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How Flooring Thickness Affects Its Performance
Choosing the best flooring material can be overwhelming. Consequently, selecting the material from the long list and contemplating on the thickness may be overlooked. From the rule of thumb, the thicker the flooring system, the higher its resilience. With that said, thicker floors can better withstand damage from pounding objects, corrosion by chemicals, and extreme temperatures. In this article, you’ll learn how flooring thickness can impact its performance.
When a floor, thickness is a key concern. You need to meet the building code as a key aspect in improved performance. There are various elements that installers consider and which can affect the floor’s durability and strength. Each type of flooring has a different flooring thickness level requirement.
Laminate Flooring Thickness
Having thick laminate flooring is not always the best option. However, laminate flooring thickness is crucial, and its durability is measured with an AC rating. Floors with a higher rating are more durable. Additionally, your home or building needs will determine the most suitable flooring thickness. This makes the 12mm laminate the most sought after.
Benefits of Thick Laminate Flooring
If you are wondering how thick your laminate flooring should be, there are various benefits you derive from thick flooring.
- Higher sound-dampening floor performance
- More stability and strength
- A better option if your sub-flooring is not sturdy
Benefits of Thin Laminate Flooring
Sometimes the best thickness for laminate flooring can be 6mm. The thin laminate flooring is ideal when you are on a budget. You can install this flooring on a flat cement sub-floor. The cement offers sturdy support for the laminate.
Vinyl Plank Flooring Thickness
Do you want thin or thick vinyl flooring? Factors like the installation location, foot traffic, subfloor type, subfloor condition, and the type of vinyl flooring that you choose affect the choice of thickness. If your installation location has high traffic, you can choose a thick vinyl floor because it offers more comfort, support and durability. Additionally, they provide more support to imperfect subfloors.
Hardwood Floor Thickness
Traditional hardwoods require refinishing every ten years. For this reason, getting thicker planks will improve the floor performance. Thick traditional hardwood floors can last long. However, bamboo flooring requires refinishing every 50 years. As such, bamboo flooring thickness may not be a factor to consider. Notably, thicker floors don’t increase resistance to dropped objects. However, it means one can sand and refinish the floors several times.
Some of the limitations of thick wood flooring include:
- More expensive
- Not eco-friendly
- Raise the floor height, reducing space
Advantages of Thin Wood Flooring
When choosing wood floor thickness, you can also choose thin planks. The advantages include:
- Less cost
- Most thin planks have warranties as they do with thick planks
- They have the same performance as thick planks once installed
- Easier to carry and cut
- They give you more headroom.
However, there are limitations to thin flooring planks. They include:
- Slightly lower insulation than thicker planks
- You may experience more flexion depending on the subfloor
Epoxy Flooring Thickness
Various factors determine epoxy floor thickness; such include the intended use and the type. For surfaces that should absorb shock, impact and prevent damage, go for thick resin floors. As you go for this type of flooring, ensure you choose high-quality materials. High-quality materials have good floor performance, safety and they can be used for a long time.
If your space only has light foot traffic, you can go for a thickness of less than 1 mm. Most small warehouses, storage spaces and packing locations can use thin epoxy floors. Floors with regular foot traffic can use resin thickness around 2 to 4 mm, while heavy use floors can use around 4 to 6 mm in thickness.
Tailored Flooring Thickness
During the floor installation, you can apply varying thicknesses depending on the functionality of the floor space. For instance, coating the floor between 150 to 200 microns is ideal for a lightweight environment with moderate foot traffic. However, if you want your floor to withstand high foot traffic, you should apply a 2mm and above multi-layer coating.
Floors thicker than 2mm are stable and can withstand heavy foot traffic and heavy-duty environment. With the resilience due to floor thickness, your floor may live up to your expectation. For instance, when choosing flooring thickness for an office, you should go for flooring with higher thickness for use at the reception. Why do that? The reception area handles higher footfall than other interior parts of the office. Other areas of the premises have relatively low foot traffic. Thus, light floor coating could be suitable for such spaces.
Resilience to Challenges
In addition to the foot traffic that the flooring should handle, varying flooring thicknesses should offer solutions to the anticipated challenges. A good example, in this case, is exposure to extreme temperatures. With that said, polyurethane coating of 6mm thickness can withstand a wide range of temperatures ranging from -25oC to 100oC. If you increase the thickness to 9mm, the flooring will accommodate a temperature range of -45 to 120oC. With that kind of illustration, the higher the thickness of the coating, the wider the temperature range it accommodates.
Substrate Flooring Thickness
The thickness of the substrate is one of the critical requirements to provide a sturdy base for the floor finish. When the floor substrate is properly formulated, the floor will withstand the varying levels of foot traffic and last longer. However, if the substrate doesn’t have the required thickness, the imperfection may cause a crack on the floor. When such problems occur, the most appropriate way to address them is by scheduling prompt repairs that can be expensive. Since any fault in the floor substrate can eventually have a detrimental effect on the floor finish, you should plan your project well to ensure the application of the right floor thickness.
Budget Consideration
The flooring budget is an essential aspect that dictates the quality and quantity of the flooring. More so, when an architect wants to specify different flooring types with their thickness. With that said, the architect should use the lifespan and performance of the chosen flooring material to determine the project’s cost. To cut down on flooring costs, the architect can use thin flooring for low traffic areas and thick flooring in areas with high traffic. You can easily reduce the cost of the entire flooring project with such adjustments.
The thickness of the flooring can have an enormous impact on the floor performance. Therefore, you should handle it with the utmost effectiveness. For further information on choosing the flooring thickness, do not hesitate to talk to our ever responsive experts for help.
