Luxury Vinyl Plank Wear Layer

Before we take a look at wear layers or the overall thickness of a plank or tile it s important to understand what luxury vinyl is and how it s made.

Luxury vinyl plank wear layer.

The wear layer is urethane with ceramic beads for toughness. Most lifeproof luxury vinyl flooring has a 6 mil wear layer. Wear layers of many luxury vinyl floors are composed at least in part of pvc. Shop luxury vinyl planks.

But still 6 mils which is 06 inches is pretty thin. Its warranty is lifetime for residential and 5 years for commercial use. The wear layer is what you step on. Since luxury vinyl s quality is often based on its thickness you ll find that shaw s luxury vinyl plank flooring lines are all at least 5 mm thick or about 0 197 of an inch thick.

6 mils wear layer. Learn more about the wear layer of vinyl in this article. The wear layer is simply an extra layer of protection placed between the printed design of your vinyl plank or tile flooring material and the protective finish that goes on the very top. Choose a wear layer of 10 mil 0 01 in or more for most family areas.

Luxury vinyl wear layers. A thicker layer is more resistant to scratching and denting. Usually though a luxury vinyl product includes a thick durable floor multiple layers a realistic image and a tough wear layer. Bestlaminate blog a helpful resource for your laminate vinyl and hardwood flooring projects.

Additionally shaw s wear layers are a full 20 mil thick or about 0 02 of an inch thick. It is considered an entry level or builders grade flooring. The composition of the wear layer. If not then it might not be as high quality as it claims.

What the luxury vinyl wear layer does is protect your floors from scratching and denting keeping them looking their best for a lot longer. This is typically made from a urethane based protective coating. I know you are all excited about the wear layer so i will cover that first. You can find vinyl planks with wear layers starting at as little as 2 mil 0 002 in but these will wear out quickly.

Unlike traditional vinyl this style of flooring is comprised of layers which always include a core vinyl top layer and wear layer. Planks with a wear layer of 10 mil 0 01 in are considered to be appropriately durable for use in moderate to high traffic areas of your home. It is a transparent coating covering the top of your floor s visual or pretty picture as i like to call it. Luxury vinyl flooring construction.

Some manufacturers incorporate additives into the wear layer including aluminum oxide nylon or ceramic beads and claim to provide extra protection against scratches.