Laminate flooring is a synthetic (man-made) floor that made a splash on the flooring market in the 1970’s. The first man-made alternative to natural wood, laminate quickly gained popularity as manufacturers created increasingly realistic looks that could easily pass for real hardwood.
Laminate was kind of the pioneer for realistic wood-look flooring, and other types of flooring have caught on and have begun releasing their own realistic wood looks, but more on that later. Laminate planks are solid without give and movement, similar to traditional hardwood.
Laminate flooring’s structure is shown as below:
Now for something completely different! Vinyl flooring is also man-made with looks resembling natural materials (wood, stone, etc.), but it’s a completely different animal with a lot of varieties.
Vinyl had a bad rap for a long time, but it is quickly taking over the market with luxury vinyl planks looking more realistic than ever. Vinyl is even less high maintenance than laminate (as far as moisture and cleaning) and, it is that dark horse that is, slowly but surely, pulling ahead in the race.
Vinyl flooring’s structure is shown as below:
