Floor Renovations: Laminate or Hardwood – Which One to Choose?

The choice between hardwood and laminate flooring shouldn’t be a difficult one. They each deliver a distinct effect on the overall aesthetics of a room, have different price points, and maintain different physical properties that offer various degrees of damage resistance.

Understanding the differences between laminate and hardwood flooring can help you make the best choice for a home in the Los Angeles area.

Laminate Flooring: Elegant and Economical

Laminate floors are relatively mysterious to the common person. They are made from composite wood that has been put under high amounts of pressure at high temperatures. An image is overlaid upon the base before being laminated.

The result is a more affordable floor that can look identical in quality to hardwood floors with a few distinct trade-offs. Laminate flooring tends to be about half the cost of hardwood flooring installation.

This pressed wood is more resilient to moisture, scratches and wear than hardwood floors. This means that it can last significantly longer when it is cleaned on a regular basis.

The downside of laminate is that quality differs greatly between different types of laminate flooring. Poor-quality laminate flooring can look fake, and may detract from the overall quality of your home.

If it’s ever damaged, it may need to be completely replaced due to the way it was created. New pieces may not look like older ones due to ultraviolet rays and age.

Hardwood Floors: Long-Lasting and Beautiful

Hardwood flooring is created directly from law lumber. This gives it an aesthetically pleasing look that tends to surpass laminate floor in comparison tests. The value it can add to your home can be significant due to its more desirable appearance.

If wood flooring is ever scratched or damaged, it’s often far easier to fix than laminate flooring. Some buffing, sanding and sealing can make all but the deepest of scratches simply disappear.

Seldom do you need to replace pieces of hardwood floors, but it is generally more successful than laminate floor repair. You need only match the type of flooring with the right wood, the right treatment processes and the expertise to make a replacement piece match another.

But this heightened durability and beauty comes at an increase of up-front cost. Hardwood tend to cost more than laminate floors on average. More exotic woods can cost significantly more due to scarcity and enhanced appearance.

Laminate or Hardwood Floors for Your Los Angeles Home?

The choice between hardwood or laminate floors in Los Angeles is one that requires you to evaluate your home as a whole. You need to weigh cost versus benefit to ensure that your floor actively works to enhance the beauty, safety and function of your home…but once you make that evaluation, you should be able to decide relatively quickly which type of flooring is best for you.

About Writer –

Steven Adams is a content strategist and blogger with a great expertise in writing tips, trends and latest news about home improvement and hardwood industry. You can directly contact her at Google+.