Flooring laminate

The wooden floor is absolutely popular but can not be laid and expensive everywhere. The laminate is a low-cost alternative. Laminate is a floor covering that consists of a carrier layer and a decorative layer. The carrier layer are mostly MDF boards. As a rule, the surface is sealed with melanin resin. All layers are pressed together under pressure and high temperatures, making laminate so hard-wearing. Northern Europeans are considered the inventors of laminate, with Austria and Germany still at the forefront of laminate production today. The rest of Europe was then conquered in the mid-80s with the first planks and light wood imitation.

The advantages

• Durable, non-slip and impact resistant
• cheap, flame retardant
• Self-laying and suitable for underfloor heating
• Easy care (may not be wiped too wet)

The disadvantages

• For the wet area only partially suitable
• Impact sound insulation required and gives footsteps again

The durable flooring

Laminate is absolutely hard-wearing. Laminate flooring is light and heat resistant, as well as impact and abrasion resistant. Six to twelve inches is the strength of the panels. At this point, it must be said that the thicker the panels are, the more robust they are. However, the laminate can vary in price. The cheaper laminate is usually a simple decor and not exactly thick. It is also more sensitive to natural abrasion and moisture. A higher quality laminate is slightly stronger and the surface design is usually more complex. In the case of laminate, great importance is attached to the realistic representation of the wood grain. The laminate floor can be very similar in appearance to the real parquet floor. The surface of the laminate was then painstakingly sealed and is therefore also much more resilient.

What should be considered in the purchase?

The laminate is so popular because it is very easy to handle. On your own, laminate can be laid very well. While the flooring used to be mostly glued, today there is the so-called click-laminate. The click laminate can simply be pushed into each other and then hardly more joints between individual planks are recognizable. Typically, laminate is found when sold in packaged stacks. The quantity and the dimensions are very different for the individual manufacturers. Every buyer should pay attention to the number of pieces and square meters. When laying laminate usually also always waste. For this reason, when buying on the square footage needed still about ten percent should be added. It is best to lay a footfall sound insulation, because the laminate is relatively loud. Suitable are footstep cork or foam or special foils. The floor can be leveled at the same time, but they must be laid before the laminate even more specifically. If you want even more, you can buy a laminate floor, where the insulation has already been glued firmly to the panel.

The decors and surfaces

The décor has changed a lot in the last few years. In the meantime laminate can be structured and there is not only the classic smooth surface. Laminate can thus almost feel like real wood. Wood is still the most popular look in laminate decors, followed by terracotta, stone and concrete designs. In the meantime, with the help of digital printing processes, there is also a printed laminate with lawn optics, graphic forms and colorful retro patterns. The new impregnation can also protect against water and special coatings prevent static electricity. In the bathroom laminate can also be laid by rubber profiles and by a special polyurethane adhesive.