Looking for some cheap laminate flooring brands? Why don’t you give these recommendations a shot?
The most inexpensive and most durable flooring in this modern era is laminate flooring. Laminate floors are the best alternatives to hardwood flooring and give a natural look.
By calling them the best alternative does not only mean just by the similar looks, but also they are comparatively cheaper than the hardwood floorings.
But before jumping directly into the decision of buying cheap laminate flooring, we must consider a few important features. Having many benefits side by side, there are still some chances of having some drawbacks.
But nothing to worry about, as we will further help you choose the best and most cheap laminate flooring for your house. Let’s firstly get into some of the basics about laminate flooring.
Table of Contents
What is Laminate Flooring?
Laminate flooring is a synthetic product that consists of several layers that are sealed together in the lamination process. The 4 most prominent layers of these floors include:
- Wear layer
- Decor layer
- Core layer
- Supporter layer
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Wear Layer
This layer is there to prevent it from scratches to maintain and keep a stain-free appearance.
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Decor Layer
This layer is the printed layer that reconstructs the natural look of the wood tile and stone.
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Core Layer
This layer is present to prevent the flooring from any sort of dents and scratches.
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Supporter Layer
This layer is present at the end to provide additional support because it contains melamine to keep the planks straight and flat and prevent them from warping.
Cheap Laminate Flooring Brands
Now weβll get into the best and cheap laminate flooring brands:
1. Mohawk Vista
Mohawk has several lines of laminate flooring. You may go through Mohawk expert reviews to learn more about its launched laminate flooring options.
Starting from neutral to classic to having all sorts of innovative and luxury glossy layer options.
Features
- This flooring is considered mid-range flooring.
- Has roughly 8mm thick planks while the width is around 7inches.
- The mohawk vista has some mixed reviews as far as installation is concerned.
- As much as it is easy to install, many of the users have faced the locking mechanism feature that they disliked.
2. Dream Home
The dream home is considered to be a cheap yet amazing brand as far as laminate flooring is concerned.
Features
- It includes designs that are related to the common domestics like the hickories
- Also includes some the exotics such as Brazilian cherry and African rosewood.
- The thickness of these flooring is normally around 7-10 mm and even some include 12 mm.
- Dream home flooring gives a 10-year residential warranty.
3. Traffic Master
Traffic master is also one of the most durable yet cheap options to be considered when youβre looking for the best and most cheap laminate floorings.
We have discussed traffic master laminate flooring reviews to help you get more insight into it.
Features
- These floorings include looks related to the traditional woods
- Traffic masters have smoother surfaces which are usually hand scraped
- This flooring contains embossed laminate with wood grains to give a complete and pure natural feel.
- The thickness of these laminate flooring usually is around 7-8 mm
- A cool foam pad is also an additional feature that comes with these floors.
- Traffic master offers a wide range of colors, from rust to modern and aesthetic designs and colors.
4. Tarkett
Tarkett has the best range of cheap and inexpensive laminate floors.
They offer a wide range of innovative and modern designs.
Features
- The species of wood used by Tarkett include oak, walnut, pine, and many other wonderful species.
- It gives away a residential warranty of 25+ years making them way better than many other brands in this industry.
- Tarkett has a wide range of architectural styles and innovative designs of flooring
- The most inexpensive Tarkett flooring is made from rustic and a mixture of contemporary and traditional designs.
5. Quick-Step Naturetek
Nature Tek is one of the largest brands that make quality and cheap floorings.
Features
- Quickstep has more species like oak, chestnut, hickory, and more domestic species.
- Also, some of the Brazilian cherry and a few other exotics are available too.
- Having some natural authentic textures gives more like a wood-graining floor feel.
- Quickstep is a wide plank laminate flooring having approximately 7-9 inches of planks.
- Quickstep offers a long 20-year warranty.
- It has all shades, including light to medium to dark. Moreover, it is suitable for your place
Installation of Laminate Flooring
Laminate flooring is a type of glueless flooring. It contains an interlocking feature that is used instead of gluing and adhesiveness.
