Laminate which company is better to choose and buy for an apartment or house

Laminate floors look stylish and modern, are easy to maintain and are not very expensive. Therefore, this material is very popular. Only there is one "but" - his choice is too great. Each manufacturer (and in fact there are more than a dozen of them) has its own secrets of manufacturing this flooring, with might and main advertising its own products. And consumers often have a question: which company is better to choose laminate. To navigate well among the variety of brands of this material, read our review. It will help not to be mistaken when choosing a manufacturer.

Brands - leaders of the rating: best quality

Quick-Step

Produced by the Belgian and Russian Quick-Step laminate flooring is highly valued by Europeans, and has become the most popular flooring in Russia. This laminate is made so skillfully that it can be easily confused with solid wood or parquet flooring, both in texture and color. The unique technology makes the floor of this material extremely durable - only a sharp knife can leave a scratch on it. And it is easy to lay laminate and not very experienced craftsman, and the quality of the coating will please.

+ Pros:

• Its quality serves as a European benchmark.
• Great design - the floor covering perfectly conveys the whole variety of textures of wood species.
• Special strength - the material of this company class 32 is more durable than the class 33 laminate produced by competitors.

- Cons:

• The price is quite high, as the material is premium segment.
• The class 33 does not have a very wide variety of colors. Therefore, the laminate of this company is better to use in an apartment or a small office.

Service life:

This laminate can last for at least a quarter of a century. And even for 20 years he will not be worn and hackneyed.

Kaindl

This laminate is manufactured in Austria. European and American consumers are very highly rated. Kaindl Flooring, which produces it, has a membership in EPLF and Certified European Quality. And it says a lot - these organizations have the greatest weight in the production of laminate and wood products. The popularity of the material Kaindl is due to a number of its features.

• The management of this company has foreseen in advance the trends in the demand of customers, more precisely, that with time environmental friendliness will come to the fore. Therefore, in 2003, the company began to produce chipboard having an environmental class of E0. This indicates an extremely low content of formaldehyde in the plates - even less than in natural wood. Such HDF slabs are safer than wood or parquet. Only in the film of the protective layer, which is made on the basis of melamine resin, contains a small fraction of formaldehyde. And so the class of environmental laminate - E1.
• Special synchronization technology allows you to get a material that is completely indistinguishable from wooden parquet. And not only externally, but also to the touch.
• The manufacturer gives a thirty-year warranty on its laminate - this is much more than that of other companies.
• There is a special "trick" - the FloorUp wall system. Thanks to it, this laminate can be easily mounted not only as a floor, but also as a wall covering. It is fashionable now in European homes.
• Kaindl Class 32 laminate laid on the floor of an apartment does not lose its attractiveness for 15 or 20 years. And for 30 years he is guaranteed to lie down, not collapsing. In an office where it is not very crowded, it can be used for 15 years. If the loads are high, then the laminate can withstand from 3 to 5 years.

Berry Alloc

This material, related to the leaders in world quality, is made by Belgium and Norway. This manufacturing company relies on technical innovations and advanced technologies. Therefore, each type of laminate from numerous collections has its own "flavor" in technical terms. High popularity among moisture resistant varieties of laminate. For example, the Riviera budget collection has class 32, and Titanium has class 33.

+ Pros:

Due to "advanced" technologies, this company is often one step ahead of its competitors. By moisture resistance of laminate from HDF boards produced by it, there is no equal. And the brand of material that has aluminum locks on the board surprises consumers with its special durability.

- Cons:

Like any material in the premium segment, this laminate cannot be called cheap. In addition, its colors do not sparkle with diversity, and designs with the effect of synchronization are not enough at all.

Service life:

The manufacturer gives a lifetime warranty on this material (subject to use in an apartment). And at least 15 years old, he will continue to please the eye with its original appearance.In the office where they walk a little, the operational guarantee is 15 years. If the office is crowded, then the laminate is guaranteed for about 5 years.

Parador

This laminate is manufactured in Germany. He is loved by designers and originals. He doesn’t have any drawings and inscriptions - no manufacturer shows so much imagination! Although the technical parameters of this material and is "middling", but its unique design often attracts lovers of creativity.

