Afraid you might pick a ‘flaw’ rather than a ‘floor’ when selecting a flooring product for your home? Sick of filtering through catalogue after catalogue trying to find the right fit for your unique style of home?

Fret no more! Picking the right floor for your home can be a daunting task at the best of times. Even the most seasoned homeowners and flippers struggle from time to time in selecting the right flooring for their homes.

Which is why, to minimise your stress, we’ve gone ahead and compiled a list of the most popular flooring products, along with some handy tips about the home environments to which they’re most suited.

Laminate Flooring

This way, you can make the most informed decision possible when selecting the optimal floor, and get back to enjoying that new home of yours sooner!

#1. Laminate flooring

Laminate flooring is one of the most affordable and hi-tech options on the market today. It adds a modern touch to any interior in which its installed and can extend an atmosphere of style and spaciousness to the far corners of any home.

Laminate flooring gives off the illusion of real wood floors with a performance that is so convincing you can barely tell the difference between the two.

Furthermore, the ease with which laminate flooring planks can be fitted together is just too good to ignore. Each plank can interconnect with another, coming together with a simple click, making it possible for even the most amateur flipper or DIY enthusiast to have a crack at laying it themselves.

It is a highly durable option and takes nothing more than a sweep, vacuum and mop to bring it back to a near-perfect finish once laid.

With an outer layer that is purpose-built to resist scuffing, scratching, stains and fading, it is the ideal choice for families with young children and pets, and starting from $19.50 a square metre it comes out on top in terms of affordability versus value.

The only downfall to quality laminates is that, although they can generally handle spills, they’re not highly suitable for water-prone areas like bathrooms or laundries. Nor are they most suitable for apartments as they offer little in the way of soundproofing for residents on the upper and lower floors of your residence.

If you’re looking for a high quality, cheaper alternative flooring option, particularly for a standalone home, then laminates are your go to solution. They are highly durable, won’t damage the existing floors of your home and look gorgeous in any interior!

A lot of customers are particularly interested in the Australian Select Timbers Reflections and Quick-step Majestic floors that are some of the best selling laminate floors these days.

#2. Vinyl Flooring

If you live in an area that is situated in a humid environment or in areas that are prone to water damage, then vinyl flooring might just well be the best option for you.

With a highly durable surface, vinyl flooring is virtually impervious to water damage, and it also handles foot traffic and general wear-and-tear to a high degree.

In addition to this, if you dislike the pesky creaks and groans that tend to characterise natural wooden floors after a period of time, you need not worry about such noise when it comes to vinyl flooring: vinyl floors have the patterns and appearance of natural woods, without the noise that comes with such a product. This is great to know, especially when you’re after a home that exudes peace and quiet!

Best of all, vinyl floorings are forgiving and friendly on the feet, as well as being highly affordable at as low as  $34 a square metre.

So, what’s the catch? Well, unlike other flooring materials, which can typically be replaced by swapping a single damaged plank for a new one, vinyl flooring is typically laid in a single, large sheet, meaning the whole lot almost always needs to be replaced when extensive damage is done to even a small portion of it.

Nevertheless, if you’re in the market for a durable floor that can stand up well to wear and tear, this is probably the one for you.

#3. Bamboo flooring

If you’re an eco-conscious individual and therefore disinclined to buy products that are reaped from the natural environment, then you might be interested in this product.

Bamboo re-grows almost as soon as it is harvested, so in terms of a flooring material it is a highly sustainable product. Furthermore, it is almost as tough as solid timber floors, making it ideal for interiors in which kids and pets roam free.

Last but not least, bamboo flooring adds a unique flavour to each environment in which it’s installed. It’s fashionable, unique and, above all, retains a natural look after which many people aspire for their homes.

The kicker is that it does not collect nasties as other floor materials might, making it a perfect purchase for those suffering from dust and micro-bug related allergies.

The drawback: it is one of the more expensive flooring materials starting from  $72 per square metre, and as a thinner material, it doesn’t retain heat like natural wood or synthetic laminates might.

#4. Natural flooring

Natural wooden floors have a timeless and classic appeal about them. Man has been using them since time immemorial, and we continue to lay them in our homes for a variety of reasons.

First and foremost, they are easy in terms of upkeep and will last for a lifetime if they’re sealed properly. Their natural density means they absorb sound particularly well, and they look great in any setting.

However, if you have kids, pets, or are expecting a high volume of foot traffic, you may want to reconsider this option. That’s because solid timber can be scuffed and marked easily, thereby reducing its appeal in terms of durability.

Of course, if an expert treatment is applied, this problem can be countered, but if you want to maintain a near-perfect finish, it’ll only be a matter of time before you need it re-treated, a problem which is only exacerbated in humid and wet areas, which cause natural woods to swell and make them more susceptible to damage.

This might not seem like a problem in the immediate future, but when you do the calculations over time, you might soon learn that this will cost you in the long term: a problem best avoided if you make the right decision the first time around.

Find out more about the Australian Select Timbers Hickory Impressions timber floors.

#5. Multilayer Hybrid Flooring

Hybrid flooring combines the grand appearance of natural timber with the desirable synthetic traits of laminate and vinyls, making it one of the most sought-after flooring solutions in the market today.

It is a rigid, hard-wearing flooring product that can is suitable for any environment, including those that are prone to water damage such as bathrooms and kitchens. It is less volatile in terms of its reaction to heat and damp, so it can even be used in areas exposed to sunlight.

It’s most advantageous traits are that it can be used in living areas that other products are otherwise excluded, and it can be used across the whole house.

The only foreseeable downfall to hybrid flooring is that it is relatively expensive starting from around  $49.90 per square metre, although these seems a small price to pay compared to its potential value.

The Verdict:

The above products are highly popular and, according to our calculations, are the best in the market at this point in time in terms of resilience, affordability and appearance. Of course, you must take into account your budget as well as the type of flooring that will pay off in the long term for you in terms of value and liveability.

Even though we’ve narrowed the options down for you, it’s important that you remember to take your time, and consult a range of professionals before selecting your product. Moreover, it’s highly important you inform your flooring consultant with relevant information when seeking the right floor for your home.

Ultimately, only you can decide which floor is best suited to your home, but here at Infloorings  we are happy to offer you professional advice, as well as any of the products listed above should you express your interest in them.

We hope you find the right style of flooring for your home!