Step-by-Step Installing a Laminate Floor

Installing a laminate floor is quicker and easier than installing hardwood floors.

Laminate flooring is a less expensive alternative to real hardwood floors. It is also easier to install and more durable than other flooring options. If installed the right way, laminate floors can easily be mistaken for real hardwood. To install a laminate floor, you do not need nails or any type of adhesive, which also makes cleanup quick and easy.

Things You'll Need

• Flooring kit with expansion spacers
• Wide putty knife
• Utility knife
• Tape measure
• 6mm plastic sheeting
• Masking tape
• Power saw
• Hand saw

Instructions

1. Remove the baseboards with a wide, stiff putty knife, ensuring that you place the putty knife as close to the nails as possible without damaging the walls. Also remove any existing flooring glued to the concrete floor. Use a utility knife to cut the carpet and pull it back until it is completely removed. Any glue stuck on the floor can be scraped up with the putty knife. If there is wood that is not glued, do not remove it and clean and dry the floor.

2. Lay 6mm plastic sheeting on the floor if you are installing the laminate over a concrete subfloor or over tiles on top of a concrete subfloor. This serves as a vapor barrier and should not be installed if the subfloor is wood. When laying this barrier, overlap each sheet by 7 to 8 inches and secure to the walls with masking tape.

3. Measure the width of the floor and divide this figure by the width of one plank. Divide the remainder by two if it is less than 12 inches and trim this width from the first row on the tongue side of the planks. The first and last rows should be the same width.

4. Repeat the same process for the length of the floor. The length of one plank is 46 1/2 inches, so this is the figure that should be used when dividing the length of the room.

5. Lay the first plank beginning in left corner of the floor and run the planks parallel to the wall with the trimmed edge, using expansion spacers. When laying each following plank, connect the short ends together by inserting one at an angle and applying pressure to secure the planks.

6. Cut the last plank with a power saw from the underside or with a hand saw from the decorative side so that it fits into the space provided. Use the piece that you trimmed off to begin the next row of planks.

7. Lay the first plank of the next row by slightly lifting the previous row so that you can snap the plank into place underneath. Continue to lay each subsequent plank in the same manner, inserting the short end at an angle and pressing down to secure its placement.

8. Trace the shape of the wall and cut the law row of planks as needed to fit in the remaining space.

9. Remove spacers, trim the excess plastic sheeting with the utility knife and reinstall the baseboard previously removed without nailing it to the flooring.

Tips & Warnings

• If removing carpet, it may be easier to handle if you cut into smaller sections with a carpet knife before removing from the floor.

• Install the planks so that their length is parallel to the sunlight that enters the room. This creates a better visual. To further enhance the visual effect, alternate planks from different packages throughout the installation so that the floor looks more natural.

• Be careful when using a carpet knife as it is sharp on both sides of the blade.

References

• Build Direct: Laminate Flooring Defined: Characteristics of Laminate Floors
• Du Pont: How to Install Laminate Flooring
• AcmeDIY.com: How to Remove Baseboards, Molding & Trim