Question about mills on laminate flooring

cpsilo1

Went shopping for flooring all day today. Basically, I learned a lot, and wanted to double check that information here.

The one local place I went to, I spoke with the owner's daughter, who was the head salesperson....she said that there really wasn't much difference on the low pressure (around 6-8 mills) of laminate flooring b/w brands. Actually she recommended that if we decided with the lower pressure to just choose the cheaper option (she happened to carry Kronotex $1.59 sq/ft.)

She also said that there were only 3 brands of residential direct pressure (highest non-commercial) laminate that had around 17 mills. These brands were WilsonArt, Alloc organic (sp?) and Pergo Select. Out of these she recommended WilsonArt, which she carried @ $3.49 sq/ft.

Also, she said to go to Lowe's and get the padding for underneath the laminate there; as you can get Armstrong padding (.110 overall average thickness & .005 overall average thickness polythyline (sp?)) for around $.40 sq/ft.

Is there a difference in brands with the lower amount of mills? And is it worth it to go up to the higher amount?

Thanks in advance.

Floorwizard

There are alot of differences with the DIRECT pressure products.
The core, and milling are just a couple things to take into consideration. Quickstep has the best economy direct pressure product in the market, and it's all made in the USA. You will not pay 1.69 for it, but you will have the least amount of problems putting it together, and the quality is still there when it's on the floor installed.

I am a bit confused here. The Pergo Select is a high pressure lam and is commercially rated.
The Wilsonart Classic is not Comm rated but is still a high pressure.
Some Alloc is high pressure too.
As a matter of fact, these 3 brands are the last of the high pressure manufacturers.
I think Wilsonart is the best Medium grade lam, and has an affordable high pressure option.
Pergo Select is ranked #1 in Consumer Reports for the past few years. Wilsonart Estate is right behind them.

Only if you buy Armstrong laminate.
Use another brand, and your warranties are gone.
Good advice for short term money saving, but bad advice for a long term professional.

cpsilo1

Sorry, I screwed up the terms...I guess I'm confused about this direct pressure stuff. What else is there to consider other then the core and the milling. Also, it looks like I'll probably pay someone to do the installation.

Another flooring place I visited yesterday said that they have been very satisfied with Kronotex as an inexpensive flooring solution.

Yeah, I'm struggling if it's worth the extra $1.50-$2 a sq/ft.


She did mention this, I just forgot to put it in my post. It was written in my notes. Thanks for the feedback though!

Floorwizard

If someone says they had good experiences with cheaper lams then it could be that they are not as rough with it as you may be.
Cheap lams can perform, and there is a place for them in the market.
Although you are taking a higher risk of problems such as (bad milling, chipping, scratching)
But then again, maybe your light on your floors, and it will perform well.