Please don't use that cheap, fake wood for your floor replacement if you're selling.

[Momto4boys]

We're redoing a kids bedroom and laying laminate. The upstairs bedrooms have laminate as well and soooo easy to take care of. The hardwood on the main floor is a mess. Scratched up and nicked here and there. Bah.

Don't like it then don't buy the house. It's not like its shag carpeting or something major to fix like windows or even tile. Easy to rip up and replace.

 

[shortbun]

I love my laminate. It has held up well with pets and is easier to clean than carpet. Just because someone couldn't afford hardwood doesn't mean they don't take care of their home.

Marsha

Did I say that? Nope! I said, don't buy the cheap stuff so you can show your house with 'new' floors. I'd rather see the old and replace it myself than pay you back in the price of your house for some awful flooring that is new. In other words-if you can't afford a decent upgrade then don't bother. Wood floors hold up much better 50 years from now than laminate every does-dogs, children and all. The oak floors in my current home are 98 years old and they are warm and gorgeous. Real wood is the best investment and looks the best. And to those who say 'if you don't like it, move on', I certainly DO move on. But if you want to see your house 'move on' in today's market - skip the cheap upgrades.

 

[shortbun]

I LOVE my laminate. Sorry it offends you...
Didn't want to care for hardwood floors.

I've lived with hardwood since I was 10. I'm not sure what you mean 'care for.' A dustmop or broom or vacumn is all you need. A damp mop with a little vinegar if they get dirty. No allergens, no tears, no gouging that can't be sanded and repaired...natural, chemical free and sustainable product. I'm talking hardwood-not pine. They last the lifetime of the house. Guess I'm a snob. It's a good thing.

 

[disneybound31]

What kind of laminates are you guys that love yours talking about? We have horrible, scraped up, nasty linoleum in our dining/kitchen area... had our local mom and pop flooring co. give us an estimate on tile-3 different estimates- porcelain and two other tile and the cheapest was over 5k! The one we really wanted was over 8K! Not happening. DH wants wood look laminate- I would rather have tile look laminate. Because of the shock of those first estimates we have done nothing and it has been another 6 months.

We really need to get moving on this nasty floor- any recommendations?

 

[mom2val]

We have hardwood in our study and bedroom. Wish we had saved $$$$$ and got laminate. Dh is s freak constantly on hands and knees going crazy about dings and scratches!

 

[PatMcDuck]

Interesting thread, because our flooring is so gross, 15+ year old builders grade off white carpet, 4 kids, 2 dogs, it is really really bad. We may sell in a few years, and I think we need to do hardwood to sell.......... and I think we would sell much faster with it. Most of the cost would be recouped, I think.

I may have to go with engineered wood, but it would be hardwood.... It will cost a fortune, big house, and every room needs to be done.

I am leaning towards doing it evenin the kitchen, but that worries me.....

 

[KirstenB]

OP, I understand. Our main house has red oak in the downstairs. I love it. When we built our garage with an in law suite above it, we did Pergo floors up there. They drive me nuts, because when I mop them, you can still see the lines where I mopped. Plus especially in winter, they don't sweep up as well as hardwood. It's like the dust clings to them a little bit. Anyway, I see a huge difference between the 2 types of floors.

 

[Pigeon]

We put laminate in our kitchen last year. It was every bit as expensive as oak would have been, and then a little more. It's WilsonArt, in a slate pattern. I love it. It's so easy to keep clean and is very tough stuff. I love hardwood, but I wouldn't want it in my kitchen.

I have some hardwood in this house and have had hardwood in my last two houses. In no way does it hold up as well as the laminate I have in my house now. We've got a dog and her claws scratch. Kids drop stuff and ding the wood.

I love wood, but for some applications I prefer laminate, and some of it really looks quite nice.

 

[MomPOM]

Guess I'm a snob. It's a good thing.

 

[3boymthr]

Well, I'm in the middle on this one.

I have a cousin who put in laminate and it looked great and seemed to hold up really well so for most it's a good choice.

Like OP though we have hardwood floors except kitchen and bath and love it. It's also original to the house which is 60 years old.

I love my hardwood and really it's definitely no maintenance. I think when you have old hardwood you aren't as obsessed with the maintenance as those with new hardwood - I vacuum, dust and every so often hardwood cleaner. Mine is scratched but still looks great -it's got that mellow lived in look.

