Laminate/Wooden flooring help please

Evie82

I have never had anything but carpet in my house, however we are due to move in next few weeks and with 3 kids I could really do with a nice wood floor to clean rather than scrubbing carpets.

I am hoping to laminate as I know its cheaper but just wondered if this is a bad idea and quality vs money I am making the wrong choice? I have a hallway from front door to kitchen to do and a lounge/diner thats 20ft long. I only need it to last 1/2 years really, its just so much needs doing in house that need to get a floor down for a reasonable price and think about long term quality and appearance in the future.

What do I need to think about? Where is best to buy it? Do I buy a kit or everything individually?

Does it need an underlay of any sort? The current floor is like a marly tile type thing......like 50's style.

tony6403

We have found that cushion flooring (vinyl stuff) is very good . Cleans easily , has taken some real stick from the grandchildren and still after 4 years looks as good as new. Needed 3mm plywood underlay . Looks a bit like this.

jimbo_the_jetset

Would agree with Tony for a cheap and quick transformation, vinyl are much better quality than they used to be and can last ages and very easy to clean. Not as much worry as you would get with a cheap laminate floor of using a wet mop.

So really it comes down to a personal choice, do you want a "really nice wood floor" or a nice cheap decent looking easy to maintain floor which will be quicker to install

patriick

I'm wondering about these vinyl planks, sort of a halfway house between laminate flooring and vinyl sheets.

An example of what they look like is here:

http://www.armstrong.com/flooring/luxury-vinyl/luxe-plank.asp

p.s Did a search for "vinyl planks" on the forum and came up with a few threads - they seem to have mixed reviews.