I am lost here..what is laminate everybody is talking about? If used around water and kitchens and bathrooms does it hold up..First I got to know what its use for..Now I really feel ignorant. BUT see I am looking for the easiest way to do things on a very tight budget. I will be taking a picture soon of this table with the sandstone-look. We just put the sealer on it. It had another good 4 hours to dry. We will not be using it even tomorrow. I think instead we will go ahead and put it in the west wing Egyptian room, then cover it with a cloth while working on the cornich. It gets more interesting on this group all the time. I so much appreciate all you that have over the weeks helped me out in drastic situations. But I must say I was hesitant of using this stone in a can. My husband called for me to come see the second coat and oh my! we are well pleased.
—
Laminate is the hard plastic layer over plywood or particle board which they use to make kitchen and bath countertops. You can buy countertops with laminate already installed, or make the countertop and glue the laminate on it later. Done right, it withstands water for years.
“Right” in this case means cut precisely, fitted tightly, glued securely, caulked at every seam and line, then maintained by keeping it clean, never using a knife on it and replacing the caulking every few years. My father installed it right (using plywood) in an upstairs bathroom and it has lasted 30 years. It’s looking pretty ratty now, but still fulfills its purpose.
Note: the particle board usually used now is the 2nd largest source of formaldehyde outgassing in the average home. New carpet is the first. And the particle board must be braced underneath all the way around the sink because it is not as strong as plywood. My kitchen sink and that of a girlfriend in the same town both have the unbraced particle board and our laminated countertops are sagging away from the edges of our sinks.
—
Laminate can refer to many things, it can refer to flooring, to counter tops, laminating is the process of building something up in layers, plywood is a laminate, the new engineered floorings are laminates, when you glue a top surface on your counter top it becomes a laminate, some folks refer to the actual formica sheets as a laminate also.
—
Laminate flooring is very versatile in that you can get many different looks (granite, marble, stone, wood etc) at a substantial savings compared to the real stuff. Unfortunately though, it is best not to use it in a area that is likely to get wet. It’s not built for that and won’t stand up well.
—
Would it hold up if we put on another water proof sealer. We will have off and on people traffic in, when they come to fellowship once a week. Don’t want to stand there with a towel to wipe up the floor soon as the come in the door. We are however asking shoes and boot off in bad weather. We always do this when we visit other peoples homes for gatherings. I am sure this same group won’t need to be told. All I ever seen was the wood grains, not the stony looke, that I would really like.
—
have seen laminate floors on display at Ikea and they lay samples in high traffic areas of the store, even the stuff that costs about $1.49 SF holds up VERY well. We are talking thousands of people every day. As far as my experience with laminate floors and water, just like a wood floor you have to wipe up spills before it has time to seep below. If you are talking about flooding or pipes breaking it may get some damage but so will carpet and vinyl squares. I try not to plan around disasters (unless I would be living in a flood zone) because yes, it can happen to any one, But planning for a disaster usually brings it on. I have a hickory floor in this house and it’s holding up well but it can’t take a lot of traffic like a laminate can. If you have Lumber Liqiudators (http://www.lumberliquidators.com/home.jsp )in your area check them out and talk to them, otherwise go to their website and look around and give them a call. I was able to get some great deals on odd lots of flooring which was perfect for the little mobile homes I remodeled in Phoenix. Oh, and someone is only ignorant when they assume they know but don’t and won’t ask questions, so don’t feel that way.
—
Laminate flooring is a type of flooring that comes in planks that have tongue and groove and a plastic type surface on top. The surface comes in many different styles and colors. The older style and some cheaper brands were glued together. The new styles are snap together. If you are planning on using it for a kitchen or bathroom, look at one of the name brands such as Pergo, Tarrekett, etc. We purchased an off brand 4 years ago for the spare bedroom. This had a very soft backing, so when the cat got locked in one night and urinated on the floor, the seam swelled up where it soaked into the flooring.
We have had Pergo in our kitchen for 11 years and have not problems. Do a search in the group for Laminate Flooring and you will find many discussions on the subject. I just put the snap together type in our upstairs hallway. What was great about this style, was when I found noticed that the floor was not level in the middle of the hallway, I could remove the flooring, level the floor and then reinstall the flooring.
—
If you are asking about laminated flooring, I would recommend against using it in kitchens or bathrooms, as it is a printed or glued on finish on an MDF backer, and is very water and humidity sensitive.
If you are talking about the product that is commonly used for the top surface of countertops, it is very water resistant. Some common names are Arborite & Formica. For counter tops, it is glued to plywood, particle board, or MDF. It can also be glued to drywall or cement board for backsplashes behind sinks, behind changing tables, behind and beside toilets & urinals it consists of a plastic back (most of the thickness), a coloured or patterned paper, and a clear plastic (which is either smooth or pebbled), all “laminated” together. To attach it to a backing surface, one usually uses contact cement.
Related posts: