The flooring in your home is not only for functionality, it can add to your home’s aesthetic appeal. For many homeowners, hardwood flooring is considered as the most appealing flooring option, however over the past several decades laminate flooring has grown in popularity and is considered by many as the top flooring option. Hardwood and laminate flooring have similar looks, but they differentiate in structure. As a result of their differences, their installation, maintenance, cleaning and repair also vary. To help highlight the differences between hardwood flooring and laminate flooring, we outline 5 differences between the two below.
1. Material
Hardwood flooring can be made out of solid hardwood or engineered hardwood. Both are natural material sourced from hardwood. On the contrary, laminate flooring is a synthetic product made from fibreboard and resin to form a board. Laminate flooring is finished with a photographic pattern to mimic the look of real wood, especially engineered hardwood, but it is made of composite materials.
2. Cost
Price is another distinguishing factor between genuine hardwood flooring and laminate flooring. Installing hardwood flooring has a higher cost than installing laminate flooring because of the materials used for the installation and the installation process itself.
3. Longevity and Durability
Hardwood flooring is mostly preferred when considering the longevity of both genuine hardwood flooring and laminate flooring. Although both types of flooring are considered durable, hardwood flooring can last up to 80 years while laminate flooring has a life expectancy of about 20 years. Hardwood flooring can be resurfaced and refinished every 10-20 years, which in most cases can be done up to four times before it needs to be replaced. Laminate flooring has the benefit of being less susceptible to scratching, is water resistant and is easier to maintain.
4. Aesthetics
Due to the endless variations of the hardwood grains and stains, hardwood flooring has an extensive collection of looks and patterns as no two real wood planks look identical. Laminate flooring on the other hand has identical patterns that are repeated every few boards. Regardless of how laminate flooring resembles hardwood flooring, the uniqueness and multifarious patterns of hardwood flooring gives itself a more authentic and exciting look.
5. Installation
Most hardwood flooring does interlock together, but there are some nuances to the installation process that are better left to professionals to install. If you are an experienced DIYer, you can try your hand at installing hardwood yourself. Laminate flooring is considered much easier to install as each piece clicks into each other and no specialty tools are required.
Above we explored 5 differences between hardwood flooring and laminate flooring, which should help you make an informed decision when selecting the right flooring option for your home. If you still have questions about the differences between hardwood flooring and laminate flooring visit our Peterborough showroom for more information.