kitchen floating floor-Laminate vs Veneer

Hi All.
got a small area (2.4m2) and wife wants floating floor. hammered up old tiles and surface is a bit rough. Suppose I need to level it now. Aint done this before so any help is much appreciated. I saw leveling mix at bunnings. im guessing this is a runny cement mix? I assume I need to glue down alumin strips at edges to stop it flowing onto the ajoining carpet?
floor:
I watched a video on fitting from supplier readyflor. seems straight forward. The big question from a beginner - what would you use in the kitchen? laminate cause its hard wearing, clicks together and is on moisture resistant backer, or real wood veneer (T&G) glued together on ply. Price is no issue as the size is small. I started thinking real wood surface looked better and if damaged, still showed err real wood!, whereas laminate wears/chips to firstly show white, and then black... But Im reading laminate is much tougher and stand up to fridges and the like being dragged over it... also if the fridge or dishwasher floods, laminate may survive better... what do you think?
pete

Hi Pete,

I have found a great floating floor for wet areas, i have done heaps of reserch and and the only one that is garanteed not to SWELL when flooded is http://www.bigrivertimbers.com.au, we are no longer putting down tiles in our ensuit and bathroom, where having this flooring to match the rest of the house. I am glad that cost does not matter because it is expensive.
Hope that this helps.

Scott.

Phew! Just when it was starting to look like I had shares in Big River!!

Most of the floating systems will swell when flooded, and even the good ones need to have the joints sealed/glued. The fine print on all pre-finished systems that I have seen always warns about mopping up spills immediately.

Having said that there are plenty of examples in the world where it has been in kitchens and bathrooms and works just fine!

I am not a fan of prefinished boarding, so glue down real timber, the Big River System or Bamboo gets my vote.

Bamboo flooring also is very hard and durable and worth a look if cost isn't particularly concerning. Expect to pay at least $70 -$80 per square metre for materials for all of the "good" stuff.

Cheers,

P