What does laminate class mean? Which class is better?

When choosing flooring in a city apartment or a private house, sellers will recommend paying attention to a laminate of class 32. Oak or wenge laminate of class 33 will be offered to office owners, and a laminate of class 34 will be offered to shop owners. Should I pay attention to such recommendations? Of course! Laminate classes have been developed by leading manufacturers of this flooring.

Their presence allows you to choose products in accordance with the characteristics of operation in a particular room. What does laminate class mean and which one is the best? How to decipher the numbers on the packaging of the flooring and is the difference between the classes serious? The developed classification of the laminate into classes will help buyers understand all these issues.

What are the classes of laminate flooring?

European manufacturers have developed abrasion classes based on such technical characteristics as impact resistance, moisture resistance, and wear resistance. Standards were developed for two groups - 2 and 3. What are their differences? For domestic use, it is recommended to use a laminate of 2 groups, for commercial use - a laminate of 3 groups. However, today manufacturers practically do not produce laminate 21, 22 and 23 classes. The defining characteristics of this flooring differed significantly from those possessed by class 32 laminate, but the cost was almost the same. On the other hand, the properties of 21-23 class flooring did not suit potential buyers.

Currently, laminate of class 32 is the most popular for domestic use. Among its advantages:

• can be used in everyday life and in the commercial sphere;
• affordable cost;
• wide range of;
• service life up to 15 years.

The main production volumes of most manufacturers are in this class of flooring.

What other types of laminate are currently available? Buyers can choose the following class of wear resistance of the laminate:

• 31 - designed for home use and office space with low traffic;
• 32 - recommended for commercial premises with medium traffic;
• 33 - manufacturers recommend this flooring for offices with high traffic of cafes and restaurants, boutiques and small shops;
• 34 - this laminate is able to withstand ultra-high loads characteristic of gyms, supermarkets, airport buildings.

What class of laminate strength is optimal for a city apartment or a private house? Which is better for the bedroom and hallway? Let us consider in detail all the main classes of this flooring.

Using laminate grade 31

Laminate 31 class is better to choose for a small office space, which is designed for 1-2 employees and a minimum number of visitors or their complete absence. With careful use, it will last 5-6 years. The flooring is affordable and environmentally friendly. This is the optimal laminate for the bedroom, home office and guest room.You can use class 31 laminate in other rooms, but you must be prepared to repair the flooring after 3-4 years, which is not always advisable.

Scopes of a laminate of the 32nd class

Manufacturers produce laminate of class 32 in large quantities. Buyers are offered simple and waterproof panels in different overall dimensions. In addition to standard panels, narrow and short types of slats, boards about 2 meters long, are produced. This allows the use of 32 class laminate in various design projects, which makes it the best for the apartment. The assortment of panels is 8 and 12 mm thick with excellent strength characteristics. Their surface can be matte or glossy, imitate a hand-made board or ceramic tile.

Apply class 32 laminate in the following rooms:

• living rooms and children's rooms;
• hallways;
• home libraries;
• lounges;
• office space with medium traffic;
• small boutiques.

This is the optimal class of laminate for the kitchen, the most visited room in the house.

Hundreds of collections of this flooring are produced, customers can choose wenge laminate or bleached oak, rosewood or cherry. Good strength characteristics allow the use of a laminate of class 32 for 12-15 years.

Application of a laminate of class 33

The excellent technical characteristics of this flooring allow it to be used in the most difficult conditions. It is able to withstand significant loads daily, manufacturers and collections of waterproof laminate of this class produce it. In most cases, the thickness of the laminate of class 33 is 12 mm, this allows it to cope with high loads. On such a cover, you can safely install a heavy table or cabinet filled with books or documents.

A laminate of class 33 is produced with and without chamfer, with a brushed and chrome surface. The color scheme is also impressive - customers can choose wenge laminate, white oak, black ash and other exotic textures to design rooms in any style. For a stylish interior, a glossy laminate of class 33 is suitable, which despite its almost mirror-like surface is distinguished by excellent wear resistance.

Using a laminate for an apartment with similar technical characteristics is not relevant, a class 32 laminate can cope with the loads. Only for the hallway does it make sense to buy this product, use this flooring in the following rooms:

• in offices with high traffic;
• in medium and large specialized stores;
• Hotels
• public buildings.

At home, you can use 33 class cork laminate, which can be laid in children's rooms and living rooms. The moisture resistant laminate of this class, with locks, the structure of which is impregnated with wax, is very popular.

Class 34 laminate for serious problems

How to choose high-quality wood flooring for a large shopping center? A laminate of class 34, which is produced only by leading world companies, will be able to cope with a large flow of visitors. The use of such a laminate for the home is not relevant, unless its owner has decided to lay the floors for 50 years. A feature of the flooring of this class is the high wear resistance of the top layer. It differs noticeably from a laminate of class 33. The rest of the class 34 laminate resembles its less wear resistant competitors. It is based on high density HDF, and the panel thickness varies from 8 to 12 mm.

A class 34 laminate is used for laying in the following rooms:

• shopping and entertainment centers;
• supermarkets
• foyer of large hotels and rest houses;
• corridors of large business centers;
• airport lounges.

Despite the fact that only companies from Belgium and Germany produce the laminate of the 34th class, their collections are very diverse. In addition to imitating classic types of wood, they offer an artistic laminate. It imitates palace parquet, consisting of dies of various types of wood. The difference between this moisture-resistant laminate 34 class from other types is that the panels make a large width.

Which laminate is better?

The answer to this question is extremely difficult. It is impossible to call a class 34 laminate the most popular, despite its strength. On the other hand, it is inferior to class 43 vinyl laminate in this characteristic. In addition, the PVC flooring is absolutely not afraid of water. The thing is that vinyl laminate in addition to high moisture resistance is characterized by an impressive price. So which class of laminate flooring is best?

In residential premises, a laminate of class 34 is inferior to a palm of moisture-resistant laminate of class 32. Vinyl laminate in a house or apartment is recommended in the bathroom or kitchen. In commercial premises, a class 34 laminate is less in demand than a moisture resistant laminated coating of class 33. The differences between them are small, but the difference in cost is significant. How to choose the right laminate? What are the features of flooring? All the necessary information is reflected on the label. Large numbers will help determine the class of the laminate, and water resistance is indicated by marking in the form of intuitive pictograms. It is only necessary to spend a little time reading the packaging label and it will be difficult to make a mistake with the choice.