Are you thinking about redoing your floors, but are scared of the price? Did your hatred of that sheet vinyl that you grew up with put you off of considering resilient tile or laminate? We understand. Many of us are scarred by memories of hideous floors.
There is good news, however, for those of us undertaking remodeling in the twenty-first century: laminate has come a long way in the last fifty years. Some of the oldest brands have the newest and most interesting choices for those looking to remodel on a budget.
Gone are the days when the same three wood-grained patterns repeated. Today’s laminates, like those at Mannington look more like wood than ever. With modern colors and styles, it’s worth your time to look at manufacturers like Mannington. Read ahead for an overview on the company and their laminate products.
- Where to find Mannington laminate
- Style choices and features
- Details on warranty
- Environmental and health issues
- Price comparisons
- What the reviews say
- FAQs
- Our verdict
The scoop on Mannington’s
Mannington has been around since 1915, making it one of the older laminate and vinyl flooring companies. Well known as a maker of sheet vinyl and new luxury vinyl, Mannington has recently also made serious inroads into the laminate market.
One key thing to think about is availability. Mannington is not the flooring you are likely to find at your local big-box hardware store: it is usually only available through specialty flooring stores.
What choices of style will you find?
Mannington has three main lines of laminate: the “Restoration,” “Revolutions,” “Coordinations,” and “Value Lock” collections. Mannington’s website is handy in that it allows you to search laminate options by general color palette and shade (light, medium or dark).
The Restoration collection comes in 12mm (1/2”) planks with a high density core and 6” width. There are more than fifty color and species to choose from, including more than one color choice in such woods as maple, pine, oak and hickory. The line also contains more exotic and fun choices such as “driftwood” and “whiskey mill barrel.” In general, this line offers more cutting-edge and distressed looks.
The Revolutions collection uses patented NatureForm Optix technology to give more of the impression of real wood. The planks in this collection also come in smaller, 5” widths to further look like real hardwood. There are less color choices in this collection, only 18, from cherry to walnut. In general, these color choices tend to be less avant-garde and more traditional than the Restoration collection.
The Coordinations collection also uses the NatureForm finish to emulate natural wood grain. The planks in this collection are wider, at more than 7” in width. The Coordinations line offers the same large number of color choices as the Restoration line, with the addition of their patented “SpillShield” coating, which makes the Coordinations collection unique.
Spillshield is a coating designed to resist moisture and spills for up to 72 hours. This means that any of the Coordinations line products can be used in places like bathrooms and laundry rooms.
Finally, the Value-Lock collection is designed, as its name suggests, to appeal to the most budget-conscious consumer. There are only five possible colors in the collection, and these do not have the bells and whistles of Spill-lock or unique patterns and colors. The Value-Lock collection also has a shorter warranty than the other collections, at only 15 years. The Value-lock collection comes in wide, 7 inch planks.
What kind of warranty do the products carry?
Most of the products that Mannington offers have a patented Melamine Wearsurface coating and an AquaEdges locking technique that protects against moisture penetration between the planks. These products come with a 25 year warranty. Please read below in “Reviews” for more information on the warranty.
What environmental and health benefits do Mannington products have?
Firstly, like most laminate flooring products, Mannington’s laminate floors contain a recycled wood core. This means that the flooring is, in part, constructed from wood that would otherwise be wasted. In this way, laminate can be seen as an environmentally sound choice.
In addition, all four of Mannington’s laminate lines are FloorScore certified. The floor score is an industry standard developed to promote indoor air quality. Some flooring materials can emit volatile organic compounds that can make people sick. Products certified as meeting the “FloorScore” are independently certified to comply with California’s strict regulation of those emissions.
If you are seeking to build in conjunction with LEED requirements for green building, you must use flooring that has a FloorScore certification.
Long story short, you can feel good that Mannington uses materials to make floors that will not emit anything toxic. That means healthier, cleaner air in your home.
How does Mannington stack up to the competitors on price?
In general, Mannington is described as priced lower than competitors like Armstrong, especially in their “Value Lock” line of laminate. Especially since Mannington is much less available, however, it was harder for me to try and do direct price comparisons.
What do the reviews say?
A thorough study of online reviews from both consumers, dealers and installers show a worrying trend of Mannington not honoring their warranties.
You can still find good reviews of Mannington online, however these are almost always older. When I searched in just the last few years, what I found was more than one business owner noted that this problem is a relatively new thing, in which Mannington company policy changed.
More than one review noted that until sometime in 2015, Mannington was good about honoring all of its warranties, and would always make good on replacement of defective or low-quality product. After that point, however, company policy changed, requiring a personal inspection of the installed flooring by a company inspector, who never (in the retelling by distributors and installers) authorizes a replacement of refund.
The new company policy seems to be to send the inspector, who then always finds a way to blame the homeowners or installers.
These are harsh accusations, and I cannot, obviously, guarantee their validity. I can say, however, that they were plentiful, with many reviewers saying the same thing, and more than one business saying it would not carry Mannington anymore because of these problems.
FAQ
Mannington has numerous collections of laminate flooring, all of which have a wide range of styles. The price will depend on which style you choose, the room size, and the installation. On average, you can expect to pay around $3.50 per square foot for Mannington laminate floors.
These floors are of high quality, and the brand offers competitive prices with similar quality laminate floors as compared to other companies. One of the best things is that Mannington products come with a 25-year warranty.
How much does it cost to install 1000 square feet of laminate flooring?
The total price for the overall installation will vary, because the final cost will depend on various factors including the laminate you choose, whether you pay for installation or install it yourself, etc.; however, since the average price for mid-range laminate is between $3 and $4, you can expect to pay around $3,500 for the flooring materials for 1000 square feet.
For installation the average cost is between $1 and $3 per square foot, so for 1000 square feet you should be prepared to pay around $2000. Based on these assumptions, the average final cost for 1000 square feet of laminate flooring and installation would be around $5,500.
How do you clean Mannington laminate floors?
Laminate floors by Mannington are straightforward to maintain and clean. Sweeping with a broom should be enough for daily maintenance. You can also use a vacuum meant for hard floors to clean your new laminate flooring once or twice a week.
When it comes to mops, it’s best that you use them with a product that’s specifically formulated for laminate floors. Don’t use abrasive products or products that contain bleach or scouring powder. If a spill happens, ensure that you clean it right away.
How to install Mannington laminate flooring?
When your laminate floors arrive, you need to mix the planks from different packages to make sure you don’t have individual sections of varying colors, etc. Next, add spacers to the walls and take off the tongues on the first row of planks that will be installed next to the wall. Start from left to right, with the tongue side facing the wall.
When you’re finished with the first row, start the second one. Apply the first plank of the second row, fitting the tongue side into the groove side of the plank from the first row at a 20-degree angle and sliding it into its correct horizontal position. Use this technique to install the laminate in the rest of the room.
Our verdict
Mannington has been around for a long time, and has some significant brand loyalty. The company offers good options in style, color and value categories.
The brand, however, always comes in second to Armstrong in the amount of flooring sold. This seems to be a product of both availability and a growing sense that the company does not honor their warranties.
You can generally only buy Mannington laminate in small, specialty flooring stores. This makes the product harder to find, and when something goes wrong, a smaller retailer isn’t going to have the overhead or deep pockets to cover the cost of replacement like a bigger store might.
Mannington offers some truly lovely options, and many consumers were delighted with the original look. However, there will always be some problems with some batches of flooring, and if a company is not going to be reliable in addressing the issues that arise, I would exercise caution in buying their product.
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