B&Q Laminate flooring - any good?

BishBashBosh86

Hey folks,

Rennovating my new home and I am coming upto the flooring stage. Its my first house so the whole rennovation has opened my eyes to the amount of choice there is for EVERYTHING!

My brother is a builder and he suggested using Howdens. He has Howdens laminate which looks great and he hasnt had any issues with durability etc I believe their price for the laminate I wanted came to about £18m2.

I nipped to my local B&Q and found a very similar laminate floor for £14m2. I got a sample and showed it to my brother, who handles this kind of stuff quite regularily for work, and he said the quality looked pretty much the same as the Howdens stuff and looked good enough, the only slight difference being the way you connect the pieces up. The flooring I found was this:

http://www.diy.com/departments/nobile-chestnut-effect-authentic-embossed-finish-laminate-flooring-173-m-pack/1346432_BQ.prd

Has anyone had any experience with B&Q flooring? I want it for my hallway, kitchen, dining room.

The reviews on the B&Q site look very good but just wanted any other opinions.

Cheers

cajef

I fitted B&Q laminate to the floor of our conservatory when it was built six years ago, the only any problem we have had with it is that it has faded slightly but then it is in a conservatory with a glass roof so no surprise, it still looks good.

lauraland

I think thats the same stuff they sell at homebase? http://www.homebase.co.uk/en/homebaseuk/eurohome-tawny-chestnut-laminate-flooring-236166

It has pretty good reviews and the sample I have looks really good quality. I didn't realise B&Q sold it also, and they are cheaper!

Aleem

I always check the rating and buy at least an AC3 rated laminate (heavy residential/moderate commercial).

https://www.builddirect.com/learning-center/flooring/laminate-flooring-ratings/

BishBashBosh86

lauraland wrote: »

I think thats the same stuff they sell at homebase? http://www.homebase.co.uk/en/homebaseuk/eurohome-tawny-chestnut-laminate-flooring-236166

lauraland wrote: »

It has pretty good reviews and the sample I have looks really good quality. I didn't realise B&Q sold it also, and they are cheaper!

Ha, going by the spec and stock photo it does appear to be similar. The only difference is the Homebase one is "EuroHome" flooring whereas the B&Q stuff is "Nobile". No idea if that means there is a big difference between them or not.

The B&Q one seems durable and strong enough. I've ran some screws over them and they seem pretty scratch resistant (random test I know)

Jimmy_Neutron

People say the quality of underlay makes a massive difference to the feel and sound etc of the fitted laminate flooring. Which are you using?

lauraland

BishBashBosh86 wrote: »

Ha, going by the spec and stock photo it does appear to be similar. The only difference is the Homebase one is "EuroHome" flooring whereas the B&Q stuff is "Nobile". No idea if that means there is a big difference between them or not.

The B&Q one seems durable and strong enough. I've ran some screws over them and they seem pretty scratch resistant (random test I know)

I know quite a few retailers do this, sell the same items but under different brand names - makes it harder for consumers to compare prices!. Next time I'm in b&q I will pick up a sample and compare the 2, but they do look identical online.

BishBashBosh86

Aleem wrote: »

I always check the rating and buy at least an AC3 rated laminate (heavy residential/moderate commercial).

https://www.builddirect.com/learning-center/flooring/laminate-flooring-ratings/

Cheers. Yeah I looked into the AC rating (mine has been given AC4) but I initially just thought it was a generic stamp that these companies stick on. Does look to be abit more substantial than that though with the independent testing. Cheers for the link.

BishBashBosh86

Jimmy_Neutron wrote: »

People say the quality of underlay makes a massive difference to the feel and sound etc of the fitted laminate flooring. Which are you using?

Ha good question. Asking my brother about it he basically just said "how much do you want to spend". I don't want the cheap naff stuff but also don't want to spend a fortune on it. I'll be honest and say I havent looked at the underlay yet - any suggestions?

Jimmy_Neutron

How about this laminate?

Elka Golden Oak 1-Strip V-Groove (thickness 8mm)

BishBashBosh86

Jimmy_Neutron wrote: »

How about this laminate?

Elka Golden Oak 1-Strip V-Groove (thickness 8mm)

Yeah looks good to me although I'm going for the 10mm stuff.