Laminate Flooring Question

[boisegirl]

Hello!

I am thinking of purchasing a manufactured home. I am not a big fan of carpet and really would like to put in laminate wood flooring. My dad isn't sure if it is a good idea or not. The homes I am looking at are not on a perm. foundation, but are raised with skirting around them. He thinks that will cause higher heating bills and that carpet would insulate it better.

Anyone have install laminate flooring and notice a big difference in the heating bill? What did you like about it? Hate about it?

It wouldn't be just the laminate floor I would also have area rugs too.

Thanks!

[Yanita]

Hi,

I have never used the laminate flooring products, but my son has. Laminate is the recommended material to use in a MH. It is what they call a floating floor. In other words it is not nailed anywhere. You also leave a gap from the floor to the wall. Complete install instructions are on the boxes of laminate.

As for cold floors in the winter, my son did not really notice a big difference, BUT we live in a mild winter climate. I have have had southern pine wood flooring installed in my other home and that was fine as well. We also went the little extra to use a floor leveling compound to seal together the joints of the subfloor, and then we laid luan down as well, went thru the same leveling process and then installed the southern pine.

Mobile homes are notorious for air leaks where the walls and floors meet. If you remove the carpet and padding I would make sure to caulk every crack. Also make sure your belly is completely sealed, all insulation in place, belly material in good condition and all skirting in place during the winter months.

Good luck and I am sure others will reply, several here have used the laminate.

Yanita

[Robin]

We put laminate down in our hall last fall, and I love love love it! It is so easy to clean, and it always looks great. I live in Louisiana, so our winters are very mild. It was colder to walk on than the carpet, but since our winters are so mild, and it's a hallway, it's no big deal.

I bought enough to put in our living room as well - I'm just having a little trouble getting hubby off his rear to get going on this project!

I think you'll love it, if you decide to go with the laminate, just from a cleanliness point of view. I hate carpet - it just holds dirt in.

[Yanita]

HI,

Another thing with laminate flooring...if you have dogs this floor is very slippery, even for people. Make sure to use a carpet pad under any rugs...about my only complaint with laminate is the plastic echo sound it makes when walked on with hard soled shoes,

Yanita

[CPA]

We have laminate in quite a bit of the home here and it has worked out well in most cases. It is easy to install and much less costly than carpeting.

We live in a warmer climate where a cooling bill is bigger than a heating bill. Good windows have a greater impact that does any difference in flooring here. You will definitely notice the feel of a cold morning on a laminate floor a whole lot quicker than you will with carpet.

The comment about pets is valid. If your pet's nails get long, it is hard for them to gain any "purchase" on the flooring and if your pet is the kind that likes to shadow your every move around the home, you better get used to the sound of nails clicking on the floor behind you.

A couple of down sides to laminate are; 1) they are a little tricky to clean without leaving tracks behind from whatever you cleaned the floor with and 2) they don't respond well to water. If you have an area that sees frequent water, you need to be diligent about keeping it off the floor or else if it gets into the seams, it will cause the wood to expand (I have this happening already in an area around a dishwasher).

[Sylvia]

We put laminate in our basement. It is in the media room, our master bedroom and closet and the guest room. I really like it. In fact, seeing the dirt and grime it accumulates makes me hate having carpet upstairs now.

The biggest problem with it is the amount of work and cleaning products it took me to find a simple way to clean it without streaks. Thank you Martha Stewart! White vinegar mixed with water is the only thing I've found to date that gets it clean. I've heard its even better if you mix in a small bit of rubbing alcohol.

The pitter patter of puppy feet isn't so bad and they have gotten used to it. We make sure to have area rugs anywhere they need to jump up from or down to.