What kind of hard flooring for hall and dining room?

[NoMoreAngstPls]

We had wood veneer in our old house, and it didnt wear well. Want something more hardwearing, that doesn't look cheap/fake in a bad way.

Also, our skirting boards are nice and fairly recently decorated. Would beading be a complete no-no.....

[WhatWouldTheDoctorDo]

We've just put karndean down which I know people can be a bit marmite about. I think it looks great though and no beading required!

[NoMoreAngstPls]

Thanks. Good to know. We are thinking of Karndean too. Have found a lovely light oak.

[Headinthedrawer]

We used quick step light oak.Laminate but looks great and extremely hard wearing.People are always surprised when we say it isn't engineered wood.Couldnt afford wood and knew we would wreck it.

[JeNeSuisPasVotreMiel]

I'm looking to replace laminate flooring in my new house as it will get a lot of foot traffic and I hate the look of laminate anyway.

Moving from an older property which had lovely original wood floors so I'm on the lookout for something really good.

[WeeM]

We recently got karndean in Auckland oak-love it.

[ginorwine]

I've used laquared beech .

[wowfudge]

Don't have something which requires beading, or at least remove the skirting first. Our neighbours have just had some lovely laminate (I usually hate laminate and can spot it a mile off) and it's ruined by the beading against the deep, original skirtings.

[SDTGisAnEvilWolefGenius]

We got a quote from John Lewis, to put Karndean in our hall and downstairs loo - not a big area - and they quoted us over £3500!

We went for a good quality laminate from B&Q - it looks like slate, but isn't, if you see what I mean - and it is great. It's been down nearly a year and looks just like new, despite the wear and tear of family life with our three twenty-something dses in and out, and two dogs. And it cost a fraction of the Karndean price.

[WeeM]

Wow that's pricey! We paid less than half that for an open plan living room/dining room!

[wowfudge]

The thing with LVT is that a lot of it is expensive to buy and fitting costs can be high too because it has to be laid on an absolutely flat surface: you can't just whack it down. Polyflor make Karndean but many of the LVTs they make under their own name are cheaper. Polyflor is the flooring you see in lots of shops. Amtico had first mover advantage and is expensive because it is manufactured in the UK and they offer a huge range of colours and styles. Most of the other stuff is made in China.

[wobblywonderwoman]

We have ceramic tiles that look like wooden floor. We love them. That bleached grey effect in the hall. Doesn't show up dust or dirt. Then dark wood (looks like reclaimed wood) in main room.

[wobblywonderwoman]

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