13 Aug Luxury Vinyl Plank Flooring in South Florida: An Honest Review

When you are looking to change the flooring in your home, you will discover that your choice is not as simple as hardwood or carpeting these days. When I was looking for new flooring, there were a few things I immediately had to consider. The first thing was the cost. Unfortunately for my family, this was a factor which eliminated hardwood and natural stone tile as options. I did tons of research to determine which selection I felt was best for my home and family. After deliberating for many long hours, I decided that luxury vinyl plank (also known as LVP) was the best option for handling the humidity level in my South Florida environment. This article is my opinion on the flooring I choose.

What I Love About My LVP

There are so many things that I love about the flooring choice that I made for my home, but here are a few of the highlights that I can review.

• Water Resistance: Unlike laminate or hardwood, luxury vinyl plank is waterproof. This means I can have this flooring in my kitchen, laundry room, and bathroom, and I don’t need to worry about my children spilling things, or my pet having an accident. Unlike laminate flooring which can be affected by higher heat and humidity levels, LVP floors are perfectly safe in South Florida homes where these things can cause damage to more water sensitive flooring types.
• Padding: This doesn’t seem like it would be a factor when considering hard surface flooring; however, it is essential. Tile or cement flooring options have absolutely no give to them and can leave your home with a cold feeling. When I had my LVP installed, the flooring contractor put down an underlayment. This layer gives me better joint and spine support in rooms where I stand a lot as well as provides more warmth to the floor.
• Installation: Most types of luxury vinyl plank flooring have lock tight or tongue and groove mechanisms that allow them to click together. This makes flooring installation so simple that some people opt to do it themselves. I didn’t have the time or feel that I was qualified to do my installation, so I had it professionally installed. Because the flooring install is so easy, I was able to save money on this process.
• Durability: When researching LVP, I found many different articles boasting about the wear layer that protected this type of flooring. After reading reviews online, I stumbled across a blog that suggested taking home flooring samples and trying to scratch them with toys, letting pets walk on them, or pouring a bit of water on the top. After doing this, I was sure that luxury vinyl plank was what I wanted in my South Florida house.

The Things I Wish I Could Change About My Luxury Vinyl Plank Floors

Though I do love my LVP flooring, there are some qualities about it that I wish were a little better. Here is my list.

• Appearance: After looking at all of the different flooring options, I got spoiled by how realistic laminate flooring is. Though luxury vinyl plank is better than rolled vinyl, it still has not met the same imitation level that laminate has achieved. Please don’t misunderstand me, my LVP flooring looks very realistic, and I purchased a higher quality version that has added texture; however, there is still a certain quality about the grain and color that is not as natural as it could be. Another thing that makes it painstakingly clear that my flooring is not natural wood is the sound that it makes when I have shoes on or when my dog walks across the floor. There is a certain plastic ring to the clicking.
• Cost: After doing my research on the value of all the flooring types, the lower costing variations were carpeting, laminate, and vinyl. After deciding that I wanted a low maintenance hard surface flooring option, I was able to eliminate carpeting as a viable choice for me. The next most affordable option was lower quality vinyl or laminate. I decided against laminate because of the humidity in my area of Florida as well as the rooms to which I wanted to add the flooring. That left me with Luxury Vinyl Plank. This flooring selection was kind of middle of the road when it came to cost. I paid around $4/ square foot where laminate would have cost a little less.

LVP Was the Right Choice for Me

Looking back on the whole process, I am so glad that we trusted Kuhn Flooring’s design team to help us select such a perfect luxury vinyl flooring option for our South Florida home. They are by far the best flooring retailer and installation company in South Florida. They made the entire new flooring process an absolute breeze. Contact them today to see how they can help you choose a floor that’s right for your home!