Hardwood vs laminate with 2 toddlers, 1 dog & 3 cats


  #1  
Old 11-20-04, 12:49 PM
hhhissjunior
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Hardwood vs laminate with 2 toddlers, 1 dog & 3 cats

Hi,
I am new here and am looking to replace the trashed carpets in my living room ,dining room, hallway, Master bedroom and my childrens rooms and cannot decide whether to go with laminate or hardwood or something in between. The installer is recommending a Wilsonart laminate as it has a water reistant warranty - essential for potty training, spills etc. My main requirements are stain resistant, easy maintanence, water resitance and resale value. I do not mind if the homes value is increased but I do not want it to decrease. Any advice would be greatly appreciated as it has taken a lot of effort persuading my husband to let me spend the money to do this.
Thanks,
Barbara
 
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Old 11-20-04, 01:03 PM
majakdragon's Avatar
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Given the pets and kids I (personal opinion) would go with the laminate. Hardwood floors will make it more attractive to a future buyer however if they are stained and marred that would be a turn off. Good luck on your project.
 
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Old 11-22-04, 09:21 AM
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as long as you don't put it in the bathrooms or kitchen, i vote laminate, too. nothing will decrease the value of your home except horrificly worn/dirty carpet! laminate looks fresh & clean. it's very easy to care for (although you'd better like mopping!) & easy to install. it's not an "investment" like hardwood is, but it doesn't cost a fortune like hardwood, either.
 
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Old 11-22-04, 11:42 AM
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Why can't laminiate be installed in a kitchen?
 
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Old 11-22-04, 11:49 AM
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it "can", it's just that there are very few of them that are supposed to be. water is the enemy of laminate flooring. if you put it in the kitchen & the dishwasher leaks, or the water line to the ice maker comes unattached, you're SOL. ditto for the bathroom if the toilet overflows or you splash a lot in the tub.

a small amount of water, if wiped up in a timely manner, won't hurt, but the bigger accidents would ruin a regular laminate floor. (the material swells & then the seams don't fit & it buckles and all heck breaks loose....)
 
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Old 11-24-04, 10:19 AM
florcraft
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The only problem I have with that stetement, is the fact that if appliances and toilets break, there is no floor that is guaranteed to withstand that kind of mess.
your right though, water is not a friend of laminate. But I would hate to convince someone to get tile instead, and then they complain that their feet hurt, or they drop their crock pot and it smashes.
Or convince them to get into vinyl, and it gauges or gets hard to clean.

To keep myself from getting into alot of problems, I usually like to educate on all problems with all floorings and let the customer decide the lesser of the evils.

kinda like voting for president!
 
 

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