+ Pros:

Parador laminate is unique and original. Not one famous European designer had a hand in the drawings on its surface. As for the technical parameters, they are also quite acceptable. 10 years, this flooring can last without losing appearance.

- Minuses:

The original design has a reverse side - it costs a lot to the consumer. Moreover, the technical characteristics of the laminate average.

Balterio

The Belgian manufacturing company is a member of the EPLF association. She does laminate at the level of Kaindl and Quick-Step, but she charges a higher price for it.

+ Pros:

Technical parameters - at a high level. And the design of the laminate is very diverse. It perfectly reproduces the texture of a living tree of various species.

- Cons:

This material is quite expensive. But scratching it is still easier than a similar coating produced by Kaindl and Quick-Step.

Haro

This laminate is manufactured by a German company. It is distinguished by excellent quality and good performance. Consumers often choose a collection that has a long (over 2 meters) board. But the drawings with the effect of synchronization in this laminate a bit.

+ Pros:

There is a unique Tritty 100 Gran Via 4V collection for an excellent imitation of a luxurious solid wood board. Her board has the following dimensions: 220 by 24 centimeters.

- Cons:

This laminate is quite expensive.

Thus, the leaders of the rating of laminate manufacturers are listed. Now let's talk about firms that produce cheap, but very decent floor covering.

Laminate brands with a good price-quality ratio

EPI

This French laminate is very beautiful, and its quality is quite consistent European standard (class E1). Therefore, it is quite popular. And its cost is not higher than that of the material of Russian or Chinese manufacturers. Laminate Epi is available in thicknesses from 0.7 to 1.2 centimeters. Chamfers may be present on the board. The class of material, as a rule, is 32 or 33. Since this is a budget option, the density and moisture protection of HDF-plates is average.

Kronotex

A well-known German brand can often be found in hardware stores. This material, like the previous one, is a budget option.

+ Pros:

The main advantage is the low price. You can also note that this one laminate all the parameters will correspond to the passport data. Pedantic German manufacturers for this strictly followed.

- Disadvantages:

Chamfers of the board are not laminated, moisture protection is average, HDF plates are not very dense . The similarity with natural wood coatings is not as great as that of premium laminate.

And now let us tell you what the choice is most often used by those who decide which company is better to buy laminate flooring.

The most popular brands of laminate

Egger

Many people know this German laminate, but mostly its low-cost brands are represented in our building supermarket. Premium collections are not so demanded.

+ Pros:

Very low price. This material is not sorry to lay out in the country or in other places where you want to save.

- Disadvantages:

The design of this material is too simple, and its colors are not very bright. It is possible for the same price to find a laminate with a more interesting pattern.

Tarkett

The product of Russian manufacturers is quite popular, which is promoted by the abundance of advertising. Basically, this laminate can be found in large building supermarkets. In the shops with a narrow specialization, it is practically not met.

+ Pros:

There are quite good original colors. Laminate flooring is widely known to all consumers, since the amount of expensive advertising simply “rolls over”.

- Disadvantages:

Can yield to competitors' products in the same price category in design and technical parameters. So, you can buy a European laminate with a similar pattern, but much cheaper.

So the list is ready.We have compiled a rating solely on our own experience with these floor coverings. Now you can navigate and understand the laminate of which company is better to choose for an apartment or house. After all, it all depends on what room this material is put in, what requirements you place on the design and how you see your apartment ideally.

What can be said about the Chinese laminate

The very prestigious association EPLF mentioned above does not include a single company with production in China. This will not contribute to a good image. If some company claims the opposite, then it is a little tricky. It is usually registered somewhere in Europe, and the laminate itself does not produce, but buys it from a Chinese factory, then giving it its name.

So, Chinese laminate is clearly “not up to European quality”. If it is class 33, then in Europe it will be labeled at most as 21 class. But, in principle, it is not criminal. After all, manufacturers who are not members of the EPLF association have the right to label their products as they please. If he wants to, he will mark a pack of laminate with class 33, he will want - 34. Therefore, one should be more careful with Chinese laminate.

Video: How to choose a laminate