ᐅ Flooring. Laminate, engineered hardwood, vinyl? Where is the best place to buy?

Created on: 10 Oct 2016 18:25
A
AndreasPlü
Hello,

for our new single-family home, we are looking for suitable floor coverings. On the ground floor, the choice is fixed with a view to the entrance/terrace to the garden/fireplace: tiles. There will also be tiles in the basement. The house will have underfloor heating with an air-to-water heat pump.

Now we are considering what to put upstairs (children’s bedrooms and ours) as well as in the attic (gallery). Regardless of price, I find parquet problematic in playrooms, but ideally, the flooring should be uniform throughout the floor, look like wood, and be somewhat warm underfoot.

The price should be a maximum of 35 €/sqm (about $37/sqft) and it should be possible to install it ourselves. It should also match the solid walnut staircase.

What would you choose/recommend? Laminate, cheaper engineered wood flooring, or even vinyl? And where is the best place to buy? Which manufacturers have a good reputation?
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Bieber0815
11 Oct 2016 13:10
Solid wood floors, also known as parquet, can last practically forever (over 100 years if properly maintained) and, in my opinion, are not maintenance-intensive in private residential settings.
77.willo11 Oct 2016 13:35
Grym schrieb:
We also thought about it a lot but keep coming to the same conclusion. Hardwood flooring is more expensive, requires more maintenance, is less durable, and wears out faster.

Hardwood flooring was included as a standard option for us as well. For similar reasons, we decided to replace it with vinyl. It wasn’t significantly cheaper, though. It cost €50 (about $55), only €10 (about $11) less than the included hardwood. Personally, I like the look of vinyl much more than the rather plain hardwood options we were offered. Cost did not play a role in our decision.
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Grym
11 Oct 2016 13:43
Just quickly looked it up on Google:
(oiled parquet floor)
- Parquet is much less moisture-resistant than vinyl, so it requires damp mopping rather than wet mopping
- Microfiber cloths damage parquet
- If food or drinks are spilled, clean them up IMMEDIATELY
- All-purpose cleaners leave a dull residue
- Mopping with too little moisture just pushes dirt into the joints/pores
- Re-oil once a year (which means completely emptying the room, applying oil, letting it absorb, then putting everything back — this can take more than one day)
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ypg
11 Oct 2016 13:46
We have bamboo parquet flooring in our multipurpose room. As far as I remember, the self-adhesive type costs under 30€/m² (about $30/sq ft), and it is harder than oak since bamboo is not wood but a grass. Because of this, it is quite durable, even though its texture looks finer.

It is available in several shades, and there are two or three texture options to choose from.

Best regards
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Bieber0815
11 Oct 2016 13:55
Grym schrieb:
Just quickly Googled:
(oiled parquet flooring)
You can also make life unnecessarily complicated... The mentioned criticisms can be avoided without effort or cost. It is actually easier simply to avoid the nonsense that is supposed to be harmful.
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Grym
11 Oct 2016 14:38
How can this be avoided?