I finally tried cheap vinyl plank vs mid-range for my basement floor

I did a 200 square foot test patch in my basement with $1.49 a square foot stuff from Menards and then another patch with $3.29 stuff from a flooring supply place. The cheap stuff started peeling at the seams after 2 months, no joke. Anyone else find that spending a bit more upfront saves the headache of redoing it later?

3 comments

3 Comments

sarah_mason7d ago

Jumped into the same trap myself with my laundry room floor. Bought the cheapest vinyl plank I could find at $1.29 a foot and it started curling up at the corners within a month, like it was trying to escape the room. My husband said it looked like I installed a wave pool floor, which was REALLY not the vibe I was going for. Ended up ripping it all out and spending the extra money on the mid-range stuff, and it's been solid for over a year now. Nothing worse than having to redo a floor while trying to explain to your friends that no, you're not just really bad at home improvement, the product was genuinely THAT bad. My wallet STILL hasn't forgiven me for the double cost.

susanm564d ago

That 'wave pool floor' comment got me though. But I actually disagree about the cheap stuff being the whole problem. Bought the same $1.29 stuff for my basement and it's been fine for three years. The trick is the subfloor. If your concrete's damp or the floor isn't level, even expensive vinyl will lift. Sounds like your floor had moisture issues and the cheap stuff just showed it faster. Not defending the product, just saying sometimes it's the prep work, not the price tag.

mitchell.lee5d ago

Menards actually sells real vinyl plank at $1.49, so yours might have been the peel-and-stick stuff instead.