Laminate (Dark or light)

[Rocky]

Hey folks, Besides personal taste and preferences, in general - what would be more recomended for smaller sized condos ? Does dark colored laminate flooring look better for smaller sized condos, or would it be correct to think that darker lamite flooring would make smaller condos "look" much smaller while light colored would give them a " spacy" feel. what are the general thoughts of UT users ?

 

[condogirl]

I hear that dark laminate is very hard to maintain - it shows every speck of dust so you're constantly cleaning. Why not compromise and go for a medium brown tone?

 

[taxman]

I have dark engineered hardwood right now and you really only need to swiffer it once a week to get rid of the dust. Personally, I like being able to see the dust and know its time to clean rather than have it pile up and have allergens/bacteria start forming.

 

[interested]

If it is for your personal use, choose whatever you prefer.

If one looks at most show rooms by designers, they usually keep very small spaces light in colour. It will make the place look larger like you suggest. there is a reason designers do this and most small condo show vignettes show light colours. Another thing is to minimize the different choices and if the kitchen is part of the living/room dining room, I would ocnsider making it laminate as well so as to not chop up the space.

Hope this helps.

 

[Eug]

For resale, my guess is that light is more popular. Not only does it make the space brighter, it does have a feel of "spaciousness".

Note that I went from white walls to dark burgundy. It did feel more closed and darker, but this was largely compensated by changing all the light fixtures.

 

[interested]

I belief Eug is right for resale. I can tell you that in the building I bought as an investment, we went light. I was told 90%-95% of all the units were light coloured. This was back in 2002-2003 so I am not sure if things have changed but I would suspect not.

 

[KA1]

with light colour laminate, you can have almost any colour of furniture. However, if you have dark colour laminate, then, you need to have light colour furniture. I like to read newspaper sitting on living area furniture. On light colour furniture, ink from newspaper will rub off on to sofa. Therefore, I select for light colour laminate with slightly dark colour furniture.

 

[urbandreamer]

Light. Dark laminate flooring looks like you're in a funeral home.

 

[KA1]

Light. Dark laminate flooring looks like you're in a funeral home.

For once I agree with you, Urbandreamer

 

[T.O.Condo]

I personally like dark laminate, I think it's unique but since 95% people prefer light. I will go with light when time comes due to resale convenience

 

[interested]

I personally like dark laminate, I think it's unique but since 95% people prefer light. I will go with light when time comes due to resale convenience

I think that is a wise decision

 

[JayBee]

I personally dislike light colored wood...whether it's furniture or floors or cabinetry....yuk!

I like dark or even medium(like a walnut) colored wood. And you can have dark colored furniture with dark wood. I personally like that look better

I will agree that light floors are great for small spaces and really brighten spaces up as well. Dark floors you will be constantly sweeping/swiffering. I probably sweep every other day. I don't mind since I like the look.

 

[interested]

I personally dislike light colored wood...whether it's furniture or floors or cabinetry....yuk!

I like dark or even medium(like a walnut) colored wood. And you can have dark colored furniture with dark wood. I personally like that look better

I will agree that light floors are great for small spaces and really brighten spaces up as well. Dark floors you will be constantly sweeping/swiffering. I probably sweep every other day. I don't mind since I like the look.

JB, while I agree this picture is beautiful, this is a very full open space. My guess at least 600-800 sq. ft of uninterupted open space. the white carpet really offsets the dark colour. small condos do not have this much uninterupted space so it may be somewhat misleading to extrapolate this picture to a comparable 600 sq. ft condo which is more broken up, smaller rooms, etc.

 

[kanon]

Other than dust, scratches are more noticeable on dark floors as well.

 

[dventura]

I have to disagree with some of the posters here.

In the past year I've been to about 15 different housewarmings. Every time the place has nice dark floors people go "wow" and comment on how nice the floor looks. Nobody comments on the floor in the places that have light flooring. I also went with a number of people to shop for condos and most of them really liked the units with dark floors. So I have to disagree and say that in my opinion for resale dark is better. ESPECIALLY for resale where you can make sure it's clean and looks good, I completely have to agree having dark floors that it's much more maintenance, it's not just the dust but little scratches will show and even foot prints can show. On the other hand, I agree with the poster that commented that it's good to know when it's time for cleaning rather than living in a dirty place and not knwoing it. My 2 cents.