What is the best laminate to choose, descriptions of varieties and selection criteria

During repairs, people are often interested in the question of which laminate is better. To achieve good results when decorating an interior, you need to think about it down to the smallest detail. In order for the flooring to serve for a long time, it is recommended to choose high-quality material. It should be moisture resistant, wear resistant, durable. The color of the coating does not matter.

Overall laminate construction

Laminate flooring consists of the following components:

fiberboard or chipboard - performs the basic role;
paper covered with decorative patterns - serves as an intermediate layer;
protective laminate - used for topcoat;
cardboard or soft plastic - used as a support.

Main selection criteria

To choose a high-quality material, a number of features should be taken into account. These include panel thickness, wear resistance, strength, and other characteristics.

Panel thickness

This is an important technical feature. Modern consumers prefer panels with a thickness of 7-12 millimeters. The thick material has the following advantages:

keep warm;
provides high quality sound insulation;
withstands vertical loads;
does not suffer when installing heavy objects;
differs in a long period of operation.

Wear resistance class

When choosing this type of flooring, it is worth considering the class of wear resistance.

31

This coating is suitable for low traffic areas. It is allowed to operate for a maximum of 3-5 years.

32

Siding is used for the home or a small office. It is able to withstand an average load. The high quality of the laminate is maintained for 15 years.

33

This coating is suitable for office premises, residential areas and other places characterized by a medium volume of traffic. The service period is 15-20 years.

34

Laminate is used for stores. It is allowed to lay it in the waiting room and other places characterized by high loads. This coating is allowed to operate for 20 years.

Moisture resistance

For a laminate to meet this criterion, it must have a quality base. Usually an HDF card is used for this. The resistance of the laminate to moisture depends on its quality.

Density

An important criterion when choosing a laminate is its density. It is recommended to choose high density fiberboard. High pressure is used in its production.

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Antistatic

It is recommended to choose a laminate with antistatic characteristics. This material repels dust and dirt.

Hygiene

It should be ensured that the laminate meets the hygienic characteristics. It must be dustproof.

Ease of maintenance

The flooring should be easy to clean. It should be checked that it is permissible to subject it to wet cleaning.

Fade resistant

When choosing a material, it should be checked that it is resistant to discoloration.

Thanks to this, the coating will retain its color for a long time.

Strength

To assess the strength of a laminate, you should pay attention to its wear resistance class. This parameter is chosen taking into account the expected loads on the coating.

Possibility of repeated disassembly and stowage

An important criterion that is recommended to consider when choosing a laminate is the possibility of dismantling. If defects appear, such a coating must be dismantled and replaced.

General rules for color matching

When choosing a color scheme for a product, the following characteristics should be considered:

The degree of illumination of the room. Very dark laminate floors are not recommended in well-lit rooms. All the dirt will be visible on it.
Shades of wallpaper and baseboards. They do not have to match the color of the laminate. Light colored wallpapers imply darker flooring.
The area of the apartment. In a small dwelling it is undesirable to use a laminate of different shades.
Shadow of interior doors. It must be in harmony with the color of the floor.

Features of the selection of wallpaper for laminate

When choosing wallpaper for the floor covering, first of all, you need to take into account its color scheme.

Red tint

This category includes tones such as cherry and Milanese. Wallpaper decorated with bright red flowers is considered an addition to such a coating. It is allowed to choose yellow wallpaper for the nursery, green or blue tones are suitable for the bedroom.

brown

It is easy to choose wallpaper for such a laminate. In this situation, yellow, cream and green tones look great. Any pastel shade will also work. Bright accents on the walls look interesting.

Gray

This color is considered elegant and discreet. A great addition will be different options for gray - dark or light. If you want to create a bright interior, yellow wallpaper will do.

Light

To visually expand the space, it is worth choosing wallpaper 3 tones darker than the coating.

White or milky laminate can be combined with rich wall options.

Dark

Such a laminate looks great with light-colored wallpaper. This combination is as natural as possible. To keep the room in a classic style, it is permissible to choose a creamy shade of the walls. Pale yellow wallpaper will look great.

How to match doors

When choosing combinations with doors, there are several options, each of which has certain characteristics.

Contrast

This combination involves the use of light laminate and dark doors. The reverse combination is also possible. In this case, the shades should be combined in the direction - to be warm or cold.

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Combination

In this case, the laminate is made lighter than the doors by one tone.This is also possible when the door and floor pattern has 1 shade.

Coincidence

In this case, the maximum coincidence of color and texture of the floor and doorways is observed.

