How to lay laminate

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

You will need a simple tool and a little patience, and all the details of the process are in our instructions with a video.

1. Buy laminate and backing

Choose your laminate and backing. Buy the flooring in advance and leave it in the room where you plan to install it for 48 hours. The laminate will settle down and its humidity will be equal to room humidity. It is not worth buying two or three months in advance, since during the repair there will inevitably be wet processes and moisture, which is useless for the laminate.

Purchase a substrate based on the area of the room, but the laminate - with a margin of 5-10% for trimming. There is always less waste with direct laying, and more with diagonal and complex room shapes.

2. Prepare tools and materials

Not many tools are required to mark, trim and lay laminate flooring. Most gadgets are either on hand or inexpensive. In addition to tools, you will need some consumables. Here's a complete list:

• five-meter tape measure;
• pencil;
• carpentry square;
• compass;
• sharp knife;
• hand saw with a fine tooth or jigsaw, circular saw;
• hammer or mallet;
• chisel;
• feather drills;
• drill or screwdriver;
• puncher;
• laminate staples;
• padding block and wedges (can be replaced with pieces of laminate);
• laminate;
• substrate;
• vapor barrier (if necessary);
• plinth with fittings;
• transitional thresholds;
• glue;
• Scotch;
• masking tape.

3. Prepare the base

The subfloor for laying the laminate must be perfectly flat. Manufacturers allow differences of no more than 2 mm per 1–2 m. Otherwise, the locks will wear off from the loads and the lamellas will gradually disperse.

Differential requirements relate to the general plane of the surface, not the horizontal. If the floor is without bumps and pits, but has a slope in one direction, then this will not affect the quality of installation.

Wooden floor

1. Check all boards for squeaks and sags. Reinforce the floor with self-tapping screws if necessary and replace bad areas.
2. Make sure that the differences in the substrate are within an acceptable rate. If not, level the floor with a shredder or lay down a layer of plywood.

Concrete floor

1. Clean up pieces of plaster and screed build-up.
2. Check for elevation differences. If they are more than 2 mm, level the surface with sanding, self-leveling floor or additional screed.
3. Wait for the concrete to dry completely. It takes 28 days.
4. Vacuum or sweep the floor thoroughly to remove all dust.

Linoleum

1. Check the ground drops. If they are within acceptable limits, the laminate can be laid directly on top of the linoleum. If not, it is better to completely dismantle the coating.
2. When laying on linoleum, additional waterproofing is not required.

4. Determine the direction of the light

For beveled laminate flooring, the direction of installation depends only on your preferences and the designer's idea. A cover without chamfers looks best when the lamellas are parallel to the rays of light from the window. So the joints between the boards are almost invisible.

At the same time, laying along a wall with windows allows you to visually expand the room and is quite often used in narrow corridors and hallways.

5. Choose a styling method

There are two options here: straight and diagonal. In the first case, the planks are located along one of the walls, in the second, the laying starts from the corner of the room and is carried out diagonally at an angle of 45 degrees.

The direct method is the most common. It is simpler and faster. The amount of trimming and waste is minimal - 3-5%. If this is your first time installing laminate flooring, choose this method.

Diagonal styling is used less often. This option is much more difficult, but it also looks more advantageous. Especially in open areas of the floor. More trimming and waste - 10-15%. Of course, it requires skill and patience, so choose the diagonal method only if you are confident in your abilities.

6. Install the vapor barrier

Since the laminate is not 100% resistant to moisture, it must be prevented from getting into the lamellas. For a wooden base or linoleum, this is irrelevant, but when laying on concrete screeds, a vapor barrier is installed without fail.

As an insulating layer, special membranes or ordinary polyethylene film with a thickness of 200 microns or more are used. A vapor barrier can be dispensed with if the laminate substrate has such a layer.

Lay the insulation with an overlap of 20 cm strips and tape the joints together. The canvases should be perpendicular to the direction of the substrate, and that, in turn, to the laminate. If the topcoat is laid from the front wall to the back, then the underlay is from left to right, and the vapor barrier is the same as the laminate.

7. Install the backing

Place a backing layer on the base. Connect all sheets or strips to each other end-to-end and secure with tape. You do not need to overlap, as this will create unwanted swings.

Further, when installing the laminate, be careful not to move the underlay. To do this, you can lay it not on the entire floor surface, but in parts.

8. Calculate the layout of the lamellas

Laminate planks must be at least 20-30 cm in length and at least 5 cm in width. To achieve this, it is necessary to first estimate how the whole lamellas fit along the length and width of the room. And then cut the planks of the first row so that the last one is not already 5 cm.

Do not forget about the expansion joint around the perimeter of the room and take it into account in the calculations. The lamellas are trimmed so that there is a gap of 7–10 mm between them and the wall.

If the room is more than 8-10 m in length or width, manufacturers recommend installing dividing thresholds. The latter will insulate sections of the laminate from each other to reduce deformation from fluctuations in humidity and temperature. Think about where to place these joints so that they are less noticeable.

