Would you ever choose top quality wood effect laminate over real hard wood flooring?

[HahaHarrie]

Just that really. I was looking at Quickstep laminate which looks authentic (I confused it with the real wood flooring in the display!). It is a lot more durable and you can be less precious with it (if the sales patter is to be believed) and is at least £20 cheaper per sqm. Would I regret not spending the money to have the real deal?? Would it cheapen my house? I wasn't looking for laminate but I'm thinking seriously about it. Any thoughts?

Thanks.

£59 per square meter for supply and fitting.

Oops sorry !

no

I don't like the shininess of laminate (nor does our dog - too slippery!), but that's just a personal preference thing. I would find it hard to buy a house with new laminate flooring (because I'd want to rip it out).

No. We ripped up the scruffy old laminate when we moved in and replaced it with reclaimed floorboards. Seven years on, it still looks fantastic although it could do with revarnishing. Wood improves with age, whereas once it's chipped, laminate quickly deteriorates.

Actually, I've just found a very small dent in our Quickstep....after a huge amount of trashing. My DC unicycle and scooter indoors. I really would be weeping if we had solid wood floors.

Our Quickstep is not at all shiny. In fact it's darkened like real oak does, as dirt house ground into the grooves over the years.

We have quickstep in our living room. Everyone comments on how great it looks. My kids would've wrecked anything else in no time at all.

We have quickstep here, it's 8 years old and immaculate. We had originally planned on having proper wood and were advised against it with children by a very good flooring company and it was one of the best pieces of advice we were given.

We have recently installed quick step palazzo hardwood (engineered) in heritage oak. It's in our kitchen/diner and I absolutely love it. It compared well in cost to laminate (remember that fitting and floor preparation will be similar whatever you choose). We already had Pergo laminate in the hall which now looks cheap and too shiny (although it's good quality). The quick step hardwood is maintenance free, and is a matt finish. The hardwood is warmer to walk on, and sounds less tinny than the laminate. I think it was about £36 psm.

Cost excluding fitting.

We have wood effect Karndean. Don't wish I had real wood for a second.