How to choose the perfect floor for you and your pet
Are you wondering what floor is the best choice for both you and your pet? You probably want an easy to maintain and scratch-resistant Quick-Step floor.
There is an abundance of choice in laminate floors on the market. Each manufacturer claims to have the right product to suit your needs. Quality and fields of application, however, can vary greatly from one laminate flooring to another. Thankfully, European standards are designed to help you choose the right option.
Over the past decades, European standards and regulations have come to play an important role in our lives. From prescribing the size of shipping containers, to dictating maximum levels of ingredients in the food we eat, to name but a couple examples. Though they might appear overprotective or irrational at times, these rules are in general designed to protect us, and to create better living and working conditions.
In the late 1990s, the EU introduced standard EN 13329, specifying characteristics requirements and test methods for laminate floor coverings. It also includes a classification system, based on EN 685, indicating in what areas and under which conditions laminate floors can be used.
While the first digit gives an idea of the general environment (2: domestic, 3: commercial, 4: industrial), the second digit further subdivides this usage into ‘light’ (1), ‘moderate’ (2), ‘heavy’ (3) and ‘very intensive’ (4).
Class 21 |
Light domestic use |
Class 22 |
Moderate domestic use |
Class 23 |
Heavy domestic use |
Class 24 |
Very intensive domestic use |
Class 31 |
Light commercial use |
Class 32 |
Moderate commercial use |
Class 33 |
Heavy commercial use |
Class 34 |
Very intensive commercial use |
Laminate manufacturers are obliged to clearly label the precise classification on the product packaging. When taking a closer look at Quick-Step Laminate floors, you will see that all of them are in class 32, meaning they are fit for anything up to and including moderate commercial use. The Impressive Ultra collection even goes one step further and is labelled class 33, for heavy commercial use. Both labels guarantee top quality flooring, perfectly fit for everyday use.