Laminate Or Engineered Hardwood Flooring

In the meantime stay organized by creating a my shaw account where you can compare your flooring options save your favorites and keep track of your orders all in one place.

Laminate or engineered hardwood flooring.

While solid hardwood floors are ideal for the diehard wood lovers engineered hardwood is a greener option and laminate is a cheaper one. Most importantly engineered wood contains a top layer of solid wood while laminate uses a photographic layer coated with a wear layer to achieve the wood. This is the only option of installation for a laminate floor however an engineered hardwood floor can also be installed with a glue down or nail staple option. Laminate flooring and engineered hardwood are sometimes confused with each other because they can look similar.

Explore which is better for kitchens basements based on cost resale value durability and more. Homeadvisor s flooring guide explains the differences between laminate and engineered hardwood and reviews the pros and cons of each. Both floor coverings were developed as economical and versatile alternatives to that mainstay of flooring material solid hardwood flooring. If your remodeling project or new construction calls for the look and feel of traditional hardwoods then your three main flooring options will be laminate hardwood and engineered wood floors.

Engineered hardwood flooring has a similar construction as laminate except the top decorative layer is a thick veneer of real wood protected by a coating of clear acrylic. Both laminate flooring and engineered hardwood floors can be floated with a diy click and lock installation. One major difference is the subfloor requirements. However despite similar appearances there are key differences between them.

Upwards of 2 20 per square foot for engineered hardwood compared to upwards of 3 40 per square foot for solid. Let s explore the differences between laminate and hardwood floors. If you are having trouble deciding be sure to read our laminate flooring project guide or any of our flooring cost estimators. Better still it s competitively priced compared to solid hardwood flooring.

Laminate flooring and engineered wood flooring are two obvious choices if you want a flooring that looks like solid hardwood but at a more affordable price. Its products are widely available at home improvement centers. Which one will you go with. And whether you re looking to gather information select a new style or care for the floors in your home we look forward to helping you along the way.

It provides the unmatched beauty of real wood without solid wood flooring s tendency to shrink or warp.