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bravenrace
bravenrace SuperDork
1/6/12 9:13 a.m.
fifty wrote: I looked at the Lumbar Liquidators wood and in the end went with a name brand from a wholesaler (Bruce, I think was the brand). The word from our installer is that the LL is a lower grade of lumber - more knots and imperfections. I have nothing to substantiate that, but looking at their samples seemed to confirm that.

My contractor said Bella Wood is the absolute best wood available. I can't substantiate that either.

patgizz
patgizz SuperDork
1/6/12 11:34 a.m.

i like armstrong and their companies(bruce and such) for real wood. i have never used bella wood because i do not buy from LL, i buy from wholesalers and occasionally the home depot because on sale, stuff is cheaper there then it is wholesale because of their volume.

the real veneer on the engineered stuff is 1/16 to 1/8 depending on the brand. it can be refinished, the one i did in my parents house was 1/8 and claimed it could be sanded and refinished 3 times before you get through the top layer, but that is kinda silly.

bluej
bluej Dork
1/6/12 5:08 p.m.

Good to know. Was also thinking about when scratches/gouges happen.

alex
alex SuperDork
1/6/12 7:22 p.m.
DrBoost wrote:
spitfirebill wrote:
pigeon wrote:
914Driver wrote: ... asbestos squares ... so I sanded and feathered out any imperfections...
OT, but yikes! That scares me a bit for your health.
Me too.
Ahh, it'll put hair on your chest......and a third ball in your sack.

Mesothelioma was cool enough for Steve McQueen.

Curmudgeon
Curmudgeon SuperDork
1/6/12 7:29 p.m.

Not big on laminate here either. It looks like the stuff Wal Mart puts down. The floating engineered hybrid sounds interesting. patgizz, what brand was that?

Hal
Hal Dork
1/7/12 2:44 p.m.
patgizz wrote: the real veneer on the engineered stuff is 1/16 to 1/8 depending on the brand. it can be refinished, the one i did in my parents house was 1/8 and claimed it could be sanded and refinished 3 times before you get through the top layer, but that is kinda silly.

We had that glued down on a concrete slab in our family room(used to be back porch). It has been down for 6 years now and we have not had any problems.

bluej
bluej Dork
1/7/12 4:22 p.m.

So whats the difference between engineered and lam if they're both just a top veneer?

patgizz
patgizz SuperDork
1/7/12 10:12 p.m.

laminate is not a veneer. it is a picture on top of sawdust. the top layer is pretty much a piece of paper with a hard clear over top.

engineered hardwood is a veneer of real hardwood over a plywood base.

the click together engineered hybrid stuff can be seen on the hardwood section of homelegend.com - i am a big fan for ease of install and the finish seems durable.

bluej
bluej Dork
1/7/12 11:36 p.m.

Ah, ok, thanks.

spitfirebill
spitfirebill UberDork
9/11/13 8:14 a.m.

I'm going to make a canoe out of some laminate.

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