# carpet vs. laminate??????



## earl hall

*carpet.*



oblesq said:


> please help. my husband and i are wanting new flooring in our foyer and living room, i want laminate- he wants carpet.which would add more value to our home? our home was built in the 30's so the original floor sags toward the middle of the house but there is a new sub floor over the top of that to level it out.do you think there would be any problems with the laminate being un level?


Go with carpeting, it hides a world of sin and the floor does not have to be level.
Plus Laminte sucks I could go on and on about he down falls of this junk.
neither will really add value to your home.
If you want something that really adds Value to you home floor-wize then you would get REAL Wood floors. (like chery, oak or even yellow pine floors look great heck even try the new bambo.) wood floors last a very long time (just look in some of these 100 + year old farm house with pine floors) or in england the wood floors there are 500+ years old. with real wood floors you can refinish then and they look great. 

now look at cleaning. the dif. between carpet and wood. 
carpet, if you get a spill... can be a real prob. to get out.

wood, just wipe up.

now wood can scarch, or dent but can be repaired with wax sticks and other repair methods. 

now something things you may also want to think about:

Noise 
carpet absorbs noise, can be great if you like it quite.
wood will amplfy noise, and all wood floors devlop a squeek

winter... wood floors can make a room feel colder then a carpet one.
plus if you have to walk accross it in the early morn 
but if you track in snowy boots wood is easier to clean

fun
who has not put on a pair of socks and ran and slid on a wood floor...

adult fun.. 
carpet burns  

little kids safty.
as little ones learn to walk they fall alot,
carpet is easier on them,

middle kids 
kids make messes( spills getting sick ect.)
wood floors clean easier


big kids 
(see middle kids)

adults (parties)
(see middle kids)

Adults (braging)..
I have new carpet.... or I have cherry hardwood floors..
which sounds better?

you choose.



Earl


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## Floorwizard

I would need to put a straight edge down to tell you that it is level.
Check manufacturers recommendations for level and check your floor.

Check with a Realtor in your area to see if the upgrade to lam will add value.
Some homes you can put tile or wood in and nobody would pay a dime more.


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## hmc

Ditto....real wood is the way to go


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## suedyer

*Major Laminate Problem*

:confused1: My husband and myself had laminate layed in about 1300 sq. feet of our house. The rest is tile with a couple bedrooms still with carpet. We did all our research and found afloor layer with great references etc. We supplied the laminate he supplied the underlayment. The floor looked great for approximately 1 week when we started to notice some squeking. We conacted him and he came out and said to the effect well not the greatest product will probably always squeak. We didn't know any better until the noises started getting louder and louder. We had an inspector come in to check. He said installed wrong. By then it was couping and looked like hills and valleys. The floor layer retained his own inspector which came back with same results. The floor layer is returning all our money for labor, all of the laminate along with the underlayment. My question now is can we lay carpet over this squeaky floor or will we still hear or feel squesks. Should we pull all the laminate out beofre any carpet? My husband is quite turned off on the laminate now and does not want to try that again. Should we go with the laminate or such I try my luck in convincing him of real wood. Any advise would help me soooo much. Thanks.


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## ron schenker

Don't put carpet on top of laminate, especially if it's squeeky


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## RippySkippy

suedyer, you are really lucky to get out of this like you did....count your blessings. 

Don't install anything on top of the junk laminate, it has to come out. The last house had laminate...and it was just ok. My new house has 3/4" white oak hardwood, nearly 1100 sq ft...we installed it and love it...I don't think I'll ever use laminate again...it has it's place...but not in my house.


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## KUIPORNG

I have installed laminate in the basement.... it is good function-wise speaking... but in terms of look and feel... it is far away from real wood.... but even laminate... you need to differentiate the junk one from the good one.... the good one lasts and easy to install... the junk one got problem right from start.... I think laminate is good for different situations.... but I agree not suitable for gold area like living room... but basement/workshop..etc. area they are good .... as you save a lot of $$ and not really need top of the line on those areas....


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## suedyer

Thank you I had the same idea. Thanks again


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## suedyer

I have heard that laminate is bad. Now I agree. The thing was when we decided to do this we were going back and forth between real wood and laminate. But was advised laminate much more better. LOL I sure did learn alot from the experience. thanks for reasuring me.


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## suedyer

You know the thing is we wanted to make sure we were adding value to the house. But I see from all of you and heard just recently laminate adds no more value than carpet. We don't live in a junk neighborhood and we don't want tohave a non-sellable home because of this junk. thanks


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## suedyer

*Laminate Problem Questions Again*

Since I have received so much help, heres another question.

When I do have this "junk" pulled up will it be able to be donated or does it usually end up trash. Thanks.


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## Floorwizard

You may be able to find a donation place.
But I would hope they really check into the owners of the rug.
It's almost like donating 7 year old sheets that have had an owner or 2.

Kinda possibly nasty


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## [email protected]

My head is spinning. I am trying to discern what to buy. How do you know which company makes the best laminate? I know it goes by thickness, but what else makes laminate exceptional? which has the greatest reputation? Please help. Mary


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## KUIPORNG

Thickness is only one attribute and often misleading if looking at thickness alone... a good laminate has a good system for putting together and real easy to do... a bad laminate, no matter what thickness... is very hard to put together and will work on only 100% level flooring whereas good laminate has a better tolerance..... anyway... to be honest... those in store for a long time and on sale suddenly has less risk... those come from nowhere sudden appear in store and at a real low price is probably bad made... and the best is try to buy one box and play with the install... if they are difficult to install ( I means simply click together) then refund it and choose a different one.... I prefer those tapping in rather than requires you to lift the whole row at a particular angle to fit in type...


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## Floorwizard

Wilsonart, Armstrong, Alloc, Mannington...just to name a few

they also have different qualities within their lines....


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