Our Ultimate Guide to Choosing the Right Hard Flooring for your Home.
With so many hard flooring options on the market, it’s no surprise that many customers often come into our Gold Coast flooring showroom confused. Vinyl, hybrid, laminate, engineered timber – which one is right for your home or business? Not only are there different flooring types, each varies in terms of product quality and the way in which it is installed. At One Source, we only pick the best flooring that we have personally tried and tested. In this guide, we give you our tips to pick the right flooring based on your existing floors (your subfloor condition is also super important!), your budget, your project goals and more!
Explore Our Hard Flooring Ranges - Vinyl, Hybrid, Laminate or Engineered Timber?
Kris's Hard Flooring Fast Facts Tips to Choose The Right Floors
Our Sales Exec, Kris has put together some hard flooring ‘fast facts’ to help you choose the right flooring for your next project. Whether you’re looking for the best vinyl flooring or for flooring that you can lay over tiles, check over this quick guide to help get you started.
Vinyl Flooring
- Constructed from PVC
- Direct stick to floor (no underlay or expansion gap required)
- 100% waterproof & scratch resistant
- Planks can be individually replaced
- Supremely durable & low-maintenance
- Solid finish and quiet underfootÂ
- Requires a full ‘flood coat’ to go over tiles
- Subfloor imperfections can be visible if not remediedÂ
- Cheaper vinyl planks can shrink and gap over time (not ours!)
Kris’s Top Vinyl Flooring Tip
Vinyl is a great all-round option if you have a smooth subfloor, pets and/or a young family.
Hybrid Flooring
- Constructed from SPC, PVC or WPC
- Floating floor installation
- Waterproof surface (but can be susceptible to rising damp)
- Scratch resistant
- Can’t be refinished (but some manufacturers sell repair kits)
- Underlay not required as already attached
- Requires less floor preparation
- Generally the most cost-effective option for over-tile installationÂ
Kris’s Top Hybrid Flooring Tip
As hybrid flooring requires less floor preparation, it’s a great option for over-tile installation.
Laminate Flooring
- Constructed of multiple layers with HDF or MDF
- Floating floor (click and lock) installation
- Surface is extremely durable
- Waterproof options available
- More realistic to timber than most PVC products
- Generally requires less floor preparation
- Laminate requires separate foam and film underlay
- Can not be refinished or individually replaced
- Cheap laminate can be ‘noisy’ underfoot
Kris’s Top Laminate Flooring Tip
A fantastic all-round product, check out Quick-Step Majestic that can be steam-moped!
Engineered Oak, Hickory & Timber
- Available in oak, hickory and Australian species
- Constructed of multiple layers
- Not waterproof nor scratch resistant
- Wear layer can be repaired
- Can direct stick or float
- Floor needs to be level for installation
- Natural and sustainable product
- No pattern repeats giving an organic, natural finish
Kris’s Top Engineered Timber Tip
As a more luxe option, timber is a perfect solution for those looking to add value to their home.
What Else Do You Need to Consider?
Outside of selecting a style that is visually impressive, there are some considerations that you do need to think about when selecting hard flooring for your home. While we’ve covered some pros and cons in our fast facts above, it’s also important to consider:Â
- Your Subfloor or Existing Flooring – What condition is your existing floor in? Are you laying over concrete? Tiles? Do you want to remove your tiles? If not, can you afford to completely ‘flood’ your floors to get a perfectly level base?
- Functionality – Who lives in your house? Do you have pets? Are there high-traffic areas? Does it need to be waterproof?
- Moisture – If you live in a home where moisture is evident, you should consider choosing a floor that will not fail due to issues such rising damp. Vinyl flooring is a great solution. Check out our blog on moisture here.
- Budget – What level of floor preparation and flooring type can you afford?
- Maintenance – What level of maintenance are you willing to commit to? Would you prefer something more durable (like vinyl) or something you can refinish (like engineered timber)?
We can help guide you with all of these questions (and more) during our in-showroom appointment. To book yours, follow the button below.
