Laminate Flooring Vs Engineered Flooring

Engineered wood flooring is made from several layers of wood with a layer of solid hardwood on top.

Laminate flooring vs engineered flooring. Laminate flooring is a fully man made material that consists of several layers. It can be floated over existing hardwoods but not other flooring substrates. Engineered wood contains a slice of natural wood on top while laminate uses a photographic layer that is coated with a protective layer. Laminate is essentially a rigid synthetic floor that s also known as composite pergo or floating wood tile.

Both engineered timber and laminate flooring are comfortable underfoot but because laminate flooring usually floats over the subfloor it may flex slightly underfoot. Most importantly engineered wood contains a top layer of solid wood while laminate uses a photographic layer coated with a wear layer to achieve the wood look surface. However despite similar appearances there are key differences between them. This is particularly true if the underlayment is not perfectly flat and smooth.

Both laminate and engineered hardwood flooring costs can vary. Laminate flooring while it has become better at mimicking wood and other materials will always come. Laminate is also much thinner than engineered wood averaging around 12mm whereas engineered wood tends to be thicker like hardwoods. An engineered hardwood needs a more stable and structurally sound subfloor such as an osb or concrete subfloor.

A laminate floor can be floated over almost all flooring except carpet. Pet nails and heels may also produce an annoying clicking sound on the surface. Engineered floors will have a higher price depending on the top wood veneer thickness style species and brand. Laminate flooring and engineered hardwood are sometimes confused with each other because they can look similar.

One major difference is the subfloor requirements. Engineered wood flooring comparison guide laminate vs.