Laminate and Wood Flooring
Hedgehog Designs:
© Hedgehog Designs: Manchester.
1. Which is better, laminate or wood ?
There is no easy answer to this one, but if I give you the facts, you should find it easier to make an informed decision.
Wood looks beautiful, and by comparison laminate can look a little fake. However laminate floors are getting more realistic, and some even have a glow similar to real wood.
Real wood is softer and is more susceptible to damage and scratches, however damage to wood seems more acceptable, and in time wood floors can be sanded and refinished to look like new again. Laminate floors cannot be sanded or refinished.
Some cheaper laminates can give static electricity shocks (not Quick-Step). Wood does not. MORE INFO CLICK HERE
2. Is Solid wood always the best option?
No.... Not always.
The main problem with solid wood flooring is it absorbs moisture from its environment causing the wood to swell , and since we live in possibly one of the the wettest parts of the country, this can be a real problem (the wood floor can easily swell to such an extent that it will no longer fit in the room it was initially laid in).
During the normal yearly cycle of drying and wetting you can expect your solid wood floor to creak a little and for joints to open and close.
Solid wood floors have to be fixed to the existing floor somehow, normally by nailing. Over concrete and asphalt the floor cannot be nailed, so must be bonded to the floor, however this is where the problems start as concrete and asphalt can attract moisture from the air and pass it directly into the wood causing it to swell and cup.
Solid wood flooring is not specifically designed to be floated over or bonded to concrete or asphalt. Engineered wood flooring is.
Solid wood flooring tends to come in random lengths some of which are quite short, Engineered flooring is available in longer wider lengths than in solid wood flooring.
Engineered wood flooring, is much more suited to our climate and is made with a thick slice of real wood on a more stable base, it can be safely fitted over concrete, asphalt and chipboard floors.
Once an engineered wood floor is fitted it looks and feels like a solid wood floor.
Engineered wood is so stable and hard wearing it is used in commercial locations such as John Lewis and Harrods stores.
There is a misconception that engineered flooring is the cheaper option, because it's not solid all the way through, just remember it's flooring not gold jewellery.
Engineered wood flooring tends to be more expensive than solid wood flooring, but if you're fitting it over concrete or asphalt the fitted price’s are lower for engineered flooring.
Engineered flooring is made to very high tolerances and comes in a whole range of qualities, it tends to develop gaps between boards less and in some cases the wear layer is the same thickness as solid wood.
Some engineered floors can be sanded more times than a solid wood floor. MORE INFO CLICK HERE
3. Is laminate suitable for bathrooms and kitchens?
YES.... providing you buy the correct flooring.
Note: there is a massive difference in performance between water-RESISTANT flooring and water-PROOF flooring.
Aqua-step is not wood based and is uniquely 100% WATERPROOF , guaranteed 20 years and is suitable for the wettest of bathrooms.
Bamboo flooring is extremely resistant to water damage however like solid wood it's not as tough as laminate.
Click seal is a product that can be used to seal the joints of your laminate floor making them more resistant to water damage. Click seal still allows glueless laminates to be disassembled.
B&Q's aqualoc range performs quite poorly in wet conditions although the core material is water resistant, the type of joint is loose enough to allow water to penetrate and cause damage.
Standard Laminate and wood flooring does not perform well under wet conditions.
4. Thicker laminates will last longer?
No
There is a misconception that thicker laminates perform better. There are some laminates on the market, that are 12mm thick. Some of these laminates have poor joint mechanisms. (B&Q's AquaLOC+ has a particularly flimsy joint mechanism).
Its the thickness of the wear layer that's important, not the thickness of the board itself.
Of coarse thicker boards sometimes have bigger joint mechanisms, and can hold together better.
Thicker boards are also stiffer, but since laminates must be fitted on a perfectly even surface, this is irrelevant.
5. Thicker underlay will make my laminate feel more springy ?
No
Laminate flooring must be fitted on a perfectly flat surface, otherwise it will feel bouncy.
Another reason why your Laminate feels springy is that it has expanded and become "locked in", it no longer fits in room where it was originally laid and is now lifting up in the centre.
If your subfloor is not perfectly even using thick (6mm/quarter inch) underlay will not always solve the problem. The laminate will just be 6mm closer to the ceiling.
