Formica laminate is a laminated composite material invented at the westinghouse electric corporation in the united states in 1912.
What is laminate made out of.
The first thing you need to be aware of when shopping for laminating film is that a sheet of laminating film is composed of various layers of plastic.
Laminate flooring also called floating wood tile in the united states is a multi layer synthetic flooring product fused together with a lamination process.
Unless you are buying factory made post form countertop segments building a laminate countertop whether it is done by a professional or diyer involves first building a core of mdf or plywood then cutting pieces of plastic laminate and gluing them to the core using contact cement.
The substrate might be particle board or plywood popular brands of laminate countertops include formica arborite nevamar and wilsonart reeg.
Laminate countertops are made from a thin piece of laminated plastic that is adhered to a base or substrate.
The core lies on top of the balancing layer and is the central part of the laminate board.
The word formica refers to the company s classic.
While laminating film is made out of certain types of plastic it is usually a combination of several types.
Today the product is produced by new zealand based formica group and has been since 2007.
Laminate countertop installation.
Laminate flooring simulates wood or sometimes stone with a photographic applique layer under a clear protective layer.
With the floating floor method you first roll out inexpensive foam underlayment tape the underlayment together and then lay out the laminate planks.
The core layer is usually made out of high density fiberboard hdf however you may find laminates on the market made out of medium density fiberboard mdf.
A decorative sheet that bears the visible color and or design of the laminate countertop goes in the middle and translucent sheets of paper form the top layer.
The inner core layer is usually composed of melamine resin and fiber board materials.
Now due to innovative manufacturing laminate looks as if it is solid hardwood or stone but is much more affordable.
Detailing options for purestyle laminate cabinets are endless because of continuous component wrap technology which reduces the potential for delamination peeling or cracking.
Laminate is always installed as a floating floor this means that it does not have the difficult nail down installation issues of hardwood or engineered wood.
Countertop laminate is made by combining layers of paper and resins into a single semi rigid plastic sheet.
It provides stability to the planks by supporting the weight and stress of daily use.
Originally used to replace mica in electrical applications it has since been manufactured for a variety of applications.
Brown kraft paper the same as paper grocery bags is used for the bottom layers.
In the early years laminate looked as if it were made of plastic due to appearance and design being sacrificed for affordability.