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What is Laminate Floor?
Laminate floor has swept the nation! It is by far the fastest-growing
section of our industry. It has been popular in Europe for several
years and now that popularity is catching on here in Canada.
Laminate floors are extremely durable and can be used in a wide
array of applications from a simple bedroom in your home, to the
showroom of an automobile dealership. They are the simplest
floor types to maintain. In most cases a simple sweeping or
a light mopping is all that's required.
Laminate floor is a plank type floor, constructed of different
layers. Usually, the top layer or "wear layer" is clear.
It is a low or high density laminate, depending on the manufacturer
and style.
The second layer is usually the design or decorative layer which
gives it the unique look of wood, or in some cases, tile floor.
Some laminate floor manufacturers add a third or "base"
layer for greater stability.
All of these layers are fused by heat and pressure to a high-density
core. Some cores are constructed of high density fibre, and
some are constructed of wood particles.
Sizes
Most laminate floors come in approximately the same size -- roughly
8" wide by 48" long.
Installation Method
One of the unique benefits of laminate floor is the way
they are installed. All laminate floors we carry are installed
by what's referred to as a "floating floor" or "free
floating" method.
None of them are glued directly to the floor. Sometimes a sheet of plastic is laid down, which acts as a moisture barrier and also helps the floor move
more easily when it expands and contracts under different temperature
conditions.
On top of the plastic, a foam layer usually 2-3 mm thick acts as sound absorption
and also helps even out minor irregularities of the sub-floor.
This makes it an ideal product if you have an existing floor
such as vinyl or ceramic tile and you don't want to go to the
trouble of ripping it up.
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