LVT is your best bet. I'm sure there are several Flooring stores located close by. Good luck with your project.

We did a lot of research prior to replacing all of our carpet with flooring. I wanted all of the carpet in the house removed due to allergies. The big box stores carry a cheaper version of the name brands. If you want quality go to Roberto’s flooring or another local company. As far as vinyl vs laminate, depends on where you put it. They are both water proof on top, but laminate will not tolerate water getting underneath. But if water gets under vinyl you have the mold problem unless you take it up to dry underneath. Heavy furniture will dent vinyl, not laminate. Prices of vinyl which comes from Asia have jumped much higher than laminate which comes from Georgia.

We chose Shaw laminate from Roberto’s. It’s beautiful, easy to clean and not clicky at all as some claim. We follow cleaning instructions from Shaw and yes, we can use water to clean it. Poster who claimed you can’t is misinformed. There are different qualities of each so maybe the clicks are with the cheaper versions.

We have tile in the wet areas (kitchen, baths and laundry) which we wanted to keep but didn’t want the openness of the rooms to be compromised by a drastic color change from tile to laminate. Found a beautiful light color flooring that paired well with the tile while not looking like we tried to match but missed the mark. Gets lots of compliments. Good luck in your search. Bottom line I would say is to at least talk to Roberto’s and other flooring companies so you are well informed prior to choosing.

We have lvp and a very active dog. There are scratch marks on the lvp from the dog. I would go with laminate if you have an active dog

L and L flooring were previously Lumber Liquidators. Vinyl plank. We live in Florida and it is waterproof, not water-resistant like laminate.

Vinyl Plank
 

I installed laminate in our previous home and vinyl plank in our villages home and definitely would go with the vinyl if I were to do another home.

1. Appearance - This is a matter of taste and depends on the quality of the flooring you purchase. Personally, I like the look of vinyl better.
2. Ease of Install - I think the laminate wins this one. The thicker and rigid boards makes it easier to line up the grooves and click them in place. Also, the thicker size makes it easier to use the tap boards to lock them in place.
3. Cost - Quality laminate is about a dollar per sf cheaper than quality vinyl.
4. Durability - This is based only on my own personal experience, but I've found that vinyl retains its look longer than laminate. Also, if there is any chance of water flooding the area (dishwasher or washing machine hose bursting, etc..), the laminate would be destroyed and have to be replaced. You can take the vinyl up and let it and the floor dry, then put it back down.

Whether you decide to go with laminate or vinyl, I would suggest checking other dealers as well as Lowes. We purchased ours at Lumber Liquidator (now LLFlooring) and think we got a better product at a lower price. We also shopped at Home Depot and Floor & Decor.

I’ve never installed it myself, but I can give a strong recommendation for LVP (luxury vinyl plank). We’ve had it installed throughout our home, with the exception of carpeting in the bedrooms (softer on the feet). We used an Armstrong product. Lots of wood grain patterns and colors. Completely waterproof.

As far as installation, I’ve been told it’s as easy as laminate. For only a bedroom, I think I’d pay the modest installation charge and not worry about it.

You have not seen top end products. We have Mannington Adura Max vinyl plank floors throughout our house. The planks come in three different sizes to add more randomness and appeal, they have a deep wood texture, and are 100% waterproof. We have had many compliments on our "wood" floors. Not knocking engineered wood, it's just that top-end vinyl is competitive for looks.

LVP Scratches - glue patch
 

Warranty wanted to repair the LVP flooring the builder's subs scratched - so yes you can scratch LVP. They wanted to cut out the planks and replace them. They had planned to cut off the edge of each scratched plank that is supposed to interlock and then they glue down the planks. This is acceptable in some cases. Our floor is supposed to be a floating floor. And we use a low steam mop. So they say they will replace all the boards to the baseboard properly and not use glue. The operative words are "so they say"

We chose ceramic planks. Absolutely gorgeous and lifetime warranty. No water damage or any issues. More expensive but totally worth it.

Our Mohawk Luxury Vinyl Plank had instructions on how to replace a piece in the middle of the room WITHOUT having to take anything more than the damaged piece. I actually used this method to lay the last row of planks UNDER the existing molding. Check your installation instructions, if you have no luck, send me a pm with contact info and I will describe the process.

Vinyl v. Laminate
 

When will we were living up north we used laminate flooring in two of our bedrooms. The finished result was beautiful and quite an improvement to what had been there.

Six months later I discovered vinyl planking and decided to give it a try. I watched a tutorial, as usual, on YouTube on how to install it. The video provided some great advice and good tips to make the job smooth and easy. The install was a breeze. The room looked terrific.

I guess my favorite part of vinyl was using only a razor knife and a speed square to cut the planking. With the laminate I had to have a miter saw, a rubber mallet, and a tool resigned just for laminate floor to absorb the mallet blows. With vinyl there is no saw dust to clean up! Obviously, both require a measuring tape.

Vinyl can be used in wet areas such as kitchens, bathrooms, laundry rooms, etc. and can be used in ‘dry’ rooms as well. The laminate I used was not designed for use in wet areas. Perhaps today they have one that can be used in wet areas. And one of the rooms where the laminate was installed an office chair was used on the surface and in no time at all the finish was ruined. A simple chair mat would have prevented that by the time we realize it was too late. As for holding up the traffic the vinyl planking was definitely the winner of that category. It show no sign of wear.

If I had to do it again I would’ve gone vinyl all the way due to the easy install, the look and texture, and the durability. That’s my opinion and observation.

Good luck on your choice and your install. ⚒

I put down Pergo + in the bedrooms and living room myself. Very easy. Looks wonderful

Please post your recommendation for installer. Thanks.

If you have allergies make sure you buy flooring that doesn’t emit VOCs. Also if you have small grandchildren that may come visit. I found it hard to get when redoing my floors that i went with ceramic tiles. They’re beautiful, strong, waterproof, and not that much more expensive, and i don’t have to worry about dioxins or phthalates.

flooring source
 

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