These floors consist of a series of interlocking tiles, planks, and squares covered over a thin layer of foam called underlayment.
The glueless tongue makes the installation of these floors quite comfortable and easy. While these floors require no glue and adhesive material.
And because of no glue and sticky nature, it saves a lot of mess to happen. Making it easier for you to walk on these floors as soon as they are installed.
The other name for laminate floors is called floating floors. This means that these floors are not directly in contact with the floor or the surface beneath.
Instead, they are a series of mold which is placed and installed over the room to keep the floor intact.
The laminate floors can be installed over many other floors such as tiles, wood, and vinyl floors. Some of the laminate floors consist of a high density of fiber cores to make them extremely water-resistant.
You can get more details on how to lay laminate flooring in our complete installation guide.
The benefit of having this added feature is that they can also be installed in places such as the kitchen, bathroom, and even laundry rooms.
While one of the main and distinctive features of these floors is the interlocking feature, by which you can easily remove these floors without having to reinstall the floor.
Tools Needed for Floor Installation
The basic tools needed for installation:
Maintenance & Cleaning of these Floors
The maintenance and cleaning of laminate floors is not a very hectic task as it may seem. This could be simply done by following some of the techniques which are provided below:
Doormats
By placing doormats in various high-traffic areas of the house, you can prevent a lot of dirt and dust from getting into your house.
Vacuuming
Regularly use the vacuum to wipe away the dust from the floors. It is the best option to make them look clean.
Furniture Slides and Glides
If you have heavy objects and furniture placed inside your house and you usually tend to relocate their positions, then keeping the gliders and sliders will save you from many dents and scratches on the floor.
Furniture Padding
The next useful tool here is the furniture padding that you can use to save your precious floors from many heavy scratches and dents.
Ice and Ice Pads
This may sound a bit strange, but nothing to worry about, as this step can be a very handy one if you tend to remove the sticky gums or candle wax if there is any on the floor.
By freezing the area for a couple of minutes and then chipping it off, you will see the magical effect.
Using a Damp Cloth for Spills
Be careful to notice any water and drink spills on the floors, as they could lead up to the buckling of the floor if you leave the water on the floors for a longer time.
Heavy Machinery
Avoid the use of heavy buffing or any sort of machinery as they could be the reason behind the dense and heavy scratches that you might be wondering about.
Usage of Humidifier
You can always use a humidifier to keep the humidity levels balanced and keep the flooring in a proper and balanced form. While with climate change the wood usually contracts or expands.
But using this could prevent the latter in some cases.
If you are still confused regarding the cleaning and maintenance of these floors, you can check our in-depth guide on how to clean mohawk laminate floors.
FAQs – Frequently Asked Questions
Is Laminate Wood Flooring Cheap?
Not only these floors are cheap but they are also very easy to install as compared to other hardwood floors and tiles.
How Much Does It Cost to Laminate a 12×12 Room?
Installing a laminate floor for a 12×12 usually and roughly costs around 8$ – 18$ per square foot.
Which Is the Cheapest Laminate Flooring?
The cheapest and most reliable laminate flooring is the dream home laminate flooring.
How Much Does It Cost to Install Laminate Floors for $1 200 Sq Ft?
The cost to install the laminate floor that covers the area of 1200 square feet is roughly around 1000$ – 5000$ for a complete project.
What Is the Cheapest Way to Do the Flooring?
The cheapest way to do flooring is to use sheet vinyl which usually costs between 0.2$- 5$ per sheet.
Is Vinyl Cheaper than Laminate Flooring?
Vinyl and laminate are not very different in price whereas the hardwood and porcelain floors are much higher in price than these two flooring options.
Is It Cheaper to Install a Carpet or A Laminate Floor?
The cost of installing a carpet is comparatively low than laminate flooring, and as well as laminate flooring is more durable and weather-resistant than carpet.
Conclusion
The installation, overall appearance, and maintenance of laminate floors are very easy. The point is to choose between the best options which may be more suitable for your house.
So to make it easier we have explained and reviewed the cheapest brand of laminate floors for you. And we hope that by reading this article you will come up with a decision much easier than before.
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