Laminate flooring. Is 12mm worth paying extra compared to 8mm

dominoman

I want to replace the carpet in my BTL apartment.

After viewing a load of samples I got free online I decided to go for one called Krono Antique Oak 9195. It's at the budget end of the scale but looks good and is fairly tough.

Now I need to decide whether to get 8mm or 12mm thickness. Is it worth paying extra for 12mm and what's the difference when it is down?

Hasbeen

dominoman wrote: »

I want to replace the carpet in my BTL apartment.

After viewing a load of samples I got free online I decided to go for one called Krono Antique Oak 9195. It's at the budget end of the scale but looks good and is fairly tough.

Now I need to decide whether to get 8mm or 12mm thickness. Is it worth paying extra for 12mm and what's the difference when it is down?

The difference is it is more expensive especially for a rental, but your choice, see link for further info.

http://www.bambooindustry.com/blog/laminate-flooring-8mm-12mm.html

lush_walrus

Are you having laminate throughout? The thicker laminate will enable a better threshold relationship where abutting some thicker floor tiles tiles. 8mm is slimmer than the build up of most tiled floors thus creating a difference where the two neighbour each other. I guess as a rental you wouldn't be concerned, in your own house it might be annoyimg.

rob7475

If it's laminate, it's not just the thickness you need to think about. The quality of the top layer if more important. I'd rather have an 8mm laminate with a tougher top layer than 12mm with poorer top layer that's going to chip and damage easier.

cyclonebri1

rob7475 wrote: »

If it's laminate, it's not just the thickness you need to think about. The quality of the top layer if more important. I'd rather have an 8mm laminate with a tougher top layer than 12mm with poorer top layer that's going to chip and damage easier.

Thought it was time someone said that:T, it's all about the finish in my view and even though I don't like the stuff if I did it would be quality over heavier backing everytime.

I don't know if they do this or not but it would be handy if the manf had to give a thickness/hardness rating for all types.

They do something like that for vinyl flooring

iwanna

I would go by the AC rating rather than the thickness.

AC1 Moderate Residential.
Built to withstand only light residential use. Suitable for closets or bedrooms.

AC2 General Residential.
Built for moderate foot traffic. Suitable in residential spaces that don’t see a tremendous amount of wear and tear like dining rooms or living rooms.

AC3 Heavy Residential/Moderate Commercial
Built for all kinds of residential use including high–traffic rooms and even commercial spaces that have light traffic like offices without off-street traffic and hotel rooms.

AC4 General Commercial
Built to withstand every kind of residential use as well as more heavily trafficked commercial spaces that have off-street traffic like offices, cafes, and boutiques.

AC5 Heavy Commercial.
Built for the busiest commercial uses and high–traffic spaces like department stores and government buildings.

dominoman

The only area where it meets it is meeting up with other laminate, which was there when I bought it and is cheap and nasty looking - so probably 8mm (or less).

It's for rental but I'd like it to look and feel solid, so for the sake of 20% - 30% extra cost I'm leaning towards going 12mm.

dominoman

How much should I be paying for fitting approximately?

It's 30m2, with a click system and I want the existing carpet taken away too. The space is rectangular so should all be fairly straightforward.

I've been quoted 750 for fitting (I supply all materials) by a friend of a friend who is supposedly very good. It seems quite high to me. I can't imagine it would take more than a day all in.

rob7475

It took me a day to do an area about that size. However, skirting boards were off when I started so that saved me some time.

750 sounds a bit dear to me. I'd expect to pay no more than half of that really. It depends what quality of finish you want though. Ideally you want someone who's going to go under the skirting boards so you don't have to use the awful, cheap looking beading. He will also need to cut the bottom of door architraves so the floor can slide under and leave an expansion gap. He will also have to ensure the subfloor is level which can add time/cost.

A good fitter can make a cheap laminate look great. However, a poor fitter can also make an expensive floor look rubbish.

I prefer to do jobs like this myself. I'm a bit of a perfectionist and quite handy so I'll have a go at most things with good results. I did have one guy round to fit a new door who was a friend of a friend. He spent all day fitting the door. It didn't shut properly, one knob was higher than the other and it wasn't square in the frame. I'm glad he only charged £30!! I ended up having to sort it myself.

cyclonebri1

iwanna wrote: »

I would go by the AC rating rather than the thickness.

AC1 Moderate Residential.
Built to withstand only light residential use. Suitable for closets or bedrooms.

AC2 General Residential.
Built for moderate foot traffic. Suitable in residential spaces that don’t see a tremendous amount of wear and tear like dining rooms or living rooms.

AC3 Heavy Residential/Moderate Commercial
Built for all kinds of residential use including high–traffic rooms and even commercial spaces that have light traffic like offices without off-street traffic and hotel rooms.

AC4 General Commercial
Built to withstand every kind of residential use as well as more heavily trafficked commercial spaces that have off-street traffic like offices, cafes, and boutiques.

AC5 Heavy Commercial.
Built for the busiest commercial uses and high–traffic spaces like department stores and government buildings.

So there is a grading system.

dominoman

Thanks.

The one I chose and liked the look of is AC4, so will be fine for the apartment lounge.

I'm amazed how cheap laminate is, compared to tiles.