--
The e-mail address in our reply-to line is reversed in an attempt to
minimize spam. Our true address is of the form .

"David Jensen" writes:
Is there any consensus on these forums as to whether one brand of laminate
flooring is better than another? Specifially I am loking at Sams Club and
Costco. Everything says that you can't beat their prices. Do any of you
have personal testmony to share. Are they still the best value in laminate
flooring? Is the quality of both brands very good?

Also, is it really hard to see the joints between "planks" or have they
really improved the products to look like real wood.

Laminate floors I've seen lately are visually indistinguishible from
teh real thing unless you get down on the floor. Their thermal
coefficient and feel is different, so bare feet will tell tell you
from warmth and cush, but look wish, good quality flooring looks
better than the red oak in my house (without all the imperfections and
irregularities and stains LOL).



--
Todd H.
http://www.toddh.net/

we've bought two laminate floors from Lumber Liquidators so far and
have been very pleased with them (the brand they sell is "Dream Home"
which I've been unable to find any info on, but like the results so
far). I tend to like the flooring with a very slight amount of texture
to it rather than a glossy surface, it tends to hide the fact that it's
synthetic better. Regardless of what floor you buy, look at the tongue
& groove system it has and see if it has a good, solid locking profile
that won't easily pull apart, especially on the ends of the planks.
Get a plastic tapping block and a pull-bar for the installation. I've
bought with the underlayment attached and separate and don't really
have a preference for or against either, though the separate
underlayment might be better as a vapor barrier if you need one. Just
be sure to compare prices accordingly if it has/doesn't have
underlayment attached to it. If you're doing the installation a table
saw (for ripping) and a chop saw (for cross & angle cuts) are very
helpful, be sure to have carbide blades and plan on changing the blades
when you're done (the aluminum oxide coating on the surface will eat up
even a carbide blade after a while). Enjoy your floor.

David Jensen wrote:
Is there any consensus on these forums as to whether one brand of laminate
flooring is better than another? Specifially I am loking at Sams Club and
Costco. Everything says that you can't beat their prices. Do any of you
have personal testmony to share. Are they still the best value in laminate
flooring? Is the quality of both brands very good?

Also, is it really hard to see the joints between "planks" or have they
really improved the products to look like real wood.

Thanks.


just ripped out a pergo type flooring in my in-laws condo. the floor was
less than 3 yrs old. the lady before must of used buckets of water. the
spacing between the joints were wide and the ends curled. had tile put
down. also was noisy when you walked on it. just my opinion. laminate
real wood that is sealed would probably be ok but not the plastic type.

I put Costco down in 2 rooms in my house...in general I wish I would
have gone the extra money and gotten real wood, but that is no comment
on quality of Costco's particular brand, just personal preferance, to
me it just is not the same.. no matter what brand you buy.

ONE IMPORTANT TIP
If you do go with the Costco talk to the folks at the store.. as twice
a year they issue a coupon worth 5 bucks per box... which, if memory
serves.. takes the cost of a box from 25 bucks down to 20 bucks so it
is a significant savings, and well worth waiting a month or two for...
, and you can buy as many as you want on one coupon. I bought over a
thousand dollars of flooring on one coupon.
The workers at Costco should be able to tell you when the next coupon
will come out... if you are buying a lot it can easilly save you
hundreds of dollars.

"Laminate floors I've seen lately are visually indistinguishible from
teh real thing unless you get down on the floor. Their thermal
coefficient and feel is different, so bare feet will tell tell you
from warmth and cush, but look wish, good quality flooring looks
better than the red oak in my house (without all the imperfections and
irregularities and stains LOL). "

I've yet to see a laminate floor that is hard to distinguish from real
wood without having to get down close to look. Laminates like Pergo
are fine and can be good choices for the right cost/benefit, but IMO
they never look like real wood.

In article .com,
says...
"Laminate floors I've seen lately are visually indistinguishible from
teh real thing unless you get down on the floor. Their thermal
coefficient and feel is different, so bare feet will tell tell you
from warmth and cush, but look wish, good quality flooring looks
better than the red oak in my house (without all the imperfections and
irregularities and stains LOL). "

I've yet to see a laminate floor that is hard to distinguish from real
wood without having to get down close to look. Laminates like Pergo
are fine and can be good choices for the right cost/benefit, but IMO
they never look like real wood.

I didn't even think they were cost effective. The cheap stuff is
crap and the nicer stuff is more expensive than some alternatives.
The only advantage of laminates I see is ease of installation (for
a DIYer).

--
Keith

wrote in message
oups.com...
"Laminate floors I've seen lately are visually indistinguishible from
teh real thing unless you get down on the floor. Their thermal
coefficient and feel is different, so bare feet will tell tell you
from warmth and cush, but look wish, good quality flooring looks
better than the red oak in my house (without all the imperfections and
irregularities and stains LOL). "

I've yet to see a laminate floor that is hard to distinguish from real
wood without having to get down close to look. Laminates like Pergo
are fine and can be good choices for the right cost/benefit, but IMO
they never look like real wood.

