Do you have laminate floors?

We're looking to replace all our carpet downstairs with laminate. Now we're totally unsure what we actually want. I keep changing my wood color choices. I just know I don't want a medium oak. I fell in love with a coffee colored oak today but its totally dark at home (but looked so rustic and charming in the store :rolleyes: )

A search online revealed a hundred places to buy laminate flooring but hardly any photos of room examples all finished. I know where we're buying the flooring, and hubby's my contractor (along with a bunch of furry foremen) but I can't decide on color! Do I want Cherry? Pine? Maple? Which shade? ACK!!!!

So PLEASE share photos of your rooms with laminate (I know a few of you have shared photos of the installation once you did it yourself) and let me know what you think of having laminate (good and bad please :))

We have laminate in our kitchen. Neither one of us can remember the color.. but I think it was something like cherry oak.. Or rose oak.. It came from Sams club. It replaced white, plush carpet. :eek:

Its pretty nice for in a kitchen.. Rugs in places where you constantly stand while cooking is a must though. Although its not in the picture, we have a long runner rug in front of the sink and dishwasher. If I stand for 30 min cooking, my feet will usually hurt, but I am barefoot in the house... no slippers or anything.

Its been in our kitchen for almost 4 years, and with three dogs.. its in pretty good shape. I'll vacuum it and use a Swifter wetjet to clean it.

Here's our kitchen.. the pictures a little dark (the cabinets are Cherry Bordeaux).

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v1...e/S7300325.jpg

we have laminate in our living room and hallway. I can't remember the exact color, but it's a medium brown. I don't have any pictures of the whole floor online, but I have these with it in the background:
http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y77...tties009-1.jpg
http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y77...tties002-1.jpg

I'm pretty sure I have some better pics at home somewhere. Lord knows, we take pics of everything, LOL

We do and I LOVE it! We had it put in maybe 3 years ago (Pergo, but I don't remember the name but I think it is supposed to be walnut). It is dark but my kitchen gets TONS of light. This is Bella modeling it and it was taken before the baseboards were put on.

One caution: It is VERY slippery! My dogs have learned how to put on their brakes when they are running to the sliding door. My granddog, Harlee, fell many times (big splat! - 90+ pound dog) until she too learned how to walk on it. Now her humans have Pergo and she has her "Pergo feet." It cleans so easily!!!!!! Wish I had done this years ago!

Oops forgot picture. :p

If you are doing a kitchen, I highly recommend ceramic tile. When we renovated about 10 years ago we put down tile from the mudroom through the dining room and into the kitchen. I think the tile I have has some sort of glaze on it. Anyway, this flooring does not get dirty or dingy! I vacuum regularly because of all the fur critters but I probably only mop once a month and then it is just a quick mop. I can post a pic of it later when I get home. The grout is a brown which goes with the tile so there again it is just a perfect set up. Best thing I ever did to my home!

I would like Pergo in my bedroom some day though. :love: That is my dream... :)

Go to their website and see the Great Dane video...too cute!

http://na.pergo.com/default.aspx

No, we have hardwood floors - had them installed 2.5 years ago. We love them, and they are so much healthier for my husband who has asthma.

The color is clearwater, red oak, in 3", 4", and 5" width planks. Remember, if you get a dark shade/color, every little bit of lint, dust will show up.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...h/DSCN5486.jpg

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Originally Posted by Pam

One caution: It is VERY slippery! My dogs have learned how to put on their brakes when they are running to the sliding door. My granddog, Harlee, fell many times (big splat! - 90+ pound dog) until she too learned how to walk on it. Now her humans have Pergo and she has her "Pergo feet."

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I had the same issues with my cat Montego. It took him about a month before he could run full-speed laps around the house without crashing into anything.

Jerry installed ours himself ... they are the snap-in type. Unfortunately our exact ones have been discontinued but we got them at Home Depot. Soooo easy to clean with a swiffer wet jet and vacuuming is a breeze too. We don't even worry anymore about puppy piddles or cat hairballs ... just wipe and clean! We've had ours close to 2 years probably by now! You'll love them!

http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y24...om92408023.jpg

This picture makes them look more gold-toned than ours really are. Ours are a bit closer to a pine but not the really washed out color.

Thanks so much for the replies already. I hadn't thought of dust on dark -- though I should have! Gosh, I'm a designer and can tell people a hundred times a day what to do. In fact, last night, I had a woman plop $14,000 on her livingroom. We did a complete redo of her livingroom from sofa to chairs to tables and lamps. All done in 4 hours..... but in my own home?

