People have a hard time deciding which type of laminate flooring is the best for their Houston house. Manufacturers argue amongst themselves that one core type is better than the other. Most say they are fairly equal; both have some minor good and bad points. For example, while the high density fiber core may be slightly more structurally sound, the high density wood particle core absorbs the glue slightly better, creating a tighter seal between the joints. The final opinion is that as long as they're manufactured properly by one of the large major manufacturers, no one can go wrong with any of them. The fact that laminate flooring is so sturdy, it hardly makes a difference to some houses in Houston.  Most of the better laminate products also fit together very tightly, so there are less joints than there would be with wood flooring.

Most of the manufacturers of laminate flooring apply some type of backing to the boards. This backing acts as added stability as well as added protection against moisture. Some manufacturers use a paper type backing and some use a melamine backing.  Knowing which one is best is not understood by the average person, but a handyman will have a better idea. 

Again, manufacturers argue that one is better than the other. In most handyman opinions, taking in all of the technical data, they prefer the melamine backing over the paper back. The reason they feel the melamine is better is the fact that, as it is explained by the manufacturers, the melamine acts as added stability. If any moisture should get into the flooring, and any of the boards were to warp or "banana", the melamine backing acts as a memory stabilizer and helps bring the board or boards back to their original position. Obviously paper does not have this characteristic.  But it does not mean that the paper backing will not work with laminate flooring in Houston. 

Most laminate floors come in approximately the same size -- roughly 8" wide by 48" long. There is a new possibility to get laminate flooring approximately 9 1/2" wide. They chose to make this wider product to have fewer seams overall.

As far as people know, there is no structural benefit to this wider laminate flooring board. However, on one particular line, some manufacturers offer a 20 year warranty. All of the thicknesses of the boards are approximately the same. All As a note, the thickness usually has no bearing on the quality of laminate flooring. The quality is determined more by how well the material is constructed and also what pressure the laminate was applied at.  Also, whether the handyman does a good job or not, will determine the quality of the laminate flooring.

One of the unique benefits of laminate flooring is the way they're installed. All the laminate flooring that most manufacturers carry are installed by what's referred to as a "floating floor" or "free floating" method.

None of the planks of laminate flooring get glued directly to the floor. They are glued together at the tongues and grooves. Before they are put down and glued together, a plastic is laid down, generally 6 mil thick, which acts as a moisture barrier and also helps the laminate flooring move more easily when it expands and contracts under different temperature conditions.