HOW TO: Lay a
Laminate floor
Introduction
This 'How to'
describes how to lay a laminate floor. It tells you how to prepare your
subfloor, which underlays you'll need, how to get the crucial first and last
rows right, and how to finish your new floor off to perfection.
The important thing to
remember in laying your new floor is that laminate boards
are made of organic materials. They will therefore expand and contract with heat
and moisture. To allow for this, you need to leave an expansion gap of between
12.5mm around all outside edges of your new floor
Materials
Acrylic flexible sealant
Door threshold strips
High performance underlay or
Fibre underlay boards 4–6mm thick or
Foam underlay
Laminate floorpanels
Polythene damp-proof membrane 0.2mm thick
Water-resistant PVA adhesive
Cork expansion strip
Tools & equipment
Chalk line
Claw hammer – 800gsm
Clean rag
Craft knife
Combination try square
Pull bar / Jemmy
Electric drill and sharp bits
Electric jigsaw or coping saw
Fine hard tooth panel saw
Firmer chisel – 6mm
Knocking block
Knee pads
Mallet
Pencil
Sealant gun
Measuring tape
Wedges,edgings
adhesive
A laminate floor consists
of laminate boards fixed together at the tongue-and-groove
edges. It's a 'floating floor', meaning that the boards are not attached to your
subfloor.
An underlay goes between the subfloor and the laminate floor to insulate for
warmth
and against noise
Laminate boards are sold in
packs. Different manufacturers offer different sizes
and wood-effect finishes, so check packs for suitability, area covered, and any
special instructions.
How many packs of
boards?
First measure the length and
width of your room, including areas such as the
thresholds of doorways. Multiply the length by the width to give the room's
total
area. If the room has a large obstruction, such as a chimney breast, deduct its
area
from the total
Example
3.2m x 2.9m = 9.28m2
1.25m x 0.32m = 0.04m2
Total floor space = 9.24m2
Now divide the total floor space by the area
that each pack of laminate boards
covers. If for example. one pack covers 2.25m 2 :
9.24m2 ч 2.25m2 = 4.106 packs
You will need to buy five packs.
Moisture barrier
for concrete, cement screed or bitumen subfloor
• 0.2mm thick polythene sheet
• Underlay
Choose your underlay from:
• Foam - an inexpensive underlay
• Woodfibre panels - essential over floorboards
• High performance - combines damp proof membrane with
underlay in one easy to fit pass.
Before you begin
Is a laminate floor right for you?
• Some flats and maisonettes
have strict regulations about floor coverings.
Check that your lease or tenancy agreement allows laminate flooring.
• Some laminate flooring is unsuitable for heavy use areas, kitchens
or conservatories.
• Most laminate flooring is unsuitable for wet areas, saunas, bathrooms
or shower rooms.
• Some laminate flooring is unsuitable if you have underfloor heating.
Check with the manufacturer before you go any further.
• You can lay a laminate floor on top of concrete, cement screeds, bitumen,
wooden floorboards, chipboard, vinyl or cork tiles.
Acclimatise your boards
Allow your boards to
acclimatise to the room where you'll lay them. Leave the
unopened packs in the room, well away from walls and radiators, for at least 72
hours before you start. The room should have an average temperature of 18°C.
Remove skirting boards.
Lay your new floor under your
existing skirting boards. Just remove the skirting before
you start and replace it when your floor is finished . Check first that the
skirting
is wide enough to cover the 12.5mm expansion gap.
Alternatively, lay the new floor up to the skirting (allow 12.5mm gap) and fill
the
expansion gap with cork and cover with a moulding
Shorten doors
If laying laminate boards will
raise the level of your floor, you may need to shorten
your doors.
To check, place a board with its underlay against the door. If the door will be
blocked, mark the thickness of the board against the door, allowing also for the
thickness of a threshold strip and adding 2–3mm for easy opening.
Remove the door, cut off the bottom strip with a fine-tooth saw, and finish with
glass paper.
For more information, see
How To: fit a door
Complete plumbing or electrical
works
Are you planning any changes to your under-floor plumbing or electrical
installations?
If so, be sure to complete these before laying your new floor.
Preparing your subfloor
Your subfloor must be dry, level and smooth. A variation of up to 3mm over
2m is acceptable.
Concrete, cement screeds, bitumen
Grind off or fill any highs or hollows. If your subfloor is very uneven, use a
self-levelling
screed. A concrete subfloor must have an integral damp-proof membrane and it
must
be completely dry.
For new concrete allow at least these drying times before laying your new floor:
Thickness of concrete Minimum drying time
50mm 2 months
75mm 4 months
100mm 6 months
HOW TO: Lay a
Laminate floor
Preparing your sub floor (cont.)
Wooden floorboards & chipboard
Plane or sand off any
unevenness. Screw down any loose floorboards, taking care not
to screw into pipes or cables underneath.
