What to Consider When Choosing Living Room Flooring
When trying to choose the best flooring for your living room project, it’s important to consider the following factors:
Durability and Foot Traffic
The living room layout influences the durability of the flooring, for example:
Separate Lounge Room: Many UK homes, especially older properties, feature a distinct lounge, separate from other spaces. These rooms serve as a quiet space to relax, watch television, or to isolate noisy kids when entertaining guests. When separated, these living rooms experience lower foot traffic.
Open-plan living spaces: a popular choice in modern UK homes and renovation projects. This layout combines the living room, kitchen, and dining areas, using the same flooring throughout. These integrated spaces have more foot traffic and are prone to water damage along with general wear and tear.
When selecting flooring for open-plan layouts, it is crucial to choose a durable material. The material should be able to withstand regular use, kitchen moisture, and chair scratches.
If children or pets use your living room, choose scratch-resistant and easy-to-clean flooring. This will help maintain the appearance of your floors, while being easy to clean.
Comfort and warmth
Comfortable living rooms invite relaxation, and your flooring choice plays an important role in creating this atmosphere. Wood effect floors like LVT and laminate offer comfortable and stylish options.
These wood-effect floors provide natural warmth to your lounge, visually and underfoot. LVT and high-quality laminate often have textured surfaces mimicking real wood grain. Engineered wood, with its real timber top layer, offers genuine wood warmth and feel.
Flooring underlay is another way to add warmth and comfort to your living room floor. Many of our products come with builtin underlay, saving the additional cost and installation time of separate underlayment products.
Finally, many wood effect flooring types are compatible with underfloor heating systems, which are increasingly popular in UK homes. This combination provides efficient warmth throughout your lounge, improving comfort, especially during colder months.
Maintenance and Cleaning
Consider how much time you're willing to devote to floor maintenance. Some materials need special cleaning, while others are easy to clean with sweeping and an occasional mop.
LVT and Laminate flooring are great options. These low-maintenance materials, needing regular sweeping and occasional damp mopping. Engineered wood may need more care, including periodic refinishing to maintain its appearance.
Consider your lifestyle and cleaning preferences. For pets or young children, choose easy-to-clean and stain-resistant flooring. Some modern options have built-in antimicrobial properties, adding an extra layer of hygiene to your home.
Consider the health benefits of your living room flooring, a room where you and your family spend a lot of time. If your kids have allergies, it's better to choose hard flooring such as LVT, laminate, or engineered wood. Carpets can trap dust, which can worsen allergies.
Aesthetics and Style
Your lounge flooring should complement your interior design. When selecting flooring, consider the color scheme, furniture, and other finishes. Wood-effect options offer a range of styles, from light oak to dark walnut, for various looks from rustic to modern.
We offer free king-size samples across our entire range to help you choose the right flooring for your living room refurbishment. Holding flooring samples against paint colors, furniture, staircase transitions and kitchen cabinets can help you make a decision.
Budget Considerations
Flooring costs can vary widely. For many products like carpet, consider more than just the material cost.
The total cost of your living room floor can increase significantly. This is because you need to factor in the cost of underlayment, gripper rods, tools, glue, and installation. Each of these items adds to the overall expense.
Modern wood-effect flooring reduces additional costs. Flooring products like LVT are DIY friendly, with pre-built underlay, reducing total cost and installation time.
Consider long-term value when comparing costs. Some options may have a higher initial cost but can ultimately be more cost-effective in the long run. This is because they have a longer lifespan and need less maintenance.
LVT and high-quality laminate offers affordability and longevity. Engineered wood, though pricier initially, can last for decades with proper care.
Consider potential energy savings from improved insulation when paired with underfloor heating systems.
Popular Living Room Flooring Options
Now that you’ve considered the factors for your living room flooring project, it’s time to learn more about the options.
- LVT (Luxury Vinyl Tile): a durable material and a great choice for high traffic areas. It has become increasingly popular in open-plan living room layouts. LVT is also waterproof, comes with a pre-fitted underlay and can mimic natural materials like wood or stone.
- Laminate Flooring: A cost-effective way to achieve the look of hardwood. It's durable, easy to install for DIY enthusiasts, and resistant to scratches and fading. With it’s AC5 rating, this commercial grade laminate offers resistance against surface moisture, scratches and fading
- Engineered Wood Flooring: This option offers the warmth and beauty of real wood with added stability. It's suitable for installation over various subfloors and reacts better to changes in temperature and humidity vs solid wood flooring.
Pros and cons of each lounge flooring type?
Luxury Vinyl Tiles (LVT)
Pros:
- Highly durable and resistant to scratches, dents, and stains.
- Waterproof, making it ideal for open-plan layouts including kitchens.
- Wide variety of realistic wood and stone designs.
- Built-in underlay, so you don't need separate underlayment
- Comfortable underfoot and warmer than natural stone.
- Easy to maintain and clean. Simply sweep and give the occasional mop.
- Compatible with underfloor heating
- Suitable for DIY installation
Cons:
- May not fully replicate the feel of natural materials
- Can be pricier than laminate.
- May not add as much resale value to your home as real wood flooring.
Laminate
Pros:
- Affordable option for achieving a wood-effect living room floor
- Comes in a range of designs, like our new Herringbone Laminate Flooring
- Highly durable and resistant to scratches and fading
- Easy DIY installation with click-lock systems
- Wide range of designs available
- Low maintenance and easy to clean
Cons:
- Not as water-resistant as LVT, which can be an issue in open-plan layouts.
- If not installed with proper underlay, it can sound slightly hollow.
- You cannot refinish it like real wood.
- Cheaper options may look less realistic than LVT or engineered wood.
Engineered Wood
Pros:
- Is a real wood product made from compressed plywood with a solid oak top layer
- More stable than solid hardwood, resisting warping and movement.
- Needs less maintenance than Solid Wood
- Adds value to your home
- Available in a wide range of oak colors and styles.
- Compatible with underfloor heating (check manufacturer specifications)
Cons:
- More expensive than LVT or laminate options
- Requires more careful maintenance than LVT or Laminate
- It can scratch or dent, but not as easily as solid hardwood.
- DIY installation can be more challenging than with LVT or laminate
A note on DIY
Assess your skill level honestly if you’re thinking about DIY installation of your new living room floor. LVT and Laminate are generally easier for DIY installation, with straightforward click-system installation.
On the other hand, Engineered Wood may require a bit more expertise and experience. There are plenty of DIY guides on Youtube to give you a sense of skill level needed.
Remember to prepare your subfloor properly, ensuring it’s flat and level. The vast majority of flooring problems are related to the quality of the subfloor.
Closing Thoughts
Finding the perfect living room floor needs a balance of durability, style and budget. Wood-effect flooring like LVT and Laminate, can offer great durability at affordable prices. Material like Engineered Oak Flooring might cost you more, but will give you a more natural feel without the expense of solid wood.
We encourage you to take advantage of our free king-size samples. Touching and comparing options in your own space is a great way to make your decision.
With the right flooring material, your new living room floor can be the center-piece of your home for years to come.
