Laminate Wear Layer Rating

Failing any one of them disqualifies it for that level.

Laminate wear layer rating. Laminate floors are made in layers and the wear layer is typically filled with aluminum oxide or sometimes melamine and. The higher the ac rating the more durable the flooring will be. The durability of laminate flooring is measured with the ac rating which is an abrasion rating system. The wear layer is what is used to measure the durability of vinyl plank flooring.

Wear ratings denote the durability of the wear layer. To help buyers understand the difference in durability among laminate flooring products these ratings indicate a laminate s resistance to stress. In the photo below the top sample carries the trafficmaster allure branding and is 3 8mm thick with a 4mil wear layer. Nucore waterproof flooring is available in a range of sizes with wood look planks in 47 95 lengths and widths 3 to 8 and stone looks in 12 x 24 tiles.

An ac rating is a common term used to indicate the durability level of laminate flooring these ratings are applied to all laminate floors by an independent body known as european producers of laminate flooring eplf. It s slightly thicker at 4mm with an 8mil wear layer while the bottom sample is shaw matrix at 3 2mm thick with a 6mil wear. The ac rating is then a reliable and unbiased indicator of laminate flooring durability because these tests are performed by a third party and they cover all the different ways a laminate can wear. As with all laminate flooring pergo outlast plus is composed of several layers.

Outlast plus is one of pergo s six laminate collections. The wear layer can range from 0 10mm 4 mil to 0 5mm 20 mil. All of the layers that are used to construct nucore are 100 waterproof and nucore say that the top wear layer is not only scratch and satin resistant but anti microbial too. To achieve a certain ac rating all of the tests must justify that particular level.

The measurements cover a given laminate s resistance to abrasion impacts staining cigarette burns swelling along the edges and to the effects of furniture legs and castors both resting and moving. Unbiased third party testers perform each ac rating wear test on this layer and classify laminate flooring into one of five categories. A transparent wear resistant top layer a design layer that recreates the visuals of wood a hdf core board and base layer for stability and a final underlayment layer. There is no such thing as a laminate flooring wear layer.

In the middle is a slice of vinyl plank flooring from the home decorators collection in noble oak. What is an ac rating.