You should have seen me picking out which sofa to order! I spent weeks picking out the sofa and leather, and I STILL am not sure if I am absolutely in love with the leather color we ordered... too late since its in the warehouse, waiting for me to schedule a delivery date, which will have to wait for me to decide on a floor color! :o

It helps a LOT that a family friend works for a flooring store and he's working out a nice price for us. I'm SURE I'm dirving him nuts changing my mind every other day. We went to his office yesterday and I was settled on the coffee.... and now, looking at your photos, I need to go back and choose something lighter. Ah, he'll love to see me again so soon :p

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Originally Posted by catnapper

Thanks so much for the replies already. I hadn't thought of dust on dark -- though I should have! Gosh, I'm a designer and can tell people a hundred times a day what to do. In fact, last night, I had a woman plop $14,000 on her livingroom. We did a complete redo of her livingroom from sofa to chairs to tables and lamps. All done in 4 hours..... but in my own home?

You should have seen me picking out which sofa to order! I spent weeks picking out the sofa and leather, and I STILL am not sure if I am absolutely in love with the leather color we ordered... too late since its in the warehouse, waiting for me to schedule a delivery date, which will have to wait for me to decide on a floor color! :o

It helps a LOT that a family friend works for a flooring store and he's working out a nice price for us. I'm SURE I'm dirving him nuts changing my mind every other day. We went to his office yesterday and I was settled on the coffee.... and now, looking at your photos, I need to go back and choose something lighter. Ah, he'll love to see me again so soon :p

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YES, that is why I went with a lighter floor because of dusty footprints and fur! It still shows when the light hits it but not nearly as bad as if we had chosen a dark floor! Can't have everything I suppose but the benefits outweigh this small issue .... it just makes me clean more!

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Originally Posted by Grace

. Remember, if you get a dark shade/color, every little bit of lint, dust will show up.

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Amen. They look great but require very frequent dusting/cleaning!

http://i244.photobucket.com/albums/g...g?t=1247851002

Can you bring a few sample pieces home with you? You'll get a better feel for how it would look next to your things.

We do & absolutely love it!
http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g1...LivingRoom.jpg

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g1...Muffin2009.jpg

We're putting in concrete flooring in the fall. It's the only thing we've found that will stand up to the abuse we put our floors through! I can hardly wait!! Getting concrete countertops too, with my glass mixed in to the concrete!

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Originally Posted by Glacier

We're putting in concrete flooring in the fall. It's the only thing we've found that will stand up to the abuse we put our floors through! I can hardly wait!! Getting concrete countertops too, with my glass mixed in to the concrete!

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Those countertops will be gorgeous - make sure you show us lots of pictures! One of our neighbors put the countertops in his kitchen and bath - really nice, and they last forever.

Grace, I LOVE your kitchen!

We have hardwoods, not laminate. With pets, keep one thing in mind: do you have a place for them if you are going to be out a long time? With laminate, if you don't pick up those "pee puddles" quickly, it will separate.

With hardwoods, if you don't pick up those "pee puddles" quickly, it will stain the wood. :rolleyes: (Thank you Ozzy, and now Tasha.)

I've seen wood flooring in kitchens just can't imagine it for me. Ceramic? Oooh, that WOULD be lovely!

I'm glad to read that these floors hold up so well with pets. We are thinking about replacing the carpet in the basement with laminate but I had heard that these floors scratch easily. Everyone's floors look great!

Wow, your places look awesome! I have laminate, too, but I would have chosen another colors but the one my landlords chose.

This is what it's looking like:

http://www.catmom.de/pix/shelf3.jpg


BTW, I have some problems removing the "paw prints" my kitties leave on the floor.

Kirsten

I'm a little late to this thread, but I'll still give you my take on laminate flooring.

DON'T.

I installed it all through the house. I love the way it looks and wipes up. And the dogs nails don't seem to be affecting it at all.

On the other hand, the cats have left wet spots (pee or drool or something) in several spots. Since I didn't find them within 30 minutes, I now have raised laminate in spots. When I clean, I make sure to dry as I go. And the best cleaner is vinegar and water to avoid streaks. I find myself running at the first sound of a hairball cough. Even at 3AM.

I put sheet vinyl in a wood plank pattern and love it.

This is the Pergo I put down. Don't remember the color, though.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...fruff/Hall.jpg

Catnapper, you could save some cash by mismaching colors as long as it is all the same brand and locking system. My computer room and living room were allmost free.

We have it in Nathan's bedroom. We plan to put it in the other bedrooms and my husband's office too. I love it.

I personally won't ever put it in my kitchen or bathroom because it doesn't do too well with water. I'll stick to tile in those rooms. My dad had laminate in his kitchen when his dishwasher broke and leaked water all over the place. It ruined his floor.

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Originally Posted by KBlaix

My dad had laminate in his kitchen when his dishwasher broke and leaked water all over the place. It ruined his floor.

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That happened to my sister-in-law too but fortunately her homeowners insurance covered it. It was just a hassle living through the ordeal.

We have laminate, Kim, and I absolutely HATE it. It is slippery, it buckles with the least amount of standing water, which we get no matter what because of the sloppy water dish and this is even with high quality Pergo. I would never ever put it in my house again. I'd rather save up and put in real hardwood because when I had oak flooring that was done correctly and sealed properly, I never had these problems. I wish I could rip up every square inch of laminate we have in our house and replace it with hardwood. I'd do it in a heartbeat!!

Logan