But if you are going to put in laminate for a quick sale I'd rather have a the old icky floor than a cheap laminate one for sure so I can put in what I like. We have to redo the kitchen because the previous owner did as OP described and got a cheap laminate solution for the kitchen for the quick sale but which didn't hold up short term never mind long term. After a few months the finish was gone and it looked as bad as the old architechural tile floor (which is visible if you pull out the dishwasher). The laminate now cracking peeling along the seams and completely broken with chunks missing along the edges because it was cheep flooring installed poorly. We're now looking at tile or bamboo.

 

[mfd25wife]

I like laminate, but it has come a long way since it was first introduced. I hated the clicking noise that laminate always made. However, now there are pads and thicker laminate. Some looks good. Some still look and sound cheap. I've seen some laminate you have to look fairly hard to tell it's not real wood. We actually settled on laminate and tile through our house. We chose laminate over hard wood because of our dogs. Their nails will damage real wood fairly easily. We tested laminate before we bought it so make sure it was hard to scratch. While it can be done, it is difficult to do.

 

[littlele]

I am honestly very surprised by the amount of laminate supporters on here. I am with the OP in that I would absolutely walk away from a house with laminate floors much in the same way I would walk from a home with bright lime green carpet. Sure you can replace it, but let's face it, with the current market buyers can absolutely be picky. And you should be picky with such a big purchase!

Having wood floors through most of my lower level, I also don't understand the upkeep concerns. Like the pp said, a little vinegar and water and it's clean.

 

[bumbershoot]

Do you understand how expensive hardwood floors are?

Plus with dogs and children, the laminate holds up so much better. I don't want to spend $$$$ on flooring and then have the dogs tear it up.

I agree.

My mom and stepdad put it in and it cost the earth. Then it offgassed (I assume the stuff they put under it?) for ages and made my mom sick.

We have some sort of proper wood in the condo we live in now, and it scratches, we have to be SO careful. I hate it. Give me Ikea flooring ANY day. It's pretty, easy, cheaper, and I like the look 2 million times more than what my parents had and what we're living with right now.

I've lived with hardwood since I was 10. I'm not sure what you mean 'care for.' A dustmop or broom or vacumn is all you need. A damp mop with a little vinegar if they get dirty.

But if someone (previous renter) messes up and puts some goop they aren't supposed to put on it, they get messed up. Our landlady told us "vinegar and water", and it's NOT cutting through whatever the previous lady put on the floors. What has cut through it? Laying on the floor with a Dobie pad and a bit of Dawn in water, and scrubbing it. It's AWFUL.

 

[shortbun]

I agree.

My mom and stepdad put it in and it cost the earth. Then it offgassed (I assume the stuff they put under it?) for ages and made my mom sick.

We have some sort of proper wood in the condo we live in now, and it scratches, we have to be SO careful. I hate it. Give me Ikea flooring ANY day. It's pretty, easy, cheaper, and I like the look 2 million times more than what my parents had and what we're living with right now.



But if someone (previous renter) messes up and puts some goop they aren't supposed to put on it, they get messed up. Our landlady told us "vinegar and water", and it's NOT cutting through whatever the previous lady put on the floors. What has cut through it? Laying on the floor with a Dobie pad and a bit of Dawn in water, and scrubbing it. It's AWFUL.

Tell your landlord, perhaps they need refinishing due to some major abuse or the floors have a poly finish and someone's tried to use wood cleaner which would gum up since it's actually poly you're cleaning.

BTW, you can get cheap, bad wood for floors just as you can buy cheap, awful laminate. Basically, you get what you pay for in all flooring. The good quality wood floors are the best and most durable.

 

[kaytieeldr]

Did I say that? Nope! I said, don't buy the cheap stuff so you can show your house with 'new' floors. I'd rather see the old and replace it myself than pay you back in the price of your house for some awful flooring that is new.

But if you are going to put in laminate for a quick sale I'd rather have a the old icky floor than a cheap laminate one for sure so I can put in what I like.

Respectfully, while you are each saying this - you don't actually have any idea what the condition of that replaced flooring was. It's extremely likely it was SO bad, you wouldn't have even considered the house.

Instead, just buy the house you like and pay to replace the flooring you don't.

