ᐅ Advantages of Solid Wood Planks Compared to Laminate Flooring

Created on: 16 Jan 2015 10:32
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Vega82
Is there even still one available?
I am specifically talking about engineered hardwood flooring, not solid hardwood.
Basically, it consists of two layers of wood as the base and a thin wear layer on top.

Laminate, on the other hand, has a substrate made of particleboard, a decorative layer, and a protective coating.

As a non-expert, I currently see more advantages with laminate because it requires less maintenance.
So, what really speaks in favor of engineered hardwood flooring, besides the fact that it is real wood and not a printed design?
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nordanney
20 Jan 2015 14:04
How about linoleum? It is also a natural building material and is now available in many different varieties.
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Vega82
20 Jan 2015 14:05
The thermal coefficient is quite important to me. I have also come across vinyl before. So far, it hasn’t really convinced me in real life... but I haven’t seen it installed on a large scale yet.

@Admin
The problem with laminate and engineered wood flooring, when not glued down, is that the required heating load increases significantly. At least, that’s what I’ve read so far.
Or am I mistaken?
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DerBjoern
20 Jan 2015 14:22
The most dynamic floor surface is probably carpet as it ages...
One0020 Jan 2015 22:57
I still don’t quite understand what is meant by "dead" and "alive" in relation to flooring. I get the general idea of what you mean, but I can’t fully relate to it. People spend all day wearing clothes made from crude oil, eat their food from plastic containers, brush their teeth with plastic, work with computers made of plastic—but when it comes to flooring, for the sake of “healthy living,” it always has to be completely natural. I really appreciate wood, including as a flooring material, but I don’t fully understand the argument about it being "dead" or "alive."
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DerBjoern
21 Jan 2015 08:53
@One00

For many, it’s more a matter of gut feeling... Synthetic flooring often has a bad reputation because it was frequently used in the 1970s and 1980s, and was often contaminated with harmful substances. During that period, there was generally a lot of poor workmanship in what was installed or used in apartments. This perception has stuck in some people’s minds...
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Vega82
21 Jan 2015 09:07
Well, I once read an eco-test article from 2012 (I think) where the new vinyl/PVC floors didn’t score very well in terms of harmful substances... However, the question also arises about how healthy the emissions from laminate floor coatings and carpets are...