sal ,flooring is about choices and compromise,if you want it to look real it needs to be real.
pergo type laminates will not scratch as much as real hardwood,but they dont look as good as real hardwood.decide what you want most from the flooring,then your choice will be clear.....good luck

PLEASE disregard the reply that the other person sent you!

What he said about a laminate floor scratching LESS than hardwood? Total nonsense! Although laminate floors are finished much better than they were even a few years ago, you simply cannot beat the durability of the finishes on hardwood flooring today.

Finish isn't really issue though, btwn laminate and wood floors. The fact is that laminate floors are a paper picture of wood and wood is well, WOOD. This means that a wood floor can be re-finished or recoated should the finish get scratched and a laminte floor once it's scratched is pretty much toast.

Go to the National Wood Flooring Association website for more info.

Good Luck!

And the debate goes on....Hey, I'm a hardwood flooring bigot but there are places for laminate floors. Some people love the stuff and they are very simple to install thesedays with the clic together stuff.

One item many rarely address is how laminate floors can frustrate animals especially older ones. I've seen some avoid new areas with these types of floors because they can't get any traction. They basically give up and stay in a safe zone.

Real and has high quality?

Absolutely hardwood floors.

Best to you
Ken Fisher
South Florida

When In Florida

well sal you got two answers,and my point of veiw is different than woodgirl,so try this take a quater and try to scratch a laminate,then try it on hard wood,laminate has a much denser core and so its much harder to scratch,(look up what consumers guide said when they tested both) now i expect a wood contractor to say wood is better,you make a lot more money selling wood than laminate,however both have a place and you will find both have there supporters....good luck

i looked around for a link that might help you,mannington ind. mgf's all types of flooring ,read how they rate there floors.
http://www.floorsearch.com/laminate/="http://www.floorsearch.com"

Sal,
This is one of my favorite questions. I have been in the wood flooring business for over 30 years. I have worked in the flooring depts of both Home Depot and Lowe's

When I first started with Home Depot I was concerned if I could sell laminate floors in good conscience. I came to realize that laminate floors are really nothing more than hard wall to wall carpeting and since I had no problem selling carpeting I had no problem selling laminates as long as the customer understood what he was buying.

These stores usually have the laminates on one side and real wood flooring on the other side of the same isle. I often encountered customers with your same question, "Which?"

My first response after listening to the customers concerns was I would point to the laminates and say,"Artificial Christmas trees!" and then point to the real wood and say, "Real Christmas trees!" I would then tell the customer that artificial Christmas trees have been available for over 50 years and people still go out every year and buy a "Real Tree". Then I ask, "Why is that?"

I would then point out that laminates are sold as a new technology. I say," Who are they kidding? K-Mart has been making furniture like that for years and people who wouldn't think of putting a piece of K-Mart furniture in their house are putting this on their floors"

I then talk about warranties. I have seen 15 year to 30 year warranties on laminates which is pretty good but.. And then I point to the real wood flooring and say," There are wood floors in Europe that are over 500 years old that are made just like that and they still haven't exceeded their "Warranty" Actually they didn't need a warranty. They were a tried and tested system.

By this time the customer is really thinking and realizes I have a great sense of humor.

I then start talking about structural strength. When you install real 3/4"inch Oak flooring you have solid tongue and groove oak spanning your joists as well as the subfloor and it's nailed or stapled in place. You have not only just improved the structual soundness of your house but you have dramatically added to the value of your house.

Laminates on the other hand add no structual strength and little value to your home. If you really want an objective opionion I suggest not asking a salesman who is selling you product but ask a Realtor which will add to the value of your house. They have nothing to gain by misleading you. Real wood floors will blow laminates away.

Many people don't realize it but laminates are a picture of wood. There are about 8 different patterns so you will be repeating the pattern. Real wood flooring is like fingerprints. No two boards are identical.

Real wood floors are and investment. Let's say 20 years from now the floors neew to be spruced up. Real wood floors can be sanded and refinished about 10 times. This is one of the reasons they increase the value of your hosue so much. Laminates on the other hand simply have to be replaced. Try and imagine what laminate flooring is gonna costs 20 years from now.

Often after I get to this point the price comes up. Surprisingly the costs difference between Prefinished real wood flooring and most laminates is 20 to 30 cents. I have had many people have come in totally convinced they want a laminate floor and end up buying a real wood floor after talking to me. I have quite a few come back and thank me for talking them out of laminate flooring.

Of course there are a few who still are set on buying laminates and my response is, "How much do you need?"

Franklyn
http://www.WoodFloorist.com

of course much of this applies to wall to wall carpet as well

Franklyn
http://www.bobvila.com/ultimate/Forum9/HTML/001477.html

O.k. some good thought by all.
Laminates still are a great floor for lots of people. I sell more laminate by two fold than any other product. Why? Cause most the customers that come in do not want to make an investment, and will buy another house less than 10 years down the road.
Investers buy wood. And it is a great choice.
will it improve the value of the home? Most likely yes, but you will need to check with a realator in your area and see what your neighbors are doing. It all depends.
20 - 30 cent difference between laminate and prefinished wood? Maybe a high end laminate and a cheap prefinished wood.
Wood finish more durable than laminate? NO!
Wood finish is warrantied for surface wear, not scratches and dents.
Wood will last longer though, and a GOOD wood, will cost alot more than a laminate, Hence investment.
Generally you will get your money back one way or another if you buy real wood.
When someone comes into my store with the same question as you, it takes me a good 20 minutes to qualify what floor will fit their need. I do not sell cheap stuff, so wood can run alot more, most decide that 20 years is enough, and they do not want to spend the money on a product like Kahrs hardwood. Although I wish they would.
BTW Home Depot and ***** do not carry the highest end wood and laminates in the industry.

I agree with you 100% Floorcraft. It comes down to considering the advantages of each and disadvantages of each and making a decision. Kinda like choosing which box store you shop at (grin)

Franklyn
http://www.alexa.com/data/details/write_review?q=&url=woodfloorist.com