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Laminate floor installation
Posted by: Harry Beaver ()
Date: March 04, 2008 03:52PM

So, I keep seeing cheap laminate floor and was wondering - how easy it is to put down yourself.

Anyone done it?

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Re: Laminate floor installation
Posted by: I have ()
Date: March 04, 2008 03:57PM

I have put it down in a couple of rooms. It isn't too difficult or time consuming if you have a room without a great many angles or other areas that will require more cuts. That being said, the cheaper the laminate floor, the harder it is to install. I have found that the more expensive better quality laminates "snap" or "slide" together easier. I helped a friend do it in one of his rooms and he bought the cheap stuff and what a pain that was to fit together.

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Re: Laminate floor installation
Posted by: Harry Beaver ()
Date: March 04, 2008 04:01PM

I saw some at costco.

wonder what the quality is like
its all sealed n shit

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Re: Laminate floor installation
Posted by: Mike Sorce ()
Date: March 04, 2008 04:18PM

I have Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I have put it down in a couple of rooms. It isn't
> too difficult or time consuming if you have a room
> without a great many angles or other areas that
> will require more cuts. That being said, the
> cheaper the laminate floor, the harder it is to
> install. I have found that the more expensive
> better quality laminates "snap" or "slide"
> together easier. I helped a friend do it in one
> of his rooms and he bought the cheap stuff and
> what a pain that was to fit together.


Can't speak to the issue of quality affecting installation, but overall not a very difficult project. A lot easier IMO than installing hardwood. We opted for matching quarter-round which was the toughest part since my skills with a miter saw are not that great, but assuming that you are using the same baseboard trim this should not be an issue. The material puts out a lot of dust when you cut it and make sure that you have a good finish blade on your circular saw or table saw in order to keep everything neat.

You really should (need?) put down the specific underlayment which probably won't be available at Costco. I think that it was $30-40/roll at Home Depot and we needed three rolls for a large kitchen and laundry room.

I would suggest getting an extra box just in case you need to replace a piece later on. Overall, I think that this is a much better alternative to linoleum, but not as nice as tile. I am not a big fan of tile in the kitchen, however, so this works for me. I think that we paid $500 for materials and I completed the project with a friend over a weekend.

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Re: Laminate floor installation
Posted by: bk ()
Date: March 04, 2008 06:44PM

You also need to have a very level floor -- the underlayment by itself won't compensate for other than very small irregularities.

I'll probably need to redo my kitchen floor since I thought it was "level enough"; it's not, and the floor's starting to give a little bit in the low spots.

Having said that, the installation (Pargo) was a snap. So to speak.

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Re: Laminate floor installation
Posted by: Jorge ()
Date: March 06, 2008 06:09PM

Hire a Mexican. They'll do it for a case of Tecate.

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Re: Laminate floor installation
Posted by: do you mean purgo? ()
Date: March 06, 2008 07:58PM

Laminate floor is nice, but it does not by any means last as long as engineered hardwood and is in the same price range. Engineered hardwood, installed with glue is a heck of a lot easier to install than the laminate flooring and looks nicer as it looks like real hardwood. Ever spill water on lamiate? I did, all the seams started to raise, started puffing up. Laminate hates water, don't ever mix them. My advice for whatever its worth get the engineered hardwood, you can spill water and clean it up. Laminiate is done once you spill the water on it.

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Re: Laminate floor installation
Posted by: Pergo ()
Date: March 06, 2008 08:59PM

do you mean purgo? Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Laminate floor is nice, but it does not by any
> means last as long as engineered hardwood and is
> in the same price range. Engineered hardwood,
> installed with glue is a heck of a lot easier to
> install than the laminate flooring and looks nicer
> as it looks like real hardwood. Ever spill water
> on lamiate? I did, all the seams started to
> raise, started puffing up. Laminate hates water,
> don't ever mix them. My advice for whatever its
> worth get the engineered hardwood, you can spill
> water and clean it up. Laminiate is done once you
> spill the water on it.


I once rented a townhouse that had Pergo flooring..very nice kind of laminate, easy to clean up, but like you said, once water sits on the Pergo, the laminate would rise and create little puffs around. So while the Pergo is attractive, just be careful with spilled water on the laminate. The puffed stains were already on the floor when I first moved in and I talked to the owner about it. She said just don't let any more water "sit" on the floor!

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