6. Are wood/laminate floors cold?
No not really but;
Compared to carpet and flotex; YES laminate can initially feel cold on bare feet. It soon warms to the touch. Unlike the following;
Any ceramic tile and vinyl, cushion floor, AMTICO or Karndean fitted over concrete and asphalt will feel always feel cold compared to laminate and wood.
Wood is warmer to the touch than laminate.
7. What about my skirting boards/edges of the room?
Laminate and wood floors need to be fitted with an expansion gap all round the perimeter of the room. Larger rooms need larger expansion gaps, and solid wood needs larger gaps than engineered and laminate flooring. The easiest and cheapest way to cover this expansion gap is to use beading (either matching the floor or matching your skirting). It is always neater to NOT use beading to cover expansion gaps. This can be done by, trimming the bottom off your existing skirting and sliding the new flooring underneath or removing and refitting /replacing skirting boards.
When fitting solid wood it is highly recommended to remove and refit skirtings or undercut your existing skirting to allow the wood to expand .
For Uniclic, bamboo and solid wood flooring I can trim the bottom off the skirting without removing it, then slip the new flooring under the skirting without using beading.
Skirting's can be supplied to match most of the flooring.
In most cases skirting can be removed very easily with very little damage to either wall or skirting board. Newer skirting tends to be easier to remove. Any minor damage to the wall is covered by the new higher position of the skirting.
Replacing skirting is not a very expensive option.
8. What should I look for when buying laminate flooring?
If you're going to buy your own laminate flooring, check that the laminate is stored correctly. It should be laid flat and in a dry place.
Check the packaging for damage (specially the corners and ends).
Check that the cardboard packaging is crisp and dry, soggy cardboard means damaged flooring.
Look for the 
Uniclic logo for easy to fit, quality laminate flooring.
In my opinion Quick Step is the best laminate for the domestic market available today.
9. Why do you only recommend Uniclic?
There are 2 types of glueless laminate systems available.
These are Uniclic and Fiboloc.
Only Uniclic can be fitted gluelessly under doors and doorframes.
The Fiboloc system has to be altered and glued to get a professional finish under door frames. (not my idea of glueless).
Only Uniclic holds the boards together under constant tension. This makes the joints more resistant to water and ensures boards stay where you want them.
There is nothing worse than spending hours lining up the grout joints in tile effect laminates only to find boards easily move out of line if they are Fiboloc joints.
Unfortunately Uniclic tends to be more expensive, however this also means the Uniclic system is used on the better quality laminates.
All the above products use the 
system.
If you don’t see the Uniclic logo on the packaging or you dont see:- made under licence from UNILIN. (sometimes it's in tiny writing), then you can assume its FIBOLOC.
Here is a list of Manufacturers who DO NOT use the UNICLIC system:
Alloc Armstrong, Baltic Wood, Balterio, Berry Floor, B&Q's loc flooring, Faus Floor, Forbo, Floors2go's flooring, Grabo Parket, Interloc Timber Flooring, Kerelia, Kahrs, Kronospan, Kronoswiss, Kronotex, Magnum Parket, Nexus, Tarket, TSH EKoloc, Upofloor, Wincanders.
10a. How do I look after my new flooring ?
General care for all laminate, wood, and bamboo floors.
• Use felt or plastic caps under furniture to prevent scratching your floor. (Stroolmount’s plastic GLIDES work best on dining room chairs)
• Use a good quality doormat. (Washable cotton and rubber doormats do a good job of drying dirty shoes and wont slip around either)
• Try to keep you home at a steady humidity throughout the year:
For laminate floors; between 50 and 65% R.H . Even though Uniclic is anti static, if the air in your home is very, very dry you may experience static. To cure this use a humidifier during the winter months.
For real wood floors; between 35 and 55% R.H. especially Solid wood floors as they can react quite badly to changes in humidity levels.
• Use a soft brush or cylinder vacuum (or upright vac with rotating brush turned off).
• Use disposable static cleaning tissues e.g. SWIFFER.
• Use disposable damp cleaning tissues eg, PLEDGE.
• For damp maintenance, wipe with clean water with or without a mild detergent. ALWAYS USE A WELL RUNG OUT CLOTH,
AND ALWAYS WIPE DRY IMMEDIATELY.
