What do you think about Luxury Vinyl Plank flooring?

It’s ideal for areas where you don’t want to use real wood. You can get it waterproof for bathrooms and it’s generally scratch resistant. It’s also super easy to install, maintain, and clean.

Not crazy about the look. I thought about it for my kitchen but as I have real wood in the dining room, it would not look good next to each other.

I feel like it looks ok but it looks common. It’s everywhere now. I like the look of a real wood floor better. Tile is cold and I was told once that on a big expanse, if the under-floor is not perfect, the tile will crack. The good thing about tile in a kitchen is it’s easy to keep clean. You could do a quick wipe with a wet rag on the problem spots and voila.

I figured out why LVP is so popular. With real wood, it takes a day to lay it, a day to sand it and a two days to stain and/or poly it. Tile takes at least a day until you can walk on it. LVP, you just pop it in and be done with it, so for builders or people who want to do it quick, it’s ideal.

I don’t like it. The naming is bullshit and builders are trying to pull a fast one.

Especially when they say it’s an alternative to real hardwood floors. That’s bullshit. It’s a step down.

LV has a reputation for fading badly in sunlight, so you would have to tint your windows.
Also, a wood guy told me the pattern on LV is etched into the planks and after a while, the path area will wear off and not match the rest of the floor.

Prefinished hardwood installs in hours and it’s easy for builders to do. You have to be honest about what Vinyl flooring is for. It’s for installing directly over concrete slabs like basements, high traffic areas that need to be durable and cleaned regularly like in hotel rooms or storefronts. It’s not an alternative to hardwood, it’s an alternative to laminate like Pergo or engineered wood flooring like Armstrong. You use this over the other options in higher traffic areas or areas that will get wet sometimes. It’s also great fo destructive teenagers or pets that have accidents.

I am personally not a fan of LVP. It however has its use in specific applications.
Durability and longevity are my concerns.
I side on have real hardwood that lasts hundreds of years. Hardwood however has it’s own concerns and issues but that is my go to.

The L is pretty relative. There are worse and better vinyl plans with better and worse results.

A decent installer will should assuage your water worries. Bathrooms have additional waterproofing, and LVT is waterproof enough for kitchen use.

Scratches do happen, but seem less noticeable than on wood. The look is OK. Not stunning, but acceptable.. I use it at my shop because wood didn’t meet health code.

The main reason I’d use LVT over tile is comfort. I hate extended periods of walking on tile. If it were for the kitchen, I’d probably go vinyl, or maybe look into marmoleum if aesthetics is most important. I don’t love the fake wood look but I think there are at least a couple alternatives.

Tile because of the wear factor.

Here is a flooring professional’s take of LVT, it is no ! > > > > https://www.woodandbeyond.com/blog/10-disadvantages-of-lvt-flooring-from-a-flooring-expert/

Absolutely nothing. ;-)

But all kidding aside, since I first moved out from home ages ago, I’ve only ever rented, and therefore not really had any choice in the flooring. There was a place that I had looked at way back when they had all wood flooring but even then I wouldn’t have been able to tell you what sort it was. But every place I’ve lived has had all carpet except for the bathroom, the kitchen, and the laundry room.

I had to replace the flooring in my starter townhome that had honey oak cabinets. Wood flooring wasn’t an option I considered, but I was against grey/“greige” and none of the wood looks appealed to me, especally juxtaposed with the cabinets. Also dark “wood grain” LVP shows dust and prints. I found Lowe’s SmartCore line that has stone looks, so I got this one. It’s a busy pattern, but it hides dirt and it blends well with my cabinets. It is advertised as waterproof and dent, scratch, and stain resistant. One thing about LVP/LVT is that you’re not supposed to use ammonia-based products or steam to clean it because it will degrade the finish.

We did vinyl planks when we did a low-budget facelift on the original bathroom about 8 years or so ago. It was mostly just new paint, replacing the floor, upgrading the hardware pulls on the vanity and replacing the sink faucet and lights. The vinyl planks have held up really well given this is the main bathroom for the house and the amount of water that drips on it from showers and such. It’s a softer material so dragging a sharp rock across it would leave a permanent mark (but it would with wood too). I’ve not seen a wear pattern along the main path between the door and the toilet. It’s easy to install and extremely affordable for the look. It’s also not fooling anyone into believing it’s anything other than vinyl planks.

Overall I’ve very happy with the decision and would do it again in a heartbeat for this room. If it were a formal dining room or the foyer to a higher-end home, I’d definelty go with a different material. If the house was valued above $500k I’d probably upgrade to real tiles, and put in a nicer shower.