 

[soccerchick]

What kind of laminates are you guys that love yours talking about? We have horrible, scraped up, nasty linoleum in our dining/kitchen area... had our local mom and pop flooring co. give us an estimate on tile-3 different estimates- porcelain and two other tile and the cheapest was over 5k! The one we really wanted was over 8K! Not happening. DH wants wood look laminate- I would rather have tile look laminate. Because of the shock of those first estimates we have done nothing and it has been another 6 months.

We really need to get moving on this nasty floor- any recommendations?

Linoleum may have changed, but the last time I looked, it's pliable, rolled or on squared tiles and no where close to the quality of laminate.

We had laminate in our old kitchen. It looked like terracotta tiles and many people couldn't believe it wasn't real tile. That stuff was awesome and super easy to clean. We also know from the buyers that the kitchen sold that house for them.

Now I wouldn't want it all over my house, but in my kitchen, absolutely. Talk about doing it here, and if I had dogs, I would seriously consider it.

 

[SCADC]

What kind of laminates are you guys that love yours talking about? We have horrible, scraped up, nasty linoleum in our dining/kitchen area... had our local mom and pop flooring co. give us an estimate on tile-3 different estimates- porcelain and two other tile and the cheapest was over 5k! The one we really wanted was over 8K! Not happening. DH wants wood look laminate- I would rather have tile look laminate. Because of the shock of those first estimates we have done nothing and it has been another 6 months.

We really need to get moving on this nasty floor- any recommendations?

Have you looked into LVT (Luxury Vinyl Tile)? I do not have it in my home, but we are in the process of building a new education/social building at our church and this is what we are using in the Social Hall area. It comes in squares just like ceramic tile. I think we are using 18". It can also be grouted. You can get many looks. What we are using looks like stone. Since it is being installed on top of concrete, it is a better solution for us as ceramic, slate, etc. can crack if the concrete settles. I am not sure of the price, but this may be an option. One thing that we like is that it is quieter than hardwood would be in this large space.

 

[Swimalie]

I've lived with hardwood since I was 10. I'm not sure what you mean 'care for.' A dustmop or broom or vacumn is all you need. A damp mop with a little vinegar if they get dirty. No allergens, no tears, no gouging that can't be sanded and repaired...natural, chemical free and sustainable product. I'm talking hardwood-not pine. They last the lifetime of the house. Guess I'm a snob. It's a good thing.

I'm with you. I'm reading these and wondering what people are talking about when it comes to upkeep. I vacuum (roomba), sweep and mop. We've been here 3 years and the house is 6 years old and the finish is in great shape even with our cat. We might have to get it refinished in another 4 or 5 years but that's it. We're about to get our upstairs hallway carpet ripped out and replaced to match the foyer hardwood below. We love it. With laminate, I can't stand the noise of walking on it.

 

[Swimalie]

What kind of laminates are you guys that love yours talking about? We have horrible, scraped up, nasty linoleum in our dining/kitchen area... had our local mom and pop flooring co. give us an estimate on tile-3 different estimates- porcelain and two other tile and the cheapest was over 5k! The one we really wanted was over 8K! Not happening. DH wants wood look laminate- I would rather have tile look laminate. Because of the shock of those first estimates we have done nothing and it has been another 6 months.

We really need to get moving on this nasty floor- any recommendations?

If you want to look in to good but inexpensive tile, check Lowe's and Home Depot. My husband and I did our rather large kitchen (last house) in a 16" tile for less than $500. We did ourselves so it saved labor costs. It wasn't hard to do, either.

 

[MrsPete]

A point that hasn't been addressed: In what price point are you shopping? That makes a difference in what's expected in a house.

I live in a middle-class house; it's a large solid brick ranch on a full acre, and though the rooms are huge and comfortable, it's not a new, stylish house, and it's in an established middle-class neighborhood. No neighborhood pool, no tennis courts. It's the kind of house in which one expects to find laminate and carpet on the floor, laminate or tile on the countertops, and other middle-of-the-road finishes. If I installed hardwood flooring, granite countertops, etc., I would never get the money back -- if I did these things, I'd be over-improving the house.

Anyone who watches HGTV, however, will tell you that buyers are rather stupid about imagining changes. How many people do you see on those shows who comments on how much they love the furniture, etc.? Most people don't seem to have the vision to imagine changes in a house, and many first-time buyers don't have the capital with which to make those changes.

I'm solidly in the camp of "Change it, even if it's an inexpensive grade of material".