Looking for laminate wood flooring advice

Rental Property Investor · Surry Virginia · Member since 2019 · 10 posts · 2 votes

Im shopping flooring options for new rental. 1300 sqft and Im thinking of laminate wood for whole house(including kitchen and baths) Any advice/recommendations for options that work well for whole home coverage would be appreciated. Thanks

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Axel Norvell

Investor · Houston, TX · Member since 2019 · 66 posts · 58 votes

I would personally recommend vinyl wood plank over wood laminate as it's more durable and resistant to water.

Wood laminate is typically made out of thin particle board, and any water will damage it pretty easily. Vinyl on the other hand is a lot more resilient and won't warp with water damage. It's also harder to chip and can take more of a beating.

You can find cheap vinyl plank that looks like the same as wood laminate too.

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Junior Soares
Contractor · San Jose, CA · Member since 2018 · 262 posts · 407 votes
7y
@Jason Seward
We use Vinyl Allure on all if our rentals. Hold up well and easily replaceable and a low price point
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Sergio AltomarePro Member
Rental Property Investor · Greater Philadelphia · Member since 2012 · 135 posts · 60 votes
7y
@Jason Seward Luxury vinyl for sure. It's all we use these days. Contact couple of flooring specialists or retailers to get good price for material and install. We pay $6-8 a sqft, all in.
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Keith Lewis
Interior Decorator · Canton, MI · Member since 2015 · 129 posts · 100 votes
7y
OK Joel, here's the skinny on the click lock type of LVP. There are three types; the original pure vinyl meaning even the backer is vinyl, the WPC backer type product(Wood Plastic Composite) which is not really a LVP but and engineered product with a 1.5mm tile glued to a rigid backer similar to outdoor deck material and the newest product Rigidcore or SPC(Stone Plastic Composite) which is an extruded material similar to the original but with a ton of limestone in the backer to give it the rigidity of WPC without the issue of WPC such as denting and being noisy unless you put a pad under it or it has one attached(don't buy cork pad go with a dense closed cell polyurethane.
Original CL(click lock) is flexible and will conform to a sloped subfloor like basements, the other two don't and require prep to build up areas which you really don't want to do in a basement. A 4mm product with at least a 12mil wearlayer AND a scratch resistant finish will perform well. WPC work OK on level subfloors but there are issues with the denting and it being able to withstand intense heat like in ultra hot climates.
Rigidcore gives you the rigidity of the WPC with a little flexiblity, AGAIN stay with a 4mm product with a minimum 12 mil wearlayer(20+ mil is better abd commercially rated) but should have either an AO or Ceramic Bead scratch resistant finish. I prefer a Uniline locking system but other are OK too.
The pad under these products does one thing, deaden sound. They DON'T make the floor warmer or easier to walk on since they are only 1 to 1.5 mm thick.
Lastly this is flooring, you get what you pay for. You can buy cheap and replace more often or spend more and replace less often; it depends on your budget.
Hope this helps you.
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David Bauman
Lender · Reedsburg, WI · Member since 2015 · 6 posts · 3 votes
7y
@Frank Maratta
Hi Frank,
My company have installed many thousands of sq ft of flooring. Vinyl plank can be found in numerous forms there are some versions with cork at the base and many with vinyl or padding at the base. There are also glue down versions as well as click together versions.
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Jack I.
Member since 2019 · 43 posts · 24 votes
7y
I use top of the line Mannington AduraMax Apex... costs 4.50 a foot, I install myself.... this is top of the line but will last forever
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Kyle Nelson
Polson, MT · Member since 2017 · 115 posts · 105 votes
7y
Hi there, I’m a flooring installer of 15 years. I’d go with a vinyl plank. Best floor for the price point and works well in wet areas like baths and kitchens. I prefer the Coretec brand, I’ve seen some major issues with the low end products with warping in direct sunlight and locking mechanisms failing. A good quality LVP will be between $3-5 ft depending on what kind of tarrif the president slaps on that day!
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Brian Judice
Contractor · Columbia, SC · Member since 2019 · 15 posts · 4 votes
7y
@Jason Seward I have not read any responses yet so I am offering my uninfluenced opinion. I have heard many good things about certain types of bamboo laminate flooring. Certain types can last a long time on there own but can also be sanded and refinished. It's not a "Hard wood" per say but it is not soft either. It has a good look and is relatively affordable.
If your going for laminate flooring try and find something either very cheap or something with a refinishing property.
Best of luck with it.
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Jason BurrPro Member
Rental Property Investor · Greer, SC · Member since 2012 · 161 posts · 75 votes
7y
@Jason Seward
Best advice I have is don’t do it! We have moved to mostly LVP (vinyl plank) and have torn out most of our laminate at this point. I still prefer porcelain tile in the baths/shower areas but lvp everywhere else!
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Octavio AguirrePro Member
Visalia, CA · Member since 2017 · 14 posts · 9 votes
7y
@Frank Maratta
What you are thinking is particle wood underneath the vinyl is actual a WPC. Not really particle board but it resembles it. It’s 100% waterproof.
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Kyle Nelson
Polson, MT · Member since 2017 · 115 posts · 105 votes
7y
The stone core (SPC) is a more stable core in the click lock world of floors. It has more resistance to denting as well. It also handles direct sunlight much better than the other types of floating vinyl floors.
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Genaro Lopez
Member since 2019 · 3 posts · 1 vote
7y
@Jason Seward don't do it, they will come off after while. Lesson learned hard way.
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