Preference Floors Reviews – Honest Buyers Guide

Preference Floors (also known as preference flooring) is one of the largest hard floor wholesalers, offering a huge range of natural timber, laminate flooring, hybrid flooring, bamboo flooring and vinyl planks. Preference Floors is one of FloorVenue’s first commercial partners and have supplied trusted flooring to Sydney and Australia since the early 2000s.

As a buyer of flooring, it is important to research the pros and cons of each manufacturer to know you are making the right choice. That’s why our experts have crafted an in-depth review on preference floors so you can choose with confidence.

Top 5 Preference Floor Brands

Without further delay, let us discover the advantages and disadvantages of Preference Floors’ top five brands. We will cover a variety of their most popular engineered, hybrid and laminate floors.

Prestige Oak Engineered Timber Flooring Reviews

Prestige Oak by Preference Floors brings a gorgeous array of engineered timber flooring colours. This range comes in three different thicknesses: 12/3mm, 15/4mm, and 21/6mm. Real oak flooring offers a range of natural choices alongside the boards’ beauty and character. The Prestige Oak engineered floorboards deliver structural strength and longevity thanks to their multi-plywood core construction.

Advantages of Prestige Oak Flooring

• No Pattern Repeats – Every single plank of natural timber is unique, unlike synthetic flooring options. Prestige oak offers a gorgeous wire-brushed finish with a wide spectrum of natural oak colours. You can’t get flooring that looks more real than real timber.
• Sanding & Polishing – Sand and polishing will remove all blemishes including scratches, dents, and light burns marks, ultimately making the floorboards look brand new. Thicker floorboards have the option of sanding and polishing more than once, which could last a lifetime. Note the following: Prestige oak only has the surface stained and embossed which means you will lose the texture and need to restain the colour after sanding. Sanding and polishing can only be applied to floorboards that are glued or nailed down to the subfloor. Floating floors cannot be sanded with a machine.
• Warranty – Prestige Oak flooring has a 20 year Limited Residential Wear warranty. This is due to its top coat of German lacquer as this will allow the floors to last for a long period of time. Furthermore, the multi-layered plywood core offers stability against minor moisture exposures and temperature changes.

Disadvantages of Prestige Oak Flooring

• Less Durable – The surface is less durable than other flooring types because oak wood is softer than hardwood or synthetic options. Despite having multiple coatings of protective lacquer, oakwood is more prone to scratches and dents than other types of hard floors.
• High Moisture – Moisture is a concern to oak flooring because the coreboard has a plywood composite. Prestige oak engineered timber flooring has a typical 8 – 12 hour moisture protection period. Swelling can occur if the planks are exposed to excess moisture or water. This can potentially lead to damage to floorboards which may be in need of replacement.
• Higher Priced – Prestige Oak sits on the higher end of hard floors as the natural timber veneer is sourced from premium hand-selected European Oak. Gorgeous and expensive often come hand in hand.

DeMarque Herringbone & Chevron Reviews

The DeMarque engineered timber flooring range is designed to be installed in both herringbone and chevron patterns as opposed to traditional straight planks. Parquetry flooring is a statement in itself as it lends an air of luxury to any interior. Preference floors’ parquetry flooring comes in two thicknesses; 15/4mm and 21/6mm to cater for budgets and thickness requirements.

Advantages of DeMarque Engineered Flooring

• Premium & Beautiful – DeMarque Herringbone & Chevron flooring accentuates the beauty of flooring through the unique and eye-catching patterns they come in. Furthermore, natural timber provides warmth and charm to any interior.
• Sand & Polishing – Sanding and polishing allow the removal of any scratches, dents and light burnt marks from the surface of the engineered timber flooring. This gives DeMarque parquetry a longer life span, similar to Prestige Oak flooring.Note: Just like Prestige Oak flooring, once the floorboards have sanded and polished the colour stain and surface embossing will disappear. Therefore restaining the colour is recommended after a resand and polish.
• Matching Colour Straight Planks – Every DeMarque colour is also available in the matching straight planks. This means steps can be fitted with a matching colour stair covering. You won’t have to spend time searching for the closest match when choosing DeMarque engineered flooring.

Disadvantages of DeMarque Engineered Flooring

• Complex & Expensive Labour – Herringbone and Chevron flooring require skilled labour as they require installers to plan ahead of where the planks need to begin and end. When installing Herringbone and Chevron flooring, the planks must be fully glued down as opposed to strip glued, which increases the amount of adhesives used per square metre.
• Subfloor Levelling – The Subfloor needs to be almost perfectly flat, which means most buildings will require floor preparation in advance before the parquetry can be installed. This usually involves levelling compound or subfloor grinding.
• Higher Priced – DeMarque parquetry flooring has a higher price even amongst engineered oak flooring. One will also need extra offcut and wastage material when installing parquetry flooring.
• Scratches & Moisture – This range of flooring is less durable when it comes to being scratched and less moisture resistant when compared to synthetic options (vinyl or laminate flooring). DeMarque flooring will require higher maintenance due to the flooring being limited to scratch and moisture resistance.

Iconic WPC Hybrid Flooring Reviews

Iconic WPC Hybrid flooring is a lightweight and eco-friendly hybrid floor. The manufacturing process uses sustainable materials to create a Wood Plastic Composite (WPC) core. They popularity of Iconic WPC hybrid planks comes from their on-trend colours which are regularly updated by Preference floors’ in-house design team.

