How to Install Non Glue Laminate Flooring
Few kinds of floors look as good as real hardwood. But few are as difficult to lay, either. One modern alternative is laminate flooring, which is generally made of particle board covered with wood veneer (or plastic made to look like wood). While real hardwood has to be glued and/or nailed down, today's laminate flooring is generally designed to "float" on an underlayment of rigid foam. It doesn't glue down, but is merely held down by the floor trim. You can lay it yourself in an afternoon, over just about any existing flooring except carpeting. Does this Spark an idea?
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Things You'll Need
- Hammer
- Pry bar
- Rigid foam underlayment (in rolls)
- Razor knife
- Underlayment tape (with the laminate flooring kit)
- Laminate floor planks
- Miter saw
- Trim nails
Instructions
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1
With your hammer and pry bar, remove the floor trim all around the room. Remove it carefully, taking care not to break it, so you can re-install it at the end. Make sure the floor is clean, solid and free of raised nail heads or other obstructions.
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2
Roll out your rigid foam underlayment along the longest wall in the room. Cut it at the end with your razor knife. Lay the next course alongside it, taping them together at the edges with your flooring tape. Continue laying courses, taping and cutting until the whole floor is covered. (Note: the courses should only be taped to each other, not to the floor.)
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3
Set your first course of flooring on the underlayment, alongside the longest wall, snapping the ends of the boards together. Leave 1/4 inch of space between the boards and the wall, to allow for the floor to expand with climate changes. Cut the end piece to size on your miter saw, again leaving a 1/4-inch gap.
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Lay your subsequent courses alongside the first one, snapping together the tongue-and-groove connections and cutting each course to size at the ends as needed. Continue across the floor until the whole room is covered.
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5
Re-install your floor trim with trim nails; affix them through the wall rather than the floor. The trim should cover the 1/4- inch gap on all sides and hold the floor in place.
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Tips & Warnings
Wear eye protection when cutting your laminate flooring.
