The Cost Of Laminated Flooring

Laminated Flooring can be a great option and very durable however there are so many options available it can be confusing about what is the cost of a Quality Laminated floor.  Most consumers look at the wrong qualities in a floor.  For instance, I just met with a man who was buying a laminated floor and I understand why he thought the competitors floor which is thicker and less was a better buy however there are costs involved in making a lamianted floor.  

The Wear Layer

The locking Mechanism

The core

The Biggest cost of making a laminated floor

The two main costs are the wear layer and the locking mechanism.  The cost in the wear layer is effected by the Graphics, or how real the floor looks, the thickness described in millimeters and the adhesive used to keep it all together.  If you are looking for an inexpensive laminate in a plain oak look 7 millimeter wear layer, the least expensive one if your buying out of stock would range 1.29-1.49 sq ft for product fancier laminates can range higher upwards to $4 sq ft.  The other expense is your locking mechanism.  It is not commonly known by consumers but most of your main manufacturers all use one locking mechanism that they pay a royalty to use.  Why is this? Very simply it is the best and if your locking mechanism is not good, your sales will drop as soon as the installer starts complaining about how horrible the floor installs.

The other main cost is the core what is the middle made from how dense is the core? How water resistant is it? Is it made of HDF or Plastic? This determines  sound and impact absorbsion and how much water effects the product.  A Plastic core product is going to run upwards to 5-7 sq ft, the problem with this approach is you can get a nicer LVT product installed for this and not have any moisture problems and have an easier installation.

Inexpensive laminated floors should cost 3.50-4 dollars a sq ft to install product underlayment and labor.  Inexpensive LVT floors will run closer to 4 dollars a sq ft and top out around$7 but they are more resistant to moisture.  

We hope you found this helpful.