laminate flooring
- Thread starter blazey
- Start date
You can buy it pretty cheap now, depends on what quality you want, whichever you have it is important to fit it correctly, there are contacts on the net, so given your phobia, you can e-mail for quotes, I have to agree with cashy though, more people are removing laminate floors than installing it now, it is cold, slippy, noisy, nightmare for pets and kids with stocking feet, if you get water under it, it is ruined, even mopping some of the cheap stuff breaks the edges up, my house had it when I bought it, turned out everything underneath was rotten, and I had to replace the whole ground floor. Also, these cause problems for anyone who needs to get underneath them, ie plumbers, electricians etc.
Wasn't particularly bothered about the cold or having to clean it, we clean the carpet everyday anyway. and we use large rugs which cover most of the floor anyway.
Just easier to replace rugs than to keep replacing carpet! Also we dont have dogs so clawing tapping on it wont matter, and we live in a house, not a flat
If anyone has had some fitted recently and has an idea of the price it was then i'd be grateful.
Just easier to replace rugs than to keep replacing carpet! Also we dont have dogs so clawing tapping on it wont matter, and we live in a house, not a flat
If anyone has had some fitted recently and has an idea of the price it was then i'd be grateful.
I have it in my cinema room (for the acoustics, don't you know? 
) and it was about £16 per pack, but that was a reduced price.
I wouldn't want it in my living room, as it is very cold and not very nice underfoot, unlike wood (which feels warmer and more natural.... obviously).
I fitted it myself. It's not hard to do and if you ever need to lift it so that workmen can access the floor underneath, then it can be re-laid again as long as you do it carefully. I know, because I lifted mine and re-laid it again last week.
) and it was about £16 per pack, but that was a reduced price.I wouldn't want it in my living room, as it is very cold and not very nice underfoot, unlike wood (which feels warmer and more natural.... obviously).
I fitted it myself. It's not hard to do and if you ever need to lift it so that workmen can access the floor underneath, then it can be re-laid again as long as you do it carefully. I know, because I lifted mine and re-laid it again last week.
I have it in my cinema room (for the acoustics, don't you know?
I wouldn't want it in my living room, as it is very cold and not very nice underfoot, unlike wood (which feels warmer and more natural.... obviously).
I fitted it myself. It's not hard to do and if you ever need to lift it so that workmen can access the floor underneath, then it can be re-laid again as long as you do it carefully. I know, because I lifted mine and re-laid it again last week.
So how much did you get per 'pack'? How many did you have to use?
I think most packs are about 2 square metres.
It all depends on the quality you go for, you can get underlay to go under it which doesn't make it as cold. I had 3 bedrooms, hall, landing, front-room & dining room done a few years back with Pergo laminate flooring and it cost me £3000 including underlay & fitting, it's probably the mid-high end of the price scale. I love it and would never go back to carpets.
Have a look at this homebase page it will give you an idea on prices -
Online Laminate flooring selection from Homebase.co.uk.
Have a look at this homebase page it will give you an idea on prices -
Online Laminate flooring selection from Homebase.co.uk.
I have it in my cinema room (for the acoustics, don't you know?
You don't want that, trust me, Room acoustics really don't need hard floors as well as windows as it makes everything boom.
If you want somnething that doesn't sound like an echo-y drum boom box then get some carpet down asap.
get spikes on your speakers trhough the carpet to isolate them. but you really sound have some soft furnishings in the room to balance the room acoustics
Our house was laminated downstairs when we bought it. We lived with it for a while and then we couldn't bear it any longer, we ripped the ghastly stuff up and got a carpet fitted.
As has already been said, it was very cold, hard, slippery and a beggar to keep clean.
As has already been said, it was very cold, hard, slippery and a beggar to keep clean.
To be fair entwisi, I did alot of research and trials when constructing the room and the sound is very good. There is no boom and no echo.
Everything is balanced and the acoustics are as good as they can be from the equipment I purchased. The amount of money it all cost, I wasn't going to just dump it all in a room and leave it.
Everything is balanced and the acoustics are as good as they can be from the equipment I purchased. The amount of money it all cost, I wasn't going to just dump it all in a room and leave it.
Not possible, unless you have wall hanging tapestries or 4 or 5 settees you have to great a % of hard surfaces for sound acoustics to be good. The difference soft stuff(including humans) makes is amazing. I do the sound desk at our local church and the difference in how it sounds based on the number of people is astonishing.( I learnt the trade at Uni and have mixed for quite a few decent stars including Desmond Decker and others.)
I also spent a lot of time( my first job) in hifi setting up very expensive HiFi systems in people's houses and tuning sounds to match expectations and room acoustics. Go to any decent HiFi shop and look at the listening rooms, I bet every one is carpeted with a large settee and probably a couple of curtains.
Anyway, what you got?
I just swapped out my HiFi Quad amp for a Onkyo SR605, fronted by Key iQ5SE's. I've a nice pair of Kef Cresta 3's for rears ( I used to sell Onkyo stuff when it first came to teh UK, t'was very good even then. and I've always liked teh Kef 'sound')
I also spent a lot of time( my first job) in hifi setting up very expensive HiFi systems in people's houses and tuning sounds to match expectations and room acoustics. Go to any decent HiFi shop and look at the listening rooms, I bet every one is carpeted with a large settee and probably a couple of curtains.