• WET MAINTENANCE WILL RUIN YOUR FLOOR!
• Do not use scouring products.
• Laminate has a smooth surface which will not hold dirt or dust.
• NEVER use wax or varnishes on laminate flooring.
• Stubborn stains can be removed with a little acetone (nail polish remover).
• Uniclic flooring is fixed onto a watertight glued HDF board. Despite its relatively moisture resistant qualities, excess water
must be removed immediately.
10c. Real wood and Bamboo care
Maintaining your Engineered Wood and Solid Wood Flooring
• During winter months when the heating is on try to ensure your wood floor does not shrink too much by using a humidifier.
• In summer especially late summer your wood floor may take on excess moisture from the air and begin to swell which will initially cause creaking and if left unchecked could permanently damage your floor, to prevent this use a dehumidifier or simply turn the heating on every now and then.
• Pets:- keep dogs nails clipped short to prevent scratches.
• Stiletto heals can damage wood flooring, as can footwear with damaged heels, check boots for any trapped pieces of grit or glass.
•Waxed and Oiled wood floors need special treatment, wash with dilute natural soap, and apply maintenance oil.
11. How can I repair a damaged floor ?
Wood and laminate floors can be easily and succesfully repaired.
Get in touch for some free advice
and a free repair quote
12. General advice for having work done
•Preperation for fitting laminate and wood flooring is particulary noisy and dusty.
•Follow this link to see some good advice from 
Wickes (page 12-13), You'll need abode
acrobat reader. Or go in store and pick up "How to Cope with Building Works" booklet.
13. What goes under the laminate/engineered flooring?
Laminate is fitted as a "floating floor " it is not fixed down at all. In most cases engineered wood and solid bamboo floors are fitted as floating floors.
The final feel of the floor is very much dependent on the subfloor it is fitted on. Uneven sub-floors will result in bouncy floors, and in most cases manufacturers have very strict guidelines on subfloor flatness.
Underlay will to some extent level minor bumps and dips.
In most cases the use of a vapour barrier is recommended to separate your very dry laminate/wood from any chance of moisture present in most subfloors. Some underlays have an integrated vapour barrier these are called combi underlays.
Here are some of the laminate and engineered wood flooring underlay that are available :
•White foam: If its any less than 3mm its pretty worthless.
•B&Q Combilay: 3mm foam easy to use, just have to be careful working on it, as it tears easily , compromising the vapour barrier.
•Barrier Plus. : 3mm foam combi underlay brilliant value for money for most situations.
•Fibre boards: From 5 to 7mm thick theses tiles are easy to fit and can be used to level particularly uneven floors, good sound and heat insulation. But needs separate vapour barrier, and sometimes can cause problems when joining on to other thinner floor coverings. Your doors may need trimming too.
•Excel : Dense rubber foam 4mm with silver mylar vapour barrier, good for heat and sound insulation. For top quality floors.
•Quick Step TransitSound: This 3mm combi underlay is ideal for bedrooms and flats to help stop noise being transmitted downstairs, without the extra height of fibre boards.
•Quick Step Unisound: This 2mm dense combi underlay is designed to make your floating floor sound more like a solid fixed floor.
14. What goes under the solid wood flooring?
Solid wood floors are normally fixed directly to the subfloor by gluing or nailing. Engineered and bamboo floors can also be fitted like this too.
There is no need for underlay in these types of floors. However sometimes it may be a good idea to put down tar paper or moistop film over existing floorboards if there is a risk of moisture passing from your old floor to your new one (nailed installations only)
If you want your new floor boards to run in the same direction as the existing boards it's wise to use sheets of ply nailed to your floorboards first.
There are certain solid woods that can be floated over the underlays described on the previous page. These woods are machined with locking systems like laminates or use steel clips to join them together. They do not glue tongue into groove.
Any solid wood can be fitted “floating” using elastilon (a sticky foam underlay)
15. I want some black laminate flooring
16. I want some white laminate flooring
17. Can you help me choose a colour scheme?
The best way would be to show you samples of flooring in your home, to arrange a free home visit click here, or follow these links to interactive roomsets where you can paint virtual walls, choose furniture colours and try out different floors.
18. Why is it called Hedgehog Designs?
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