Fitting your
underlay
Sweep and hoover the floor
before fitting the underlay. Any rubbish left under
the new floor will spoil your good work by making the floor uneven and noisy
Concrete, cement
screeds
Cover the floor with an 0.2mm
thick polythene sheet. Joins must overlap by at least
20cm. The sheet should extend beyond the floor and up the walls by about 2.5cm.
Trim off the excess before fixing your skirtings or mouldings.
Lay a layer of foam underlay on top of the polythene.
Wooden
floorboards, chipboard
Use either foam underlay or
4–6mm fibre boards.
If you're laying on floorboards and need to lay your laminate boards in the same
direction,
fit 4–6mm fibre underlay boards at 45°
to the existing subfloor boards.
Vinyl or cork
tiles
Make sure the tiles are fixed
firmly to the sub floor then proceed
as with concrete sub floors.
Preparing your
first row
1. Choose the direction
Floorboards look best when the light falls along the length of the board.
If you're laying on floorboards, lay your laminate boards at 90°
to the existing
floorboards. If you have to lay the laminate boards in the same direction,
first fit 4–6mm fibre underlay boards at 45°
to the existing subfloor boards.
2. Dry lay the first row
Lay the boards from left to right, with the tongues towards the wall and the
groove edge
towards you. If your first board has a tongue on the left-hand short edge, cut
it off.
HOW TO: Lay a
Laminate floor
Preparing your first row (cont.)
Position spacers along the
outside edges to maintain the expansion gap.
To ensure your floor has a natural appearance lay boards as you take them
randomly from several packs. Lock the boards together following the
pack instruction.
Measuring a board to length
You'll almost certainly have to cut a board to the right length to complete your
first
row. This last section of board must be at least 20cm long. If necessary,
shorten the first board in the row to allow more space at the other end.
Here's how to measure the last board to length and ensure a perfect fit.
Keeping the grain side up, lay your last board on top of the second-last board,
turning
the board you need to cut so that it's tongue to tongue with the other board.
Put a
spacer against your end wall, then push the short edge groove of your last board
against the spacer.
The board to cut, will lie
partly on top of the second-last board. Using a combination
try square and a marking knife, mark the board where it crosses the board below.
Saw along the mark, turn your board back round, and position it in place.
Cutting boards
Use a hard point handsaw to
cut boards from the underside (fig. 10).
Or use a jigsaw, cutting from the topside of the board to avoid chipping
2. Lay the second and further rows
If the offcut from the last board in your first row is 30cm or more use
it to start your second row. Make sure that the joins between boards
in adjacent rows are also at least 30cm apart . (If the joins line up, they will
cause a weakness in your new floor.)
Connect the boards using the method shown on the pack.
As you lay the second and further rows, remember to maintain the expansion gap
by placing spacers between the ends of your boards and the wall. Continue laying
boards until you reach the last row.
3. Lay the last row
The width of the last board may need to be reduced to fit the gap remaining
between the second from last board and the skirting board. Measure the width
of your board, less the tongue plus 10mm for the expansion gap. Lay a board on
top of the previous row of laid boards. Lay an off-cut on top of the two stacked
boards, and butt it up to the skirting board. Remember to put a spacer
between the end of the off-cut board and the skirting board. Mark the end of
the off-cut on to the top board. Mark this line along the length of the whole
board and cut.
Using this technique, cut the boards for your last row, fix into place using the
jemmy.
4. Finish your floor
Remove the spacers. Insert cork expansion stripin to the gaps. Fit the skirtings
back on, or attach mouldings to cover the expansion gap.
Fit threshold strips in the doorway, remembering once again to leave space
for expansion.
Dealing with obstructions
Radiator pipes
Measure the centre line of your
pipe onto the board using a spacer, combination
try-square and pencil.
You need to allow an expansion gap around pipes as well, so drill a hole 16mm
wider than the diameter of the pipe. If your pipe's diameter is 18mm, for
example,
If your holes are at the short end of a board, cut across the board. If they're
on
the long edge, make two cuts at 45°
and finish with a jigsaw or coping saw. Glue the pieces back behind the pipe and
use spacers to hold them in place.
Wooden door frames
Lay an offcut with
underlays against the door frame (architrave). Mark the height of
this on the bottom of the door frame to indicate the gap needed for your new
floor to
fit underneath.
Lay a hand saw on top of the off-cut with the blade facing the door frame.
Carefully
saw through the frame, bending the blade of the saw upwards slightly as you work.
Alternatively, remove the
frame with a chisel and mallet. Remember to leave
an expansion gap. (You can also use a template guage and cut
the board to follow the profile).
Metal doorframes
Use an offcut of a board less
its tongue to backmark around the frame, adding 10mm
to allow for the expansion gap. Cut the board and fix it as normal, then fill
the gap
between the board and the doorframe with cork expansion strip.
Irregular shaped
rooms
Use a chalkline to mark a line
at 90°
to the end wall. Measure up to the point
where you have space to fit a whole row and mark this point by fixing a
temporary
batten to the subfloor.
Lay the first row against the batten. Use the backmarking technique
to mark and cut the boards until the area is filled.
Remember to leave an expansion gap.
Top Quality Builders (London)
