Laminate Flooring

Read two specs and the shortlist writes itself

Laminate is judged on the AC rating and the core. Everything else is preference.

AC rating — how much traffic it takes

• AC1–AC2 — light residential. Bedrooms and low-traffic rooms only.
• AC3 — the standard for general residential use. Handles everyday family traffic.
• AC4 — heavy residential and light commercial. Worth the small step up for entryways, living rooms and kitchens.
• AC5–AC6 — commercial grade.

For most homes AC3 is the floor and AC4 is the sensible buy.

Core — which rooms it can go in

A standard fibreboard core swells if water sits on it, which rules out bathrooms and laundry rooms. A water-resistant core tolerates spills wiped up promptly. A waterproof core opens up the wet rooms and puts laminate on the same footing as vinyl for moisture.

Laminate against the alternatives

Versus hardwood. Laminate costs significantly less, installs faster, and resists scratches and sun fading better. It cannot be refinished — when the wear layer is gone the floor is replaced. Hardwood adds more resale value and can be sanded several times over its life. For rentals, flips and budget-led projects laminate wins on maths; for a forever home, hardwood still wins on value retained.

Versus luxury vinyl plank. They look similar and behave differently. LVP is waterproof throughout and softer and quieter underfoot. Laminate often looks more convincing at the same price, because a deeper emboss and a higher-resolution print layer read better in daylight, and it resists denting better. For dry living space laminate competes hard. For a kitchen, bathroom or basement, choose waterproof laminate or LVP.

Installing it

Most laminate is click-lock and floats over the subfloor with no nails and no glue, over most existing hard surfaces. Two things decide whether it stays flat: a clean, level subfloor, and a consistent expansion gap around the whole perimeter. Skipping the expansion gap is the single most common cause of laminate buckling months after a good-looking install.

Keeping it

Sweep or vacuum often — fine grit acts like sandpaper on the wear layer. Clean with a barely damp mop and a laminate-safe cleaner. Never use a steam mop, standing water or an oil-based cleaner. Furniture pads and entry mats do more for the life of a laminate floor than anything you can buy in a bottle.

Before you order

Emboss depth and print realism are the two things a screen cannot show you, and they are exactly what separates a laminate that reads as wood from one that does not. Order free samples, put them on the floor of the actual room, and look at them in daylight and under lamps. A BuildDirect flooring expert will then work out the boxes including waste, match the trims and quote the freight — at no cost.