Wear Layer On Vinyl Planking

The wear layer is usually a clear urethane based coating that keeps the original appearance of the floor and provides easy maintenance.

Wear layer on vinyl planking.

Even with a thicker wear layer your floors may not last as long as you d think. While these planks are also close in size the difference again lies with the wear layer. You should look for vinyl planks with a wear layer of at least 12 mil. 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.

However if your vinyl flooring will be in the midst of your rough and tumble life then definitely thicker is better. You re gonna want the beefiest bodyguard right. Some manufacturers incorporate additives into the wear layer including aluminum oxide nylon or ceramic beads and claim to provide extra protection against scratches. If you have an active family or an assemblage of pets consider buying 20 mil or higher.

With new technology some vinyls now offer added uv or durability layers on top of the wear layer for even more surface protection. What the luxury vinyl wear layer does is protect your floors from scratching and denting keeping them looking their best for a lot longer. Lifeproof s lvp only has a quarter of the wear layer found on karndean s plank but is around 3 20 per square foot compared to around 5 00 per square foot for the korlok select. Put simply the wear layer is the top surface that provides the durability stain and scratch resistance of vinyl flooring.