Where to buy hardwood flooring and pre-finished vs unfinished

[GFB]

I agree, but I am considering click vinyl click tiles for 2 reasons. maybe y'all have some suggestions
1) The house will one day be a rental. I want the same flooring throughout the first floor. Hardwood in the kitchen in a rental home makes me nervous

2) Less than 1/2 the price and easier install

I would do LVT in the kitchen and hardwood elsewhere but most LVT looks like wood and not tile. Dont want fake wood and real wood.

I also don't really want real tile or groutable LVT because I don't want to maintain the seal on the grout

I put vinyl in my in-law suite/apartment. It was cheap and I'm happy with it.

 

[Janedoedad]

Vinyl laminate flooring from Floor and Decor. A. It is waterproof. B. Good Warranty C. Free floating. D. Integrated cork underlayment. E. Easily installed, F. It looks good. G. Not as expensive as engineered wood laminate and IMO more durable.

 

[whitmo]

Vinyl laminate flooring from Floor and Decor. A. It is waterproof. B. Good Warranty C. Free floating. D. Integrated cork underlayment. E. Easily installed, F. It looks good. G. Not as expensive as engineered wood laminate and IMO more durable.

How does it hold up with large dogs in the house?

 

[MAK]

How does it hold up with large dogs in the house?

I installed laminate flooring 20 years ago on our entire first floor and basement. It survived 3 greyhounds and a chug, in addition to my son and all his friends.
We just sold our house yesterday and many of the potential buyers over the months thought we had just replaced the flooring...
I was amazed at the durability and that it lasted this long. I had a spot on the family room where my son had pulled a recliner up in front of the tv and spent weeks sliding and rocking it after the feet protectors had broken off. I had to replace several spare planks from extras I had in the basement. 20 years later and you could not tell the brand new planks from the old surrounding ones.
It does not hold up to water. If you get a spill up relatively quickly you are fine. If a plant is overwatered or a dog bowl splashing leaves water in a spot over an extended period then it will suck it up like a sponge and the edges will puff up and be slightly proud of the surrounding planks. It will scratch but not as easily as I would have expected. Once it’s scratched then the plank has to be replaced or you can use a colored putty to repair. It will also dent but it holds up much better to dropped dishes and silverware than hardwood does. My wife constantly drops plates, etc and there was only one slight 1/2” depression after all those years.
I love and prefer the oak I installed in our cabin, however, it is dented and scratched and definitely shows the wear much more after only 6-7 years. Yes, it can eventually be refinished but in the mean time there is nothing that can be done.

 

[hotrod6779]

If you want something that will stand the test of time, use LVP. Laminate will delaminate, separate, swell, chip, and so on. Laminated Vinyl Planks will not. Why by a floor that will scratch, dent, and have to be refinished. I have Southwind Harbor Plank in my home. Not ony will it not scratch or dent like real wood, but it is registered and embossed to give the appearance of real wood. ie: where the rustic floor shows a crack, you can feel the crack. It is not the handscraped uniform texture of the garbage twenty years ago. Not only that but if you for some insane reason manage to scratch, cut, or dent a panel, you simply remove the ruined panel and replace that single panel. If you really want a durable floor use a high grade lvp.

 

[hotrod6779]

Also just remember a scratch proof floor is super dense. the higher the density of a product the more brittle!