Question for people with Pergo laminate flooring?

[stevenpensacola]

We just had top of the line Pergo laminate flooring installed...it looks great...but am a little dismayed by the "hollowness" and softness/sponginess I feel in areas.

I realize that this is a floating floor, and the concrete was not billiard table flat...so is what I'm experiencing normal?

Does the floor flatten or settle after some use?

Did not help matters that I just got back from my BIL's house, which looks like a picture out of a magazine...who happens to have a section of real wood floor, glued down to the slab...so it feels amazingly solid.

 

[momof1princess]

except for our 2 bathrooms and laundry room, our entire house is pergo, and i'm not quite sure what you mean by "hollowness" and "softness/sponginess". we have a couple of creaks in our floors, because, as you said, our subfloor wasn't perfectly flat. however, we don't have any hollow-feeling or soft/spongy spots.

if what you're describing is what i suspect it is, your floor may be buckling slightly. by buckling, i mean that the installer didn't leave enough room between the edge of the flooring and the walls (expansion gap), so the floor is too tight and bucking up in spots. the floor is going to expand and contract with temperature changes, so there has to be a small gap between the walls and the flooring edge, but these are covered by baseboards, so no one ever sees them.

 

[stevenpensacola]

We have the proper gap...as there are no baseboards up right now, as I'm going to replace them myself. I"m sure I'm just very self conscious of the floor since it's brand new.

 

[cornflake]

Yeah, laminate sounds/feels hollow. Even if it looks like wood at first glance, you can tell when you step on it.

Standard hardwood is 3/4" thick, laminate boards are generally 1/4" and lighter, so it feels different even besides that it's a floating floor, which does add to it. I'm not sure how much of a difference there is betweeen first installed and later though, like in a settling way. I'm ure you are noticing it more that you just had it installed too.

 

[stevenpensacola]

Also think we're going to have to get some sneakers for our dog...he can't get any traction when he tries to start and stop.

Guess he'll learn when he slams into the storm door a few times...

 

[Luv Bunnies]

When we first considered Pergo, we were looking at the floor in our friend's salon. I liked how solid the floor felt and how quiet it was to walk on. He said to remember that his floor was commercial quality, which costs a lot more. We put regular Pergo in our kitchen and family room and are very happy with it. I've never noticed any kid of spongy or hollow feeling. We've had it for almost 15 years and it's held up very well. I know what you mean about pets sliding. Only one of our bunnies can get any traction on it because she's determined to get to the next room. The others completely avoid it by staying on the rug!

 

[pharmjenn]

I can't comment on the sponginess, but the hollow sound is well known with laminate, and is greatly decreased with a thicker pad. We had Mannington wood laminate for years with the standard pad. I never noticed it sounded hollow, but when we recently upgraded to a tile laminate we got a thicker pad (a water barrier, not a thick pad like carpet pad) You can really tell the difference. Plus, on the old floor, a golf ball dropped on the old floor hummed and did not bounce. On the new floor it bounces and does not resonate. So the pad really makes a difference.
It definitely is slippery though. My DS4 has slipped many times in his stocking feet.

 

[aprilgail2]

Yeah, laminate sounds/feels hollow. Even if it looks like wood at first glance, you can tell when you step on it.

Standard hardwood is 3/4" thick, laminate boards are generally 1/4" and lighter, so it feels different even besides that it's a floating floor, which does add to it. I'm not sure how much of a difference there is betweeen first installed and later though, like in a settling way. I'm ure you are noticing it more that you just had it installed too.

I can tell as soon as I step on the fake wood flooring that it is pergo or the like rather than real hardwood flooring- it has a weird feeling walking on it.

 

[tefrench]

I agree, a thicker pad makes a lot of difference.

We have a spot on our floor that has some "sponginess" but that is due to the subfloor being sunk a little - we have an older house with some issues. I do love the laminate for the ease of cleaning. Plus if you change your mind, you just pick it up and move it! I have friends, who must have moved it at least 3 times (from one room to another.)

 

[stevenpensacola]

We only had the vapor barrier (not much more than thick plastic) put down under the laminate as the Pergo has a "pad" on the bottom and assumed it would be sufficient.

My wife picked out the stuff, not sure if the salesman told her of all the options.

 

[Wendy31]

We intentionally chose laminate after reading that laminate holds up better than wood w/ kids & pets... of which we have 5.

I wanted a high-grade laminate that had the look & feel of hardwood. Our contractor brought all kinds of samples to our house from which we could choose, & it took me FOREVER! I do love the "look" of the one we finally chose, & the installers really liked it too & kept going on about how much it looked like real wood. One of them took pics to show his wife.

Everyone who comes into our house always says something like, "Oh, I love your hardwood floors!"

However, as soon as you walk on it, you know it's not hardwood.

It's a floating floor, of course, &, although, there's a pretty thick pad under it, there are still some "spongy" spots. There's not a lot of click-clack that you get w/ some laminate. However, while it feels "solid", it doesn't feel solid like hardwood. There's just a difference...

I sorta, kinda wished we had gone ahead w/ hardwood. For our particular neighborhood, though, we probably wouldn't have gotten a very good return on the investment which was another consideration.

 

[I Love Pluto]

It sounds to me , OP, that you really wanted hardwood. Pergo is a great floor. We have it in LR, DR, Kitchen, Hallway, & MB.

That's a LOT of Pergo - and a LOT of easier floor cleaning. Less work for us!

Trust me - you will grow to LOVE it!