Today’s laminate flooring is vastly different than the styles that were first introduced to the flooring industry in the 1970s. With improvements in flooring manufacturing technology, laminate has come a long way, quickly making it a popular choice for homeowners who want high style on a moderate budget. Laminate floors combine durability, versatility, value, and a realistic hardwood appearance for incredible results. Here are five reasons why laminate can be an ideal flooring solution for your home:
One of the main draws of laminate floors are their overall durability, making them pet and family-friendly, and a great choice for areas like hallways and the rooms where everyone gathers. The secret to laminate flooring’s resilience is its multi-layer construction, which results in a product that can be both durable and beautiful. Every laminate plank is built around a high-density fiberboard core, which is reinforced by a melamine backing for extra stability. The photorealistic wood layer is applied atop the fiberboard, and then this entire sandwich is covered in a highly durable transparent wear layer. These layers get fused together with high heat and pressure in the lamination process, and the result is a strong, stable flooring material with a realistic wood look. The wear layer helps protect the laminate floor from fading, staining, and overall wear, while the dense core gives it long-lasting resistance against twisting, buckling, or warping.
When it comes to installing laminate floors, the advanced tongue-and-groove locking system ensures that every individual plank is locked securely together to form a strong, solid floor. A laminate floor installed by skilled craftsmen is designed to give many years of trouble-free use, resisting separation, squeaks, and other issues common to low-quality wood-look flooring products.
Laminate’s durable construction and physical characteristics make it one of the most versatile flooring products on the market today. We’ve mentioned its scratch and wear resistance, which are essential features for high-traffic households. In addition to that, some laminate floor products from Empire Today® are water resistant—or even fully waterproof, which makes them suitable for areas like kitchens, laundry rooms, and mud rooms. Plus, it can be more comfortable underfoot than other durable, versatile alternatives like ceramic or porcelain tile.
Another reason why we love laminate floors at Empire®? They’re supremely easy to clean! Laminate floors don’t require any specialized cleansers like genuine hardwood floors. Giving your floors a quick sweep and once over with a damp mop is usually all you need to keep your laminate floor looking great for the long haul. If you’re attached to the beauty of hardwood, but not the need for careful maintenance, laminate might be the best flooring option for your home.
It’s true that all the previous points can be applied to other products carried by Empire, like luxury vinyl plank or tile floors. Both of those materials can even be made to look startlingly like real wood. But one characteristic of laminate floors that those products can’t offer is the realistic wood feel. Because even though laminate products do not use solid wood planks in their construction, it is still made largely from real wood materials. If you were to handle a plank of wood laminate or knock or walk on a laminate floor, it would feel and sound remarkably like real wood.
In the past, you might have been able to tell that laminate was artificial wood, but with technological advances it can be difficult to tell the difference. Laminate reproduces grains, coloring, and tight tongue-and-groove locking systems for a highly realistic hardwood look and feel. Not only do the grain and knots look like real wood, but the texture is also like real wood as well. Today, even the savviest consumers have been fooled by how closely laminate can mimic real wood. And that is an important characteristic that many customers are looking for, for both practical and intangible reasons.
Of course, all of the most enticing features may mean nothing if the product is outside of most homeowners’ budgets. Thankfully, laminate is commonly considered to be one of the most cost-efficient flooring materials that still checks all the previous boxes. If you’re searching for exceptional value, laminate floors may be your best bet. When comparing a laminate floor to a hardwood floor of similar style and durability, the laminate will almost always be significantly more affordable. It’s a great alternative to real hardwood floors for homeowners on a budget. Laminate floors from Empire give you the look and feel of hardwood floors—and not the price tag.
It’s obvious why laminate floors continue to grow in popularity throughout American homes today—it’s durable, can be used in most areas of the home, and is easy to maintain. It offers both exceptional value, while maintaining an authentic hardwood aesthetic. Ready to add laminate floors to your home? Schedule your FREE In-Home Estimate now to learn more about the myriad options available from Empire Today.
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