Well, I'd personally go with the real thing for resale value and the authentic feel of wood floors (well, grass floors in this case) underfoot. Laminate feels... cold and fake to walk on barefoot, IMO, and it sounds off under boots/heels too. Oh, and real bamboo floors are eco-friendly, since bamboo grows to maturity in a few years, making it an easily renewable resource. Laminate is made using wood (under the surface of the picture), and trees take a lot longer to grow back. Also, I've had no trouble scratching the laminate floors that came with my condo. :P I don't really buy that it's more durable than wood/bamboo. You can refinish bamboo down the road if dings and scratches matter to you (though really it just gives a hardwood/bamboo floor some character, IMO). You don't get to refinish laminate. Anyway, I don't sell bamboo floors or anything, just giving you my opinion. :) I doubt you'll regret installing bamboo down the road, but you may have regrets about laminate. Here is a link that might be useful: care and maintenance for bamboo floors

We have had the Pergo XP (Extreme Performance) installed in our house for a few years now, and if I had to do it again, I would have used something else. In my opinion, the XP stands for Extremely Poor. The floor wasn't even installed a week, when a plastic cooler was slid across the floor when filling it to go on a trip, and it scratched the floor in multiple spots. Fixed it with their repair pen, but still quite noticeable. Pergo's website claims: "Designed to withstand scratches, scuffs and pet accidents." We also have pets and had a tinkle accident that we did not see until morning. The flooring had soaked it up and swelled and buckled, etc. We were able to fix with lots of paper towel and a stack of books to weigh it down, but still. We live in Montana, so a flooring product that more or less can't get wet seems a little useless. After all, we live where is snows, rains, etc. Additionally, just 2 days ago I dropped a pair of pliers which chipped a chunk out of the floor. Really???? DANG!!!! That was the last straw. What good is a flooring product that cannot get wet, drop things on, slide things across, etc. Hey Pergo - Life Happens. Next time I plan on putting flooring down in a "controlled environment bubble".... it still wouldn't be Pergo. If you plan on wanting to live on and use the place you plan to put this product, I would have to suggest finding something else to use. This is the most "hands on" maintenance flooring I have ever had. Next project is probably going to be rip this s%@$ out and go with something a little more "life friendly"

I had tile in my kitchen. When I redid my kitchen I used Pergo American Cottage from Lowes. I picked that particular brand, because it had the color and look that I wanted. DH and I installed it. So far, so good. I HATED my tile because of its hardness and I never felt the grout was clean. I love how my pergo floor never looks dirty and is a breeze to clean. My mom had it in her kitchen for about 10 years and she loved it. She just put it in her new kitchen and it looks great. Although, the brand is Wilsonart, I think. I wanted the look of wood, without the maintenance, scratches. I know a lot of people here love their wood floor. Maybe it depends on the finish you get. Search for pictures of my kitchen if you're interested. Anyway, good luck with your decision. Everyone seems to have different preferences, so get what YOU want. Barb

ynnej- "bugs" behind the baseboards could be any number of things. If they were termites, they would have eaten some of the baseboard which you'd definitely notice. Termites: There are all kinds of things that like to live in carpets, but some of them are transients. We've had infestations of earwigs, flying ants, and little tiny beetle thingies over the years. The transient kinds are just passing through and disappear on their own after a week or two. Those kinds you just deal with as they appear. Some other things though you want the exterminator to come have a look at as they can either damage your home (wood, carpet, clothes) or potentially you, although that's pretty extreme. You should probably have a peek behind the baseboards again to see if they're still there. As far as your Pergo goes, have a piece on hand - or at least the depth measurement - when the new cabinets are installed. Your installer can make sure the footing under the cabs is the same as the flooring + underlayment so the cabinets will be at the correct level when the new floor arrives. There are many types of laminate flooring, some pretty awful and some really nice. Pergo falls comfortably on the nice end. My daughter's rental has a laminate floor that, knowing the landlord, was the cheapest thing available. Even that looks pretty good and performs well in her kitchen except for the transition from the family room to the kitchen. That is not the flooring's fault though. The landlord tried to nail the transition strip down into the concrete slab - it just doesn't work that way. Unless you check the reviews and find that Pergo quality has suddenly gone downhill for some reason, you should feel comfortable in your choice.