Carpet vs laminate floor: which is the best for your bedroom?

The choice between carpeting and laminate for your bedroom is not an easy one to make. Both make great floors. Moreover, they make great value floors as both usually don't come with crazy costs. Still, there are plenty of factors to consider. In this article, we will discuss all the pros and cons of both options so that you can make the most informed decision.

Carpets are a well-known insulator that keeps your home warm in winter and cool in summer. So, installing carpet reduces your energy bills and makes your bedroom a generally more comfortable place to sleep.

The ability to absorb outside noises is quite essential in a room where you sleep. And soundproofing qualities are a well-known advantage of carpeting.

Recently, the manufacturing process for carpet has become efficient and made carpeting considerably cheaper than many other options. Still, it's essential to remember that higher-end speciality materials, like NZ wool, can be higher.

High-quality, thick carpet comprises millions of tightly woven fibres that add to your sense of comfort and could be a matter of safety. For kids and the elderly, a fall on carpeting is unlikely to cause injury the way that a hard surface can do.

The difficulty to keep carpet flooring clean is the biggest downside of this option, as stains can seep deep and remain forever. Also, carpet fibre is a natural trap for microscopic organisms, compromising the bedroom's air quality.

Carpeting quickly catches pollen and other common allergens, and it is sometimes quite challenging to wash them out. So carpeting probably is not the wisest choice for a bedroom of allergy sufferers.

While New Zealand is heading toward its green and sustainable future, synthetic materials used in carpeting manufacture are usually destined for landfills. Here at Harrisons we do our best to donate, reuse and recycle carpets, but it depends on the quality and age.

Laminate floors use a "click-lock" or tongue-and-groove connections, making it one of the easiest flooring materials to install.

Laminate can offer an almost infinite range of styles and designs, many of which can easily be mixed up with hardwood or even natural stone.

Laminate flooring is effortless to clean. Sweep and mop and be done with it!

Like carpeting, laminate is usually relatively inexpensive to buy. It can give you all the rich textures of natural wood flooring at a wallet-friendly cost.

The bedroom is usually low-traffic, and durability is probably not the most crucial consideration. Still, it is almost impossible to avoid scratching the wear layer on laminate planks. Better quality and more expensive laminates have thicker, more durable wear layers, but even in this case, your flooring will eventually get scratched.

Laminate is not the best choice for the bedroom of young children or the elderly as in case of fall, it will hurt and perhaps injure.

Laminate floors offer no thermal protection, and the hard surfaces tend to echo sound in a hollow fashion. A good quality underlay may help dampen the sound somewhat.

Unfortunately, there are almost no recycling options for now, and when discarded, they usually end up in landfills, if they can’t be recycled or reused.

Both options have their pluses and minuses, so your choice depends on your circumstances. With soundproofing and better insulation, carpeting could be a perfect option for some, but people with allergies or no time to clean could find laminate a better solution.