Linoleum or laminate - which is better? Compare coatings for 9 indicators
Better, more durable, more pleasant, more reliable, of course, natural floors. However, the cost of parquet, cork and natural stone often inspires a desire to find an economical alternative. Especially if the owners are planning only short-term cosmetic transformations. In such situations, mainly two fighters enter the flooring ring, each of which stands for a club of budget materials. Let's see who wins the battle: linoleum or laminate - which will look better, will cost less and will last longer.
Content
Criteria for the upcoming match
Consider the status of an independent referee, who impartially evaluates opponents, and distribute the rounds. We will choose the winner in martial arts according to the following qualities:
- aesthetic indicators;
- cost framework;
- safety;
- ease of installation, as obviously we assume that the buyer wants to settle in with his own hands;
- operational terms;
- attitude to water, to wet cleaning and household cleaning products;
- heat engineering and sound insulation properties;
- scope of use;
- ups and downs of transportation.
We will issue verdicts after comparing the “fighters” for each of the criteria.
Consistent Consumer Comparison
Round One: Aesthetics
Both types of flooring due to their affordability are understandably popular. Its consequence was the delivery to the market of a considerable number of brands with an extensive design range. The buyer has been offered numerous options in order not to group friends in taste and color. In both cases, you can choose imitation of wood, marble, onyx, granite, even reptile skin, abstraction, etc. True, a couple of decades ago, linoleum was attributed to “soviet” coatings, but new options completely refute the ancient opinion. Draw.
Round two: price
The initial superiority of forces on the side of the PVC coating, i.e. linoleum. Notice, not his expensive natural prototype, created from a mixture of resins, oil, wood and dolomite flour, deposited on a jute base, but a synthetic material with a very low price. The difference between the cheapest representatives of linoleum and laminate will be a multiple of about two. The middle link of the laminated parquet similarity will be approximately 2.5 times more expensive than a similar-in-class PVC coating. There are no upper bounds, because brands of contestants are sometimes more expensive than parquet.
In the championship under the motto "which is cheaper: laminate or linoleum" the victory over the last fighter.
You can glue linoleum on the concrete floor with your own hands, if you know how and what it is better to do. Let's talk about this in our article:https://floor.expertexpro.com/en/pol-pokritiya/linoleum/kak-i-chem-prikleit-linoleum-k-betonnomu-polu.html.
Round Three: Security
The concept is versatile, so we will cover each of the faces:
- Ecology. Both opponents are classified as synthetic materials.Despite the 80% content of lumber waste in the laminate, their connection is still carried out artificially using polymer binders and chemical adhesives. Budget linoleum is generally more correct to call vinyl coated. The manufacture of both laminate and vinyl material does not upset the ecological balance, but the disposal of laminate floors is not difficult, and it is not so easy to eliminate old linoleum. It does not decompose itself, it burns terribly when burned.
- The ability to cause allergies. In both cases, before purchasing, you need to study the certificate, which indicates the possibility of its use for the arrangement of housing and public institutions. Information on the maximum concentration of formaldehyde should also be indicated there. It is desirable that the figure pointing to it persistently strive for zero. As a last resort, there was an insignificant number with one, two or better three zeros facing it. If the product does not have a certificate, you must refuse to purchase it.
- Risk of injury when traveling. In order to eliminate this unsightly property, the coatings are given a relief, which at the same time increases the realism of the imitated structure. On a wet or oil-flooded cheap laminate floor, they say you can slip, but because it cannot be poured with water or oil, these cases are related to the category of conversations.
Attention. Both types of budget flooring are classified as combustible finishing materials.
Many are tormented by the question - is it possible to lay a laminate on a loggia? We will analyze in more detail the conditions and features of the installation, and also, we will help you choose the coating and substrate in the material:https://floor.expertexpro.com/en/pol-pokritiya/mozhno-li-klast-laminat-na-lodzhii.html.
Conclusion: in clarifying the issues, which material is safer and more environmentally friendly: laminate or linoleum, there are no clear winners. Each criterion has reservations as well as the pros and cons of both options.
Round Four: Stacking
Let's start with the preparation. Deviations during the control of the rough basis with a 2-meter rail applied to the floor plane in an arbitrary direction should not exceed 2 mm for both the laminate floor and the PVC material. Otherwise, the linoleum will be deformed, rubbed, or even break through in poor-quality areas, and the laminate system will be damaged by the castle system and the floor will have to be completely changed.
The substrate spreads under both coatings, but it is optional for laying linoleum. Moreover, if the back side of the PVC coating is pre-equipped with a layer of felt or expanded polystyrene. Economic plus.
