Advice on vinyl vs. laminate brands

[Shakey]

I've been searching locally and on the internet for flooring that will suit my needs. I have 2 teenagers with many friends and a 90 lb. lab. Our house is 4 feet above ground with a plywood subfloor. Carpet is now predominately in the house with vinyl sheet flooring in kitchen/laundry/baths. Being a single mom, money is always an issue, but I have to get this horribly stained carpet out and put something down.

Locally, it seems our flooring stores are way out of reach for my budget, however, I have found both laminate and vinyl planks online where I got samples and both seem of good quality. The laminate is from Kronoswiss and is 10mm. The vinyl planks are by Vesdura and are 4.2mm with a 0.5 wear layer. Both products are click locking. I'm also waiting on samples to be delivered of a brand called Featherweight that is also 4.2mm. Prices for all of this are slightly over my budget and I'll have to wait to do the entire house because of that. For now though, I will be doing everything except the bedrooms. The company with the Kronoswiss and the Featherweight have $97 shipping, whereas the company selling the Vesdura is extremely high in shipping cost.

Which products do any of you recommend for longevity, ease of installation, etc. and am I even going in the right direction with those products given that I have teenagers and a dog.

 

[Nick]

Don't buy anything online . And you don't want anything that is slippery . It's bad for the dogs back .

 

[Shakey]

Nick, thanks for replying. If I don't buy online, I'm pretty much stuck with HD or Lowe's since the flooring companies are way over my budget. What products do you recommend? I keep reading horror stories about their products for vinyl planks and laminate. It's all very confusing! My dog has been on the vinyl sheet flooring in the kitchen/laundry/baths for 10 years with no problems. If we're playing/running around with him, he slides a bit, but has never fallen.

 

[FloorMaven]

Nick, thanks for replying. If I don't buy online, I'm pretty much stuck with HD or Lowe's since the flooring companies are way over my budget. What products do you recommend? I keep reading horror stories about their products for vinyl planks and laminate. It's all very confusing! My dog has been on the vinyl sheet flooring in the kitchen/laundry/baths for 10 years with no problems. If we're playing/running around with him, he slides a bit, but has never fallen.

Do you plan on installing this yourself?

 

[FloorMaven]

Wood Laminate performs poorly in wet areas- baths, kitchens, laundry, etc.

 

[Ken]

Nick, thanks for replying. If I don't buy online, I'm pretty much stuck with HD or Lowe's since the flooring companies are way over my budget. What products do you recommend? I keep reading horror stories about their products for vinyl planks and laminate. It's all very confusing! My dog has been on the vinyl sheet flooring in the kitchen/laundry/baths for 10 years with no problems. If we're playing/running around with him, he slides a bit, but has never fallen.

DO NOT BUY ONLINE!!!! More trouble than its worth and no warranties. HOWEVER SHAKEY YOURE IN LUCK!!! This jersey boy actually subs for one of the afformentioned stores and I am familiar with everything they have as I have personally installed all of it, haha. As far as laminates are concerned anything over $2/sq in that store will suit your needs perfectly. Keep in mind that if you purchase a laminate without the padding attached you will need to buy it by the roll, so add $.25/sq. I would say look for something in a single strip with a beveled edge and avoid the three strips as they look like vinyl (fake). Also, I believe right now (depending on where you are located) they are running a sale on labor for half price if you buy pergo or armstrong, but avoid armstrong laminates. I have a strong distaste for them.

 

[Ken]

Wood Laminate performs poorly in wet areas- baths, kitchens, laundry, etc.

I agree on all fronts EXCEPT kitchens, I do tons of them! Although I do prefer tile or vinyl in kitchens, I have no issues with laminate in there.

 

[Shakey]

Ken, I've had several neighbors order online from 2 of the websites I've gotten samples from. They were astounded at the customer service before, during and after the sale. I went back to HD and Lowe's this evening and pulled planks from boxes to actually "feel" the quality. I gotta say that nothing held a candle to the samples I've received from Bestlaminate.net or Builddirect.com. I'd much rather buy from right here, but the only options for quality...price wise as well as the actual product, just aren't affordable for me. I know that buying online is riskier. Have you had any bad experiences with the above mentioned online sites? I'm really at a loss here and feel overwhelmed by all the choices....good and bad. Y'all's input is important to me because you're the experts.

Floormaven, my friend has installed laminate on several homes and is helping me with this.

To give y'all more info, the stuff I'm looking at online is:
The vinyl I'm talking about are not tiles. They are vinyl planks. It is 4.2 mm thickness with a 0.5 wear layer. It has click locking installation with an AO coating. It has a 25 year residential/5 year commercial warranty. It is from Build Direct and the brand is Vesdura. My nephew has an 18 wheeler and can pick up the product from the warehouse in Atlanta for free!
The laminate I like is by Kronoswiss. It's 10mm thickness with a 25 yr residential/3 year commercial warranty. It is rated AC4. It has 4 sided micro beveled edges with a V4 locking system. It's made in Switzerland. The planks are 4.57" x 54.33. Shipping is free and 3 in 1 underlayment is also free with this particular laminate right now. Bestlaminate.net has this product.

Thanks again for y'all's input.

 

[Ken]

Ive heard build direct is a nightmare. I would never order flooring online, youre asking for trouble. Another thing to consider is that the thickness of a laminate does NOT make it better/stronger/higher quality. I will take an 8mm board over a 10 or a 12 any day of the week.

 

[Ken]

How does one "feel" quality? Ive "felt" laminates. Ive "felt" wood. Ive even "felt" tile. Ive never "felt" quality before. Laminates are half of my business and I have a strong skillset with the products. You seem to be set on ordering online so just be careful and make sure you follow the directions, especially concerning expansion.

 

[Ernesto]

I was asked to bid on a BD job. The guy had 2,000 sf of chinese engineered he wanted floated. I pinned it with my meter right outa the box and celophane wrapper and my meter read 14% moisture content.

I told him he better send it right back or else it will shrink and all that will be left is tooth pics.

 

[Shakey]

Ken,
What I meant by feeling the quality was that the edges/tongues of many of the box store laminates crumbled or was damaged easily when I put pressure on them. The Kronoswiss from Bestlaminate.net had such a strong edge that I couldn't break it off. I left it sitting in some water overnight and couldn't see any damage after it dried. I've tried scratching it with keys, dropping a hammer from waist high, etc. and so far, the Kronoswiss sample has held up better than the samples from the box stores that I've done the same testing to.

Ernesto, I didn't realize BD used chinese manufactured products. After your post, I scoured the web and because of your post, I have decided against BD products. Thanks!

I appreciate all y'all's input. This is why I came onto this site was to get the opinions of the pros.

 

[Ken]

Oh Shakey, I'm shakeying my head. Those are HORRIBLE tests for quality! None of those represent normal wear and tear on your floor. While you may be able to break the locking system on some laminates, the floor does not reach its full strength until its assembled. I'm assuming leaving a sample in water overnight represents a flood? If you have a flood, you're ripping up that floor no matter what. Im also going to assume that you're not going to scratch your finished floors with your keys on a regular basis.

A 5' woman that weighs 125 lbs wearing stillettos weighs more per square inch than a full grown male elephant, about 2500 lbs per inch. A better way to test for quality would be to get an elephant and a woman in heels to walk over the samples and see how they hold up. Joking aside, anything with a 25 year warranty or better will be more than enough for your purposes.

 

[Shakey]

Ken,
One more question. Does the elephant have to wear stiletto's too? That could prove difficult to find a size to fit!

Okay, I've decided that picking out flooring is more difficult than raising children. However, either way....I'm going to be stuck with my decision for many, many years.

 

[FloorMaven]

A 5' woman that weighs 125 lbs wearing stillettos weighs more per square inch than a full grown male elephant, about 2500 lbs per inch.

It's pressure on the floor, not weight. I'm surprised you're still married. Plus the person would have to concentrate all their weight on one heel. Including toes and an additional heel reduces the pressure substantially.

 

[Ken]

I believe we are missing the point

 

[FloorMaven]

Ken,
However, either way....I'm going to be stuck with my decision for many, many years.

Not necessarily as laminate in a kitchen and bath looks dingy in 2-5 years. The product isn't designed for the aggressive cleaning and hard use a busy kitchen and bath is subjected too.

 

[Ken]

Aggressive cleaning? Is that a new Olympic sport?

 

[FloorMaven]

Aggressive cleaning? Is that a new Olympic sport?

If you consider cleaning just about every day with soap and water and elbow grease an Olympic sport then sure, why not. The op wanted an experienced professionals opinion. I've been installing lam since it hit the shores (I think you were in elementary school at the time) and in my experience laminate kitchen floors always degrade prematurely.

 

[Ken]

Just because something has been done/said for a long time doesn't make it right. People have been smoking forever and look at the reputation that's gotten. Old timers always say to me, "ive never taken a moisture reading and I've installed tons of floors". We all know the right answer to that. I've installed many laminate floors in kitchens, gone back years later to install other rooms and they still look great. If you have to clean your floor everyday and they look dingy then they're cleaning it wrong and probably not following the recommended procedure.