How to Install a Prego Floor

Pergo brand locking floors are fast to install, easy to repair and look beautiful when finished. They have some basic requirements to facilitate installation, which---when followed---ensure that the floor is placed correctly and doesn't become damaged.

Things You'll Need

• Pergo flooring
• Rolls of floor insulation
• Spacers
• Knife
• Circular saw
• Hammer
• Pull bar
• Tapping block
• Measuring tape
• Marker
• Pen and paper
• Molding (optional)
• Caulk and caulking gun or nail gun

Instructions

Measurement and Preparation

1. Measure and diagram the floor. Also, decide now which direction you will lay the flooring.

   Calculate the square footage needed to cover the entire floor so that you can purchase the proper amount of laminate flooring, molding and insulation.

2. Clear the room of any movable furniture.

   If you are removing the existing floor or laying a new sub-floor, do so now.

3. Pull the floor molding gently off the walls, if there is any. You will put it back after the floor installation.

4. Roll out and cut the insulation to fit the room. The shiny or covered side should be down to act as a moisture barrier.

Laying the Flooring

1. Cut the back ridges off of a piece of Pergo floor. On each tile, two sides have locking sites and two have locking ridges.

2. Choose best corner to start in, and lay down the ridgeless piece of laminate. Make sure you leave a 1/4-inch gap between the wall and the flooring, and use spacers to keep that gap in place.

3. Cut the back ridge off another piece and slide it into the top of the corner piece, hold it at an angle and push it flat into place. Place some more spacers along the wall.

4. Repeat Step 2 until you reach the other corner. Measure and cut a piece as long as needed to fill that corner and slot it into place.

5. Take a short piece of laminate (you may be able to use the cutoff from Step 4) and lock it into place on the corner piece. Put extra boxes of laminate on the corner you placed to weight it down. This will keep it from shifting as you attach more planks down, so keep adding more weight as you install the floor.

6. Slide another piece of laminate into place along the long edge, holding the plank at a slight angle. Push it flat against the floor so it locks into place. Use the tapping block at the top edge to push the bottom edge into the top of the next one.

7. Repeat Step 6 until you reach the edge. Measure and cut another piece to that edge, making sure to leave a 1/4-inch gap. Slide the longer edge of the piece into place at an angle, push it flat against the ground and use the pull bar or tapping block to lock it into place. Put another spacer between the wall and the piece.

8. Repeat Steps 6 and 7 until you have covered the entire floor. Place more weight along as you go to keep the floor from shifting. When you reach the far wall, remove the slotted sides when you install the pieces.

Finishing

1. Remove the extra weights and spacers.

2. Install the molding around the edges, keeping it in place with either the nail gun or caulking.

3. Put your furniture back in place.

Tips & Warnings

• The pieces should click into place and leave virtually no seam. If they don't slide in correctly, gently tap the laminate into place with the hammer through the tapping block.

• Leave the 1/4-inch gap all the way around the floor so it has space to expand and contract in the summer. If you do not, the floor is likely to buckle.

• Offset all the pieces by about a foot so the edges of the laminate don't line up.

References

• Install Pergo Laminate Flooring: Pergo

Resources

• Project Planner: Pergo