Compare the technological qualities of rivals:
- Laying large-sized linoleum panels on the floor is quicker and easier than cutting, fitting and rallying laminated boards. However and laminate flooring It is not a super-complicated, labor-intensive work, it just requires following a step-by-step instruction and takes more time.
- Linoleum needs to be fixed to the base on glue or on double-sided adhesive tape. This is an additional expense item. Laminate floors are rarely built now, joining boards with glue. Laminate flooring floating scheme, do not attach to the base.
- Errors in laying "planted" on glue linoleum impossible to fix. Laminate flooring can be dismantled on planks and laid again. Optional in the same place.
Both coatings are compatible with underfloor heating systems of water and electric type. Verdict: the score is again “no one”.
Round Five: Lifetime
Unconditional superiority for linoleum. You won’t have to think about replacing it for 10 years, and a number of manufacturers sincerely convince you in 3 dozen years of immaculate service and issue guarantees for this period.
Exploiting a cheap laminate for more than 5 years will not work. On average 2-3 years, which attracts fans often to change the atmosphere and decoration.The laminated floor of an expensive commercial class will last 10 years, and with good care even more years, but its cost is significantly higher than cheap linoleum.
Round Six: The Practical Side
Wash the laminate, and even more so it is impossible to fill it with water, it warp. He will have to part with. Maximum rare care with a very carefully wrung out damp cloth. Strength tests by hitting an accidentally dropped heavy object should be discarded. But its acrylic or melamine protective and decorative coating will not allow the absorption of spots, protect it from matchstick and cigarette burns, and will not allow scratches to appear.
Attention. Care with the use of chemical solvents and abrasive products for the laminate floor is unacceptable.
Linoleum can be washed “decked” if it is laid with one continuous carpet. Just like a vinyl coating made up of several panels with welds. If the seams are not welded, the deck method of care should be forgotten, because a wet substrate can become a hotbed for fungi and mold. You can burn it without much effort, except for a heat-resistant brand. Linoleum is indifferent to blows, but heels, stilettos, thin legs of weighty furniture, sharp claws of pets do not respect, and a dropped corkscrew or knife blade can leave a gap in it.
Let’s balance and decide which is more practical: laminate or linoleum. We will award the victory to the vinyl material, taking into account the fact that it serves much longer.
Round seven: soundproof heat engineering
The insulating qualities of both compared materials leave much to be desired. They directly depend on the thickness of the laminated dies and on the presence of a substrate on the back of the linoleum. On their own, neither the vinyl nor the particle board interfere with the passage of heat and noise. This work is done for them by polystyrene foam, felt, cork or composite layer.
High-quality art laminate is a worthy replacement for piece parquet. You can read more about what kind of coating this is, what types there are and how to independently perform its laying on our website:https://floor.expertexpro.com/en/pol-pokritiya/laminat/hudozhestvennyiy-laminat.html.
Because the laminate is laid according to the floating technique and is not fixed to the rough basis, the use of a substrate is a necessity. Otherwise, he will “clatter” under his feet. Soft flexible linoleum does not respond to steps as noisy. However, a cement floor trimmed with linoleum without a heat-insulating lining will be incredibly cold. In short, a draw.
Round eight: scope of use
The laminate floor looks a bit more noble than its rustic rival, but it is very moody and sensitive to moisture. Therefore, it is not laid in hygienic rooms and in kitchens. Most often they are used where repairs are necessary with a certain frequency: in nurseries, in hallways, less often in living rooms and bedrooms.
Linoleum does not care at all. You can wash-wipe it as much as you like by any means. Only abrasive is undesirable if it is not homogeneous, i.e. all over the stained material. The top layer of a homogeneous coating from abrasive action can also be erased, it just cannot be visually determined. In theory, a vinyl coating can be put wherever you want. True, there are rarely lovers of arranging linoleum floors in bedrooms, nurseries, offices, living rooms. This "workhorse" serves in the kitchens and bathrooms, works great on the floor in the hallways.
Conclusion: not a single material was dispensed with without restrictions. Draw.
Round Nine: Transportation
It is easier to deliver laminate to the object, neatly packed in easy-to-move bundles. You can transport in the trunk of a personal car, deliver to the apartment by elevator. It is more difficult with linoleum: it is sold in rolls. The larger the area of the room to be finished, the more the uncomfortable, too high parcel with a height of 2 m or more will weigh. Sometimes it happens that you don’t shove it into the elevator.It will be necessary to go broke on delivery and services of movers. The laminate won.
So what’s the result?
The score is three-one in favor of linoleum. However, neither the practicality nor the long-term durability of the vinyl coating will convince those who have made the firm decision to purchase and lay the laminate. We sincerely wish them success on the difficult path of an independent finisher.
Ivan 
Rizvan 
Sergei
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