The same joints will be at the abutments of the boards to the tiles or laminate of other rooms. In this case, it is better to install dividing thresholds strictly under the door leaf. So when the doors are closed, the joints will not be visible from either one or the other room.

9. Lay the first row

Installation of the first row is the most difficult and responsible one. All subsequent ones will copy the first one, so it is important to lay it flat along the wall. Otherwise, the drawing will unfold and the floor will look ugly.

1. Inspect the laminate flooring locks and remove any debris and dust from them.
2. Cut the lock on the short side of the first plank and lay it on the floor. Insert the second into it at a slight angle.
3. Align the lamellas exactly in width so that "teeth" do not form, and lower the second board by snapping the lock.
4. Place wedges against each wall to accommodate expansion gaps. They can be cut from pieces of laminate.
5. Completely collect the first page in this way.
6. Do not cut the last lamella, but for now just overlap on top.
7. Mark the length of the last plank, trim it and place it where you want it. Do not forget: it should be no shorter than 20-30 cm.

How to cut laminate

1. Place a wedge against the wall and place the board to be trimmed on top of the row in which it will lie.
2. Mark with a pencil the distance to the face of the adjacent lamella.
3. Draw a straight line using a square.
4. Cut the board at the mark with a jigsaw, hacksaw, or circular saw.

Consider the direction of the teeth when using the jigsaw. If oriented away from you, the laminate should be facing up. If the teeth are facing you, turn the board face down. This will avoid chipping.

If you don't have a power tool, cut with a metal hacksaw or other fine-toothed saw. Do not use too much force to get a neat cut without chipping. As a safety net, you can stick masking tape along the line.

What if the wall is uneven

1. Collect one strip completely and slide it close to the wall.
2. Using a compass, find the place where the laminate is farthest from the wall.
3. Mark this distance on the laminate with a compass along the entire length of the strip.
4. Draw a line over the labels. It will completely copy all the unevenness of the wall.
5. Saw out pieces from each laminate board, reassemble and install.

10. Consider the drawing

Most types of laminate are available with an arbitrary pattern, and it is unlikely that it will be possible to match the lamellas to one another. In fact, this is not necessary: this way the coating will look too artificial and will look like linoleum.

Some manufacturers have matched laminate flooring. This is usually indicated on the packaging and in the instructions. In order for the design to match, the boards must be used in order from the same pack.

If you plan to lay your laminate flooring apart, open three or four packs and take one lamella from each. This will make the drawing as arbitrary as possible.

11. Lay the rest of the rows

Continue with subsequent rows in this manner. Collect the lamellas along the short side in one strip, and then install it in the previous row and snap into place. In order to save money, you can start a new row with the piece remaining from the pruning.

Cut the lamellas of the last row to the desired width, collect in one strip and finish laying. You may need a Z-bracket to snap them into place.

How to make a pipe joint

1. Attach a board and mark the center of the pipe.
2. Measure with a square or tape measure the distance from the wall to the center of the pipe.
3. Mark the center of the pipe hole on the lamellas.
4. Use a jigsaw or a feather drill to make a hole 8-10 mm larger than the pipe diameter.
5. Cut out the fragment of the laminate that interferes with the installation, and after installation with glue, attach the piece to its place.
6. The holes themselves can then be covered with plastic rosettes.

How to make a joint with a door frame

1. Take a piece of laminate 15–20 cm wide, put it in the lock and slide it close to the door frame.
2. Apply masking tape over the top.
3. Putting the hacksaw on the board, saw through the door frame. The protruding part is through, and the deep part is 5–7 mm.
4. Use a chisel to break off the sawn pieces and check how the laminate comes in.

12. Install the sills

There are several types of thresholds. In addition to their appearance, they differ only in the mounting option. Some are held on through dowels, others on hidden ones, and still others have a special mortgage, which is attached to the floor with screws and to the front part with a latch.

The nuances of installing one type or another of thresholds are always indicated on the packaging. In general, the procedure is as follows:

1. Measure the required length of the threshold and cut off the excess.
2. Spread the fasteners evenly over the entire width of the opening.
3. Drill the holes along the marks with a punch.
4. Secure the nut: through and through by inserting the screws into the groove or through the mortgage.
5. If the fasteners are not through, tap the threshold through the soft pad until it is completely seated in its place.

13. Install the skirting boards

Skirting boards also come in various options: plastic, MDF or wood. The most common PVC skirting boards with a cable channel inside. They are practical, affordable and look good.

Installation of all skirting boards is carried out approximately in the following way:

1. Measure all sections of the wall and cut the required skirting boards.
2. Use a hammer drill to drill holes in the wall straight through the skirting board at a distance of 50–60 cm. If using brackets, install them in the same way.
3. Route the cables and fit the corners.
4. If the length is long, join the strips with special connecting inserts.
5. Install plugs on the trunking, if provided by the design.