Anyway, what you got?
I just swapped out my HiFi Quad amp for a Onkyo SR605, fronted by Key iQ5SE's. I've a nice pair of Kef Cresta 3's for rears ( I used to sell Onkyo stuff when it first came to teh UK, t'was very good even then. and I've always liked teh Kef 'sound')
I think a lot depends on the type of films you watch. I watch films that are dialogue heavy, rather than being sound-effects driven. When the room was carpeted the sound was fine, but since replacing the flooring I find the clarity of the dialogue much improved (actually noticeable, rather than some reviewer's measure of improvement).
I understand perfectly what you are saying, as I did a lot of research before deciding on my design. I also reasoned that if the sound was affected by the hard flooring, then I could put rugs down. However, I found the dialogue so much clearer with the hard flooring, so the rugs haven't been necessary. As I say, I don't tend to watch films with loud music or sound effects, so boom, etc hasn't been an issue. I don't even use my subwoofer anymore.
The equipment I have at the moment is a Sony DTR-DB1080 amp/receiver (due to be replaced fairly soon), Kef 2005.2 (6 x eggs) speakers and a Panasonic AE-200 projector (4:3 & 16:9). I have it connected by component cable and is progressively scanned. This allows me to use a 91" (approx) screen, which looks good from the distance I view from.
The Onkyo stuff is getting some really good reviews and I planned on trialing some of their stuff when I upgrade my amp. I also agree with your view on the Kefs, they produce some cracking speakers. However, the Castle Trent's I have in my lounge are probably the best stereo speakers I've heard.
I understand perfectly what you are saying, as I did a lot of research before deciding on my design. I also reasoned that if the sound was affected by the hard flooring, then I could put rugs down. However, I found the dialogue so much clearer with the hard flooring, so the rugs haven't been necessary. As I say, I don't tend to watch films with loud music or sound effects, so boom, etc hasn't been an issue. I don't even use my subwoofer anymore.
The equipment I have at the moment is a Sony DTR-DB1080 amp/receiver (due to be replaced fairly soon), Kef 2005.2 (6 x eggs) speakers and a Panasonic AE-200 projector (4:3 & 16:9). I have it connected by component cable and is progressively scanned. This allows me to use a 91" (approx) screen, which looks good from the distance I view from.
The Onkyo stuff is getting some really good reviews and I planned on trialing some of their stuff when I upgrade my amp. I also agree with your view on the Kefs, they produce some cracking speakers. However, the Castle Trent's I have in my lounge are probably the best stereo speakers I've heard.
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heh, Want to borrow my electrostatics for a while? They will blow you away with soundstage and clarity.
When I sold the stuff it always made me laugh when people brought in what HiFi etc and wanted to buy the latest greatest without even listening to it. My comment was that there were three words missing from every single review in every single magazine " In my opinion"
If there is one thing that took the longest to get across it was that only you can decide what sounds 'better' as I don't have the same hearing that you do. I prefer a natural clarity to my sound(hence I love the electrostats and the valve amps. the Kefs give the closest to that sound without being there) , you may like a crisper, brighter sound, then the next bloke wants bass heavy boom. None of us are 'right', just different. When it comes to spending more money on kit, its a law of depreciating returns, moving from a £100 amp to a £200 will be very noticeable but from a £500-£600 will be much harder to justify. Same with speakers.
I sold stuff on the principle of starting a system at 75% of what the customer wanted to spend then tweaking individual components and if they could hear a difference then fair enough, if they couldn't then no point in spending it. Often I could save them (quite) a few quid which meant they went home happy and recommended us to friends etc. I reckon we made far more money from repeat sales than from squeezing every last penny from each customer. It was nice to actually see people with systems that were suited purely to them and their listening rather than whatever Joe bloggs who writes for a magazine thinks they should have. I used to really enjoy doing teh install in peoples homes as you could really make a difference by proper positioning speakers etc.
When I sold the stuff it always made me laugh when people brought in what HiFi etc and wanted to buy the latest greatest without even listening to it. My comment was that there were three words missing from every single review in every single magazine " In my opinion"
If there is one thing that took the longest to get across it was that only you can decide what sounds 'better' as I don't have the same hearing that you do. I prefer a natural clarity to my sound(hence I love the electrostats and the valve amps. the Kefs give the closest to that sound without being there) , you may like a crisper, brighter sound, then the next bloke wants bass heavy boom. None of us are 'right', just different. When it comes to spending more money on kit, its a law of depreciating returns, moving from a £100 amp to a £200 will be very noticeable but from a £500-£600 will be much harder to justify. Same with speakers.
I sold stuff on the principle of starting a system at 75% of what the customer wanted to spend then tweaking individual components and if they could hear a difference then fair enough, if they couldn't then no point in spending it. Often I could save them (quite) a few quid which meant they went home happy and recommended us to friends etc. I reckon we made far more money from repeat sales than from squeezing every last penny from each customer. It was nice to actually see people with systems that were suited purely to them and their listening rather than whatever Joe bloggs who writes for a magazine thinks they should have. I used to really enjoy doing teh install in peoples homes as you could really make a difference by proper positioning speakers etc.