I quite agree- IMHO they simply look like cheap fake paneling on the floor.
Only way I would even consider a laminate floor is if it had a Real Wood top
layer of some thickness, so actual grain was visible. But even then, the
faux 'board' lines and regular seams are quite easy to pick up. When I was
house-shopping, one owner-'upgraded' house had laminate in the kitchen, and
they had laid it like floor tile, with NO staggered seams. Looked like ****,
but he was SO proud of it, I had to just bite my lip and get out of there.
If I can't afford Real Hardwood, I'd rather have W/W carpet, or even a good
grade of sheet vinyl with area rugs. That was a strong selling point on the
house I bought- hardwood in the bedrooms, hall, and LR. Needs refinish, but
plenty of wood there TO refinish, when I get a round to it in a couple of
years.

aem sends...

You may get a good buy but what about problems down the line.
Manufactuer still in business? How will problems be handled? You may
save a little now but pay a lot later-hank jaworowski The home
Improvement success Club of America
http://www.homeimprovementsuccess.com

"I quite agree- IMHO they simply look like cheap fake paneling on the
floor.
Only way I would even consider a laminate floor is if it had a Real
Wood top
layer of some thickness, so actual grain was visible. But even then,
the
faux 'board' lines and regular seams are quite easy to pick up. When I
was
house-shopping, one owner-'upgraded' house had laminate in the kitchen,
and
they had laid it like floor tile, with NO staggered seams. Looked like
****,
but he was SO proud of it, I had to just bite my lip and get out of
there. "

I believe in the accepted normal definitions, a laminate floor would
never have a real wood top layer, though the use of terms can be
confusing. There are three basic types of products:

Laminate - A synthethic resin visible top that has an imprint made to
resemble real wood over a wood core base that is never seen.

Engineered Hard Wood - A thin real wood veneer top over a wood core
base.

Hard Wood - Solid real wood.

Some people do refer to the engineered products as laminates, as that
is actually how they are made. But these are way different than the
products usually referred to as laminates. A good engineered wood
product looks just like real wood, because that's what the top layer
is. They come in varying thickness, good ones can be sanded just like
solid wood, several times if necessary over time to refinish it. Plus,
having an engineered core, this product has better performance with
regard to shrinkage, warping, etc.

While I think anyone would prefer real wood in most circumstances,
sometimes it's just not possible for a variety of reasons, such as
what's already in place in the room, budget, etc. In my case, I had two
rooms floored with ancient vinyl tile that would be a disaster to try
and take up and certainly not worth the effort and cost since I am
living in my first "starter" house, which I don't plan to live in
long-term. I know everyone likes to bash laminate, but it certainly
*does* have its place in the home improvement market.

That being said, I have installed three various brands (one Pergo, one
mid-grade Hampton from HD, and another Hampton higher-end model bought
from BJ's) and types of laminates in various locations in my house, and
the variety I purchased from BJ's Wholesale (just in case this is a
local chain, it's a Costco-style warehouse store) is of the highest
quality of the three types I've bought. It has the best and most
realistic look, too, although the others are also quite attractive.
Since I bought it at BJs, the price actually was quite similar to the
price per sq ft of the other ones I purchased elsewhere when you
consider this one had the premium underlayment pre-attached. This BJs
floor was installed a month or so ago, wherase the other two rooms were
installed about 1.5 years ago. So far, all floors are in great shape --
no chips, gaps. curling, or anything else other people have reported
encountering.

As for noise when walking on the floor -- yes, my kitty's claws do
click-click-click when he walks on it, but it is not troublesome. I,
for example, wouldn't install it in the high traffic areas of the
house, like the kitchen or living room -- there I would go with real
wood and/or tile. For bedrooms, I am entirely satisfied with both the
durability and appearance..

If you are thinking of the Costco brand, I say go for it -- go out and
buy two boxes, take 'em home, unwrap 'em, click a few boards together,
turn on some tunes, and jump around on them for a while. Check out if
its sturdiness, appearance, and noise suit you. Then go back and buy
the rest of what you need.



jdk wrote:
David Jensen wrote:
Is there any consensus on these forums as to whether one brand of laminate
flooring is better than another? Specifially I am loking at Sams Club and
Costco. Everything says that you can't beat their prices. Do any of you
have personal testmony to share. Are they still the best value in laminate
flooring? Is the quality of both brands very good?

Also, is it really hard to see the joints between "planks" or have they
really improved the products to look like real wood.

Thanks.

Laminate floors I've seen lately are visually indistinguishible from
teh real thing unless you get down on the floor.

Tell ya what. I'll bet you $20 that I can tell the difference by just
walking on it, blindfolded