Marmoleum - anyone used it?

[maggiethecat]

Saw it in John Lewis today and it looks good. Can anyone tell me about it?

[Ihatemytoes]

We have it in our kitchen and breakfast room. I'm very happy with it. It's been down 11 years and honestly looks as good as new. it's warm underfoot, easy to clean, I really can't think of a negative.

[TheGirlOnTheLanding]

We had it in the kitchen of our previous place. It looked nice but was a faff to keep clean - we had to use a specialist cleaning product then 'dress' it afterwards with another product. I prefer just being able to slosh Flash onto our kitchen floor. Maybe it wouldn't have come to any harm if we had - we were too scared of ruining it to take the risk though!

[Ihatemytoes]

I use Flash (or whatever floor cleaner is on offer!) on mine, and it looks fine. No damage at all. If I want it to look "shiny" I dress it with the specialist product, but i haven't done that for years!

[Pannacotta]

I have used it in bathrooms and often recommend it on here.

Its a lovely, natural product, warm, soft, apparently its anti-bacterial too.
Easy to keep clean, I used Astonish fllor cleaner on mine.

We will use it in our bathroom when we get it re-fitted.

[maggiethecat]

I'm really warming to it. The display samples look very good although it's hard to say how it will look in situ. I'm thinking of using it in kitchen and adjoining family room which leads onto garden.

It will be in high use areas and the one concern is the cleaning - opinions vary but a few have said it doesn't stay clean for long. Cleaning is not my forte and I don't want to have to wash the floor more than once a week.

[PigletJohn]

is it hard-wearing? In a kitchen, I have found that vinyl flooring marks easily from the feet of heavy appliances or furniture, so maybe this is better?

[GrendelsMum]

I had it in my old kitchen and bathrooms and thought it was great, although I have to say that it was a very bright colour (rented house so not my choice), so I don't know whether a pale colour would tend to mark. I just sploshed Flash on it to clean.

[Caerlaverock]

Dh was obsessed with it so I gave in and got it. It is lovely, warm underfoot etc. I clean a couple of times a week with the Forbes special stuff but you only need a little. Mine is red so doesn't show up the dirt so much. It is wildy expensive but prob. Worth it as it lasts so long

[Pannacotta]

I hate mopping floors too.
If you chose a mottled colour in mid tone, ie not the palest and not the darker tones or black, then you should be fine.
And yes it is much mroe hard wearing than vinyl (and cheaper than Amtico etc).

[maggiethecat]

I have chosen some samples - dove grey, eiger, forest ground and a few others.

I am quite keen but dh less so as it requires a very even surface underneath and dh thinks that might bump up cost more than if we went for engineered wood (at the moment the price per sq meter is about the same for both).

Warm underfoot sounds great though.

[7to25]

I had it in the bathroom and then had it removed and tiled.
It was beautiful and I followed all instructions to keep it clean, but after about five years there was distinct "staining" around the WC.
I have five sons.
I have to confess that I gave up and find tile much more hygienic in a bathroom.

[Pannacotta]

Engineered wood is lovely too, more of an issue if you ever have leaks/ flooding or are prone to splashing the floor when you wash up, but yes it is less work in terms of prep/sub floor etc.

[Caerlaverock]

Most of the expense was the floor prep

[ReshapeWhileDamp]

I loved it in our old house. We had square tiles in two stone shades, and they looked lovely, though in retrospect, I might choose to have a sheet put down next time, as the joins between the tiles did tend to show up trapped dust, etc. Cleaning no problem, the official cleaner lasts ages and wasn't that expensive. I did find that, being an organic compound, it took food stains very enthusiastically. Not great for BLW. But if you mopped up fast (soft fruit and tomato were the worst) it was ok, and food stains tend to fade in sunshine from marmoleum. It was so soft and warm underfoot. I really miss it in the kitchen.

[comixminx]

I loved it in the kitchen. We didn't use a special cleaner and there was the odd stain as we'd chosen yellow so it was a lightish colour, but as it is a mottled effect anyway that was ok. We're going to get it in our new place too.