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Laminate Floor and Office Chairs with Wheels

7 years ago

I'm trying to find out whether to be concerned about using our wheeled office chairs on laminate flooring, and I've found conflicting advice. I have read that (1) there is no problem with the chairs on laminate, (2) that the laminate should be protected with the plastic floor protectors commonly seen in offices (or, conversely, that the plastic will negatively affect the laminate), and (3) that an area rug under the chair would protect the laminate.

I am considering getting an outdoor rugs to use as floor protectors under the chairs, as they are less expensive than the plastic protectors and I haven't read anything negative about putting rugs on laminate. However, I am wondering if anyone can advise me whether this is a viable plan or something else might work better. Also, would I need something else under the indoor/outdoor rug, like a felt underlayment?

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Comments (4)

User
7 years ago
Laminate is pretty durable but it's far from being scratch-proof. If you take a wheeled chair, put it on any floor and have someone roll round on it, localized wear will occur. The chance of getting sand on the floor from worker's shoes is high. Wheels, especially plastic ones will become imbedded with abrasive sand. If you look closely, you'll notice that each time a caster wheel reverses direction, it spins around. It's literally just like taking sandpaper to a floor.

I like your rug idea but watch out for sand filtering through and wearing the floor as the rug shifts slightly.
sail_away thanked User
sail_away
Original Author
7 years ago
Thanks for responding. I've never had an indoor/outdoor rug before, but I'm hoping it will be thinner and smoother to facilitate rolling the chairs on it. Also prefer something that isn't too thick because of allergies. We chose laminate for the entire house because we believe it wlll be better for allergies. However, I am wondering whether I should include a felt carpet pad underneath to lessen the chance of anything reaching the floor and scratching it?
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I would just insure that the chairs had the proper rollers on them and not even bother with pads. The rollers for hard surfaces are softer than those for carpets, so they shouldn't affect the flooring very much. High heels probably are much harder on the flooring than the rollers. Having worked in offices that had carpet tiles in most areas, almost every chair had one of those dreaded pads. We once developed a mold problem, and when the technical folks came in to take measurements, some of the worst areas were under those pads. Although we had carpet tiles that were readily replaceable, new ones don't always match up very well with the older tiles, color-wise. We also had to get all new pads that had more holes in them so as not to trap moisture. Carpet is quieter than the laminate flooring, though, so there are pros and cons on each side. Anyway, I would focus on high-quality rollers for the chairs instead of any pads. Good luck!
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I would suspect that wood or laminate warranties would not cover that kind of repetitive wear, but I'm sure some of the people who know more about that kind of flooring could say for sure. I don't know how transferable casters are when supplying them "aftermarket" -- might be a question for a good hardware store (not one of the big-box stores) or an office-supply place. I like carpet tile -- I put it all over my house (kitchen excepted). I wanted the color and the texture and like that it will wear far better than standard residential broadloom. It's also easier to move things on it. :-) Personally, I would avoid padded carpet tile, which knocks out the Legato and Tesserae available at the big-box stores and some FLOR lines. But you can get carpet tile on-line from various sources or from some local places that handle flooring exclusively.
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I use a large vinyl mat on my hardwood floor. It's cut so part of it fits the floor area inside the knee-hole of the desk. The remainder is large enough to accommodate a fairly wide range of rolling around. I bought it at an office supply store, but they are hard to find. More common is the same mat with little spikes on the underside to grip a carpet.
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Brieen, the room is about 10 ft x 10 ft. Valinsv, nice office! Our cabinets are already here. They are made by Kitchen Craft (a Canadian Company). We bought cabinets for the kitchen, office and all the bathrooms at the same time. They are really nice quality, dove tail drawer construction, full extension and soft close. I especially love my kitchen cabs in Maple painted seashell. Your wood counters are really nice but that is not going to happen for us. I made the decision today with out GC to use matte black laminate and he is going to trim the edge in beveled maple, stained to match the cabinets. I hope it looks good. Thanks for the help!
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User
7 years ago
I've probably told people 1000 times that I'd be rich if I could invent, produce and market an attractive product to protect floors from rolling chairs. The only thing I can think of is those Bamboo area rugs. I've seen them with felt backing. The other idea would be a commercial carpet that's cut to fit and bound around the perimeter, possibly with a thin rigid plastic backing. A thin rug with felt would probably be suitable. Frankly I thought you were using this in a commercial setting, so your wear might not be as drastic as I pictured, unless you work from home.
sail_away
Original Author
7 years ago
I have worked from home for a couple decades; however, I am mostly retired now, although I do spend time every day at my desk.

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