In recent times, laminate and wood veneer has become increasingly more popular due to their versatile use and convenience at an affordable cost. From flooring to furniture to picking the weirdest of colours, you have endless amount of choices to do with them, but then it got you wondering. If both wood veneer and laminate are cost friendly, why is wood veneer more expensive than laminate? How is it wood veneer very different from laminate to hold a higher cost between the two and what do you benefit from it? Well, we at VMG Works will explain to you what makes wood veneer more expensive than laminate!
Durability
Laminate is a man-made product, meaning it is stronger than veneer and tends to be heat and scratch-resistant. Wood veneer on the other hand, is a thin layer of real wood applied to a plywood base, which gives a richer and more varied look as it is a natural material. Since it uses natural materials, more effort goes into crafting it and unlike laminate, its susceptible to scratches and dents as wood veneer is a softer material.
But, that doesn’t mean laminate do not have their downside to it. While laminate can be heat and scratch-resistant, it’s not as strong compare to solid hardwoods. In addition, if physical damage does occur on laminate, the damage is permanent as laminates can’t be sanded or stained. While wood veneer is more prone to scratches and dents, it can easily be fixed with sanding and staining.
Versatility
Both wood veneer and laminate are great alternatives to more expensive materials like solid wood, and offers a versatile range of creative use without bursting your pockets. But when compared against each other, both materials do have their differences.
Wood veneer while it’s a great alternative to solid wood, doesn’t have a versatile range of creative use compare to laminate. Because it has natural wood, they tend to offer a more natural, wood texture appeal and stick to their natural material colour ranges. Laminate on the other hand, as it is man-made, has a greater advantage in versatility and can be utilised in many creative ways. They have a wider range of versatile use and can be made in any colour and style – Even the most obnoxious of colours in the palette! However, one argument that we can all agree with laminate is that despite its wider versatility than wood veneer, its replicant wood grain simply can’t achieve the same natural aesthetic wood grain like wood veneer can.
Longevity & Maintenance
There are some differences we can compare between them when it comes to longevity & maintenance. As it is highly durable to its environment, laminates can be used anywhere especially areas prone to wears and tears, plus they can retain their look for many years. Laminate’s maintenance routine is very simple, you’d only need to wipe the surface with a wet cloth or soapy water and that’s it!
Wood veneer on the other hand, have a different story. In fact, they require a different kind of maintenance due to its natural material. Like any natural wood, wood veneer is prone damage by water and heat so putting them in humid-prone environments is not ideal. Moreover, wood veneer are prone to getting scratches and dents as compared to laminate. But do keep in mind that while wood veneer is susceptible to wears and tears, any surface scratches on a laminate will be permanent, but can be removed on a veneer surface with some sanding and staining.
Material
Laminate is a made of affordable but durable synthetic materials consisting of heavy duty paper with a compound known as melamine, which hardens into a resin and create a solid veneer that will be covered in a thin decorative layer. To add structure and strength to make it a durable furniture, the laminate piece is attached to a substrate consisting of a fiberboard or particleboard that forms as the core of the pieces. These materials are more affordable that can be utilised to bend and create into any piece of laminate in mass production.
Wood veneer is a cost-effective option that replicates the look and feel of a solid wood, maintaining the beauty of a natural wood that you can enjoy. It consist of thin strips of real, natural wood glued on a plywood base. It is then carefully sanded and finished to the desired final product, as too much can ruin the thin layer of wood. As the surface is natural wood, manufacturers can create unique surfaces by including complicated layers of different types of wood, making the design unique without losing the natural aesthetic feel and look of a solid wood surface. Because of this, wood veneer requires more work and effort in a longer process on a smaller scale of manufacturing compare to laminate.
And that is all from us on why wood veneer is more expensive than laminate. While it can be more costly and limited than laminate, there are still some advantages and aspects that wood veneer excels where laminate doesn’t. At the end of the day, VMG Work believes that it is all about creating high-quality products and outcomes that presents you and maintain longevity with little to no issues in the long run.