SPC Vs WPC

Selecting the correct product for your project can be complex enough without getting overwhelmed by all of the various versions of Hybrid Flooring on the market. 

We discuss the two main differences in quality throughout the flooring industry and dive into how the material this product is constructed of can affect its durability.

Hybrid WPC “Wood Polymer Composite” is a mix of Wood and Polymer. Polymer being a type of recycled plastic. This variation of hybrid flooring is typically softer than its rival SPC. Being a softer, more malleable product WPC often minimises the amount of floor preparation required on a project and in general speeds up the installation process for installers as they can be more forceful with the planks due to the wood component making this product more flexible and forgiving. However the downside is having a proportion of wood in its construction results in this type of floorboard being open to things such as expansion and retraction with temperature change & water damage.

Hybrid SPC “Stone Polymer Composite” is a mix of Stone and Polymer. Polymer as we mention above is a type of recycled plastic. SPC is a much heavier and harder product than its rival WPC as the majority of the product consists of Stone, Stone weighs a lot more than Wood and is a much more stable material this makes the floorboards much more rigid and heavy so it is a requirement that the substrate be leveled to a higher standard, meaning floor preparation is key to this product’s installation being seamless. Where WPC has downfalls such as being susceptible to expansion and retraction with temperature changes or water damage these concerns are not issues with SPC.

For these reasons we are seeing a lot more of our customers leaning towards SPC flooring when selecting floorboards for their renovation.

– Team Beare