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Conflicting advice about laminate flooring

marvelousmarvin
10 years ago

I've gone to a couple of floor stores, and I've been getting conflicting advice that I hope can get straightened out on this forum.

1) Is laminate flooring appropriate for the kitchen?

2) Is there a difference among laminate brands or are they basically all the same? If the latter, what are the 'best' laminate brands?

3) If I have a choice between a 10mm AC-4 laminate vs a 12 mm AC-3 laminate, is the 10mm a better choice because its more durable even though its thinner?

It seems that the only advantage greater thickness gives you is that it sounds more like wood flooring when you walk on it instead of that hollow sound. But, could you accomplish that acoustic trick with a premium underlayment floor muffler?

4) I like the look of Pergo XP laminates and one of the selling points is that it already has a pad attached to it so I don't have to pay more money to buy the padding.

But, is it better to have the pad already glued to the laminate like the Pergo, or better to buy a laminate and pad separately?

5) If I get something where the pad is already attached, would it make the laminate sound more like wood flooring if I put another premium underlayment floor muffler underneath that as well or is that overkill?

6) The embossements make the laminate look more like wood, but I was wondering if there were any potential problems with that? Is dirt going to get trapped in there?

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