Advantages of Iconic Hybrid Flooring

• Waterproof – The Iconic hybrid flooring is 100% waterproof and is suitable for almost all areas of the house including the kitchen. If you wish to install Iconic hybrid flooring in other wet areas, check with the manufacturer’s guidelines to ensure that it is suitable, especially in commercial applications.
• Durability – The surface of Iconic WPC hybrid is more durable than timber floors because of its robust wear layer that protects the design. Furthermore, the core is extremely stable as it uses a wood and plastic composite material.
• Trending Colours – Iconic WPC hybrid flooring has modern beige and cream colours that homeowners absolutely love. The soft tones are constantly updated based on changes in the market.
• Acoustic Underlay – The planks of Iconic hybrid come with a pre-attached 6-star acoustic underlay. This enhances the comfort of walking and minimises the transmission and impact of sounds. Flooring with the pre-attached underlay can be used for apartments and units.

Disadvantages of Iconic Hybrid Flooring

• Subfloor Levelling – Iconic WPC hybrid flooring will require an even subfloor because the floorboards are only 7.5mm, with a wood-plastic composite. This means most hybrid flooring jobs will require floor levelling in advance. Wood plastic composite is not as dense nor stable in construction as Stone Plastic Composites (SPC) or Stone Wood Composite (SWC) counterparts.
• UV Light Exposure – With too much exposure to sunlight, the Iconic hybrid floors may start to experience colour fading which could lead to the uneven colours of the floorboards. Fortunately, this can be easily counteracted with curtains or blinds during sunny hours of the day.
• High Temperatures – Direct sunlight or other heat sources may cause the Iconic planks to swell upwards. Closing curtains or blinds during hot summer days can reduce the amount of direct sunlight hitting the floors.

Aspire RCB Hybrid Flooring Reviews

Aspire RCB Hybrid flooring is made out of a printed layer of realistic timber flooring. This can range from different Australian hardwood species to contemporary oak colours. The difference between Aspire and Iconic WPC is that Aspire hybrid flooring is made of a stone and plastic composite (SPC) as opposed to wood and plastic. This makes Aspire more resilient to wear and tear.

Advantages of Aspire Hybrid Flooring

• Durability – Aspire Hybrid flooring is more durable than the Iconic WPC counterpart making them suitable high traffic areas including light commercial use. This will provide you with protection and the peace of mind that your floors will last.
• Waterproof – Aspire flooring is made to be 100% waterproof and it can be installed in splash areas of the house, including kitchens. Before installing in any wet area, double-check with the manufacturer’s guidelines whether the flooring would be suitable.
• Large Colour Pallet – There is a range of charming colours that come in natural oak colours. The in-house design team is constantly updating the colours for Aspire Hybrid flooring to ensure that they keep up with the current trends. Feel free to view the colours that Aspire has to offer!

Disadvantages of Aspire Hybrid Flooring

• Subfloor Levelling – Aspire RCB requires a very flat subfloor as it is only 6.5mm thin. Laying floating floors over an uneven subfloor may result in movement underfoot, creaky noises when walking, and potential damage to the locking system in the long term.
• UV Light & Heat Swelling – Similar to Iconic WPC, the Aspire hybrid range also experiences fading when exposed to intense sunlight. Likewise, the PVC content can also swell when the plank temperature rises. Once again we recommend using blinds or covers during hot summer days.

Oakleaf HD Plus Laminate Flooring Reviews

Preference Floor’s Oakleaf HD Plus Laminate flooring emulates the look of natural timber through its hyper-realistic embossing and low pattern repetition. The laminate flooring comes with a very durable surface and water-resistant core for easy maintenance.

Advantages of Oakleaf HD Laminate Flooring

• Less Patterns Repeat – Oakleaf HD laminate is very unique when it comes to its patterns. This range has 30 unique planks before repeating, which means you will see less obvious repetitions. This feature emulates natural timber and truly shines in large open areas.
• Embossed in Register – The texture of the printed surface of oakleaf flooring is synchronised with the tactile embossing to make it look and feel like real wood. Quite often we have surprised customers in the showroom when we tell them they aren’t touching real timber.
• Durability – The AC4 Moderate Commercial Grade surface for strong wear and tear resistance which makes it ideal with any modern family with bustling busy lifestyles. As the classification describes, Oakleaf HD is also suitable for most commercial applications including store fronts and common areas.
• Water Resistant – Oakleaf HD Plus offers 48 Hour water-resistant core laminate planks for minor accidents that can occur. This makes it handy should you wish to run the same flooring throughout the house including the kitchen.

Disadvantages of Oakleaf HD Laminate Flooring

• Not Suitable For Wet Areas – Water resistant does not mean waterproof. Oakleaf HD laminate flooring is not 100% waterproof like the hybrid floors. If you wish to install Oakleaf flooring in splash areas, you will still need to exercise precaution by wiping away spills as they come.
• Subfloor Leveling – Subfloor levelling will be required if the subfloors are uneven. Whilst laminate flooring is less strict than hybrid flooring or parquetry, it is still recommended to remove any dips or bumps before putting down Oakleaf HD laminate flooring.

Conclusion – Are Preference Floors Any Good?

Overall, Preference floors offers some of the most diverse and extensive flooring ranges. FloorVenue believes in their products and services, and hence have continued the long-standing partnership over two decades.

Whilst we have covered the advantages and disadvantages of the top five Preference flooring brands, there are many things that we have yet to explore. It is important for you to conduct your own research. We recommend consulting with your Flooring Expert should you have more questions, including pricing.

FloorVenue has been serving Sydney and NSW since 2002 and has covered thousands of homes and businesses. We’d love to help you choose your dream floor!