Selection of skirting boards

Today there are many skirting boards. Each of them has certain characteristics:

Drink. Made from pine or alder. Sometimes oak is used for this purpose. This skirting board is durable, beautifully designed and eco-friendly.
Plastic. It is considered a popular option due to its good installation characteristics and excellent appearance.
Made of MDF. Simulates the surface of a tree. This is achieved through the use of textured paper. Such a plinth is afraid of moisture, but is distinguished by affordable cost.

Variety of styles

To create a harmonious and attractive interior, it is worth considering its style. There are many popular destinations.

Scandinavian

This direction involves the use of white laminate. A dark color scheme is also possible. In this case, the rest of the interior details should be light.

Modern

In a modern interior, a laminate of a pronounced shade is used - black or white. An excellent solution would be wenge or ebony color. A gray coating is also acceptable.

Attic

This style looks a bit rough. Different shades of laminate are suitable for him. In addition, they should have a pronounced wood texture.

Classic

In this case, noble shades look appropriate. An excellent solution would be a laminate that imitates valuable wood species.

Classic oak, rosewood, maple look great.

Advanced technology

A metallic finish will go well with this style. It is also permissible to choose a laminate that imitates natural stone. However, color options or warm undertones just don't look out of place.

How to choose quality material

Many criteria must be taken into account when choosing a quality coating. The main ones are:

resistance to increased and prolonged loads;
abrasion resistance;
scratch or crack resistance;
chemical resistance;
impact resistance;
resistance to high temperatures and burnout;
the possibility of laying on a warm floor;
compliance with environmental standards;
ease of use;
ease of installation.

Selectable features depending on the purpose

When choosing a laminate, you should definitely consider the room in which you plan to use it.

Food

This room is considered difficult. This requires the correct choice of finishing materials. Before buying a laminate, it is worth determining which variety is suitable for the kitchen.

It is recommended to give preference to a high class of wear resistance of the coating.

The resistance of the laminate to moisture is not negligible. Kitchen flooring material should be chamfered to help hide joints. If water gets between the slats, it will deform the panels. It will not be possible to cope with such a defect. Therefore, after laying the floor covering, the joint area is impregnated with a special sealant.

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Corridor

The hallway is often exposed to adverse factors. People walk into this room with dusty and dirty shoes. There may be snow or moisture on the sole. Therefore, the floor is under maximum stress and requires regular cleaning.

To avoid problems, it is worth choosing a durable laminate - class 33 or 34. It must have impregnations that will help cope with excess moisture.

living spaces

The laminate is chosen depending on the interior and purpose of the room. In domestic premises, the flooring is less exposed to negative influences. Therefore, 31 or 32 classes of laminate are enough.

At the same time, it is recommended to assess its environmental characteristics. To do this, you need to pay attention to the marking. The E0 or E1 mark indicates a minimum of harmful formaldehydes. In this case, it is recommended to avoid parameters E2 and E3.

Common Mistakes

When choosing flooring for an apartment, many people make common mistakes:

Disregard wear resistance parameters. Many buyers are guided by the appearance of the material, forgetting about its strength.
Opt for an inexpensive cover. Indeed, such a material does not have a number of important characteristics.
Not checking the warranty. Laminate of one class differs from another in terms of warranty periods. This characteristic must be taken into account.
They do not pay attention to the parameters of moisture resistance of materials. Some coatings will not survive frequent wet cleaning.
Disregard the environmental friendliness of the coating.This material is made from phenol-formaldehyde resins. Exceeding the norm creates a health hazard.
Do not use special media. It helps level the siding, provides thermal insulation and absorbs sound.
Choose a coating that is too thin. Thick laminate flooring helps muffle sounds.

Additional tips and tricks

When choosing a laminate, the following characteristics should be taken into account:

Laminated panels have different types of joints. If you plan to lay the panels yourself, you need to purchase products with snap locks.In this case, it is possible to facilitate the installation process.
Choose the right decor. The flooring is changed less often than the walls are finished. Therefore, its color scheme should be universal.
The presence and size of the chamfer are of great importance. It imitates a natural board and has practical functions. Thanks to this element, it is possible to avoid the appearance of joints between the boards. After heavy exposure to humidity, bevel laminate can be disassembled, dried and reassembled.
The price of the substrate is not taken into account. This characteristic has a significant impact on the final price of the flooring.

The choice of laminate has a number of features. To obtain good results in this area, many criteria must be considered. First of all, the parameters of wear resistance and strength are important. Of significant importance is the color scale and texture of the coating. It should fit perfectly into the overall style of the interior.

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