Wood / Laminate Flooring

Tired of that carpet?  Is your carpet worn out? Well replace it with a floating wood or laminate floor. I have already done the main living room and den with laminate flooring. For as much money and support and free exposure I am giving Lowes I should get some kind of kickback.

Well let's get started. This is not a hard job at all and depending on the area that you are covering it could take only a day.  I got my Cherry wood laminate floor from Lowes at a cost of 19.21 a box.  If you sign up for MyLowes program it will keep track of everything you purchase in case you need to buy more or replacement parts. It also allows Lowes to send you coupon savings that you can use for other purchases. Sometimes $15.00 off a purchase of $50.00 and $25.00 off a purchase of $200.00 or more: the saving prices vary. But they do send these out to members especially those who continually purchase material or items from them. 

OK enough free publicity.

Let's Get Started:

The very first thing you should do is to decide on the color flooring you will want to go in your home (yes men listen to your wife, girlfriend, whomever).  DIY is not just for men but women also can do this job with little trouble. 

First, as always measure the area in which you are working. Remember to find the square footage of a room just multiply length x width (LxW = SqFt).  

You will need the following tools to complete this project:

• Tape measure
• Miter Saw
• Utility Knife
• Square
• Wood floor kit (will contain spacers)
• 1/4" round molding
• underlayment
• Rubber Mallet
• Pry bar
• Knee Pads

After you have all the tools you need, you will have to empty the room(s) of all the furniture.  You can just move some furniture aside however this becomes more of a hassle than just taking it out.  Stop being lazy and save yourself some time and frustration by having an empty room.  

Using your utility knife, find the seam in the carpet and cut the seam of the carpet. Grab a corner of the carpet and pull. Carpet is held down by a tack strip that is located at the perimeter of the room. If you cant grab it with your hand grab some pliers and pinch a good amount of the carpet and pull up.  Carpet is easy to remove. Once you have the carpet up, remove the carpet pad, don't be too disgusted about all the stains you will see, some of them are from the foundation or subfloor. Other stains,  well if you have animals that would explain the more prominent stains.

Use the pry bar to remove the tack strips. Tack strip are held down by small nails. If you have a concrete floor you will probably notice some of the cement comes up with the tack strip at the nails. Do not worry it is normal, besides we are going to cover the concrete with an underlayment.   After, you have removed all the carpet, carpet padding and tack strips sweep the floor of any debris.

Underlayment:
There are various types of underlayment you can purchase: standard plastic roll, fiber based and thermal insulated.  Your underlayment must have a moisture barrier.  I suggest you purchase an underlayment that has moisture barrier as well as sound deadening abilities. I do not recommend just using the thin plastic foam underlayment: it will not provide a lot of sound deadening nor comfort as you walk.  Be prepared to spend at least 60.00 per 100 sq. ft. on a good underlayment.  A good one of choice to use would be Tecsun 100-sq ft Premium 0.125-in Flooring Underlayment which can be found at Lowes.  It thickness is an good sound absorption and it is both mold, water and moister resistant.

Underlayment come with a tape strip. This tape strip should face the interior of the room and be able to seal the seams between the underlayment layers. Please ensure you have extra tape as some of the underlayment's tape adhesive may not secure correctly. It does not hurt to re-tape the seams of the underlayments.

Direction of Floor:
I know you are saying what?!! there is a certain direction the floor should be placed?  Well yes of course direction is everything. The grain pattern in the floor can either make a room look small or larger.  Just like they say stripes make you look thinner or bigger depending if they are horizontal or vertical the same thing can be said for flooring.   Determine where your light source is and run the pattern of the wood towards that source (for example if you have front widows the boards should face that direction).

Placing Floor:
You should have the underlayment down and taped securely. The most important row to get right is the first row.   Using the spacers provided in your wood floor installation kit, lay the first row approximately 1/4" from the wall. This will allow the floor to expand and contract during changes in temperature and prevent buckling of the floor. Note: there should be a 1/4" gap around the entire perimeter of the floor.  

DO NOT PRECUT ANY OF THE FLOORING

After you have the first row down, using your miter saw (skill saw or what have you) cut about 1- 2 inches off the first board on the second row.  You need to make this cut so that the floor will be staggered. The horizontal joints at the top of the board should not line up, but be placed in a staggered setting (think of a staircase). Tilt the board slightly on the lip of the first board making sure the bottoms are even.  Continue to connect the flooring  and repeat the steps ensuring to cut 1-2 inches off every other row. 

If you have any corners to go around wait until you get to the corner before making the cut, always measure twice okay maybe 4 times and before you make the cut. You may even want to use the cardboard box the flooring came in and trace the corner on it so that you can use it as a pattern for the cut.

1/4" Round:
Once the floor is down, use the 1/4" round to cover the 1/4" gap around the perimeter of the floor. When placing the 1/4" round in corners make sure you a scrap piece to get the miter joints correctly, unless you are a pro at eyeing the cuts.  Secure the 1/4" molding to the baseboard with finishing nails: DO NOT NAIL INTO THE FLOOR.  If you nail the molding to the floor it will eventually cause the floor to buckle during the changes in temperature. 

Transitions:
When you are doing a hardwood, laminate or tile floor you will need to have a transition in place. The transitions should be purchased at the same time as the flooring.  Transitions do not come in bundles but in a long piece. The transition will have an aluminum or tin railing along with the raised piece of flooring.  The transition is secured in place by screws that are drilled into the subfloor or concrete. You can cut the transition using tin snips or if you are like me and couldn't find your pair a good pair of kitchen shears will work nicely.  Just make sure your wife isn't home when she see's you whit her kitchen shears or you will get an ear full. But hey they are made to cut just about anything right?

Once you have the rail in place the transition snaps into place rather easily. Transitions are used at openings like doorways and transitioning from wood to tile or wood to carpet.

If you did not want to use the metal rail in the transition you can still use the wooden transition, but you will need to secure it to both the laminate floor as well as the other flooring material. If this is the case (I don't know why you really would do this ) you can use Locktight or similar adhesive. 

Finishing up:
Sweep the floor. Now is a good time to get a Swiffer or an iRobot Roomba. Laminate floors look beautiful and will last you a long time if you take care of them. Depending on the traffic in your house you may end up sweeping them every three days. If you have pets you may want to sweep every day.  

Cleaning your new floors:  You can mop them the same as you would a tile floor however be careful not to place excessive amounts of liquid on the floor as the water can seep in between the joints and cause the floor to ripple.  You can buy laminate floor cleaner from any store, the best application is applied using a Swiffer type wet/dry broom.  NEVER use products like Pledge on your floor. The wax in these products will make your floor very slippery and can cause people to slip and fall.  Though its rather entertaining to watch your pets try to walk across the area that you waxed its not very safe for humans.

Lastly, use furniture pads on the bottoms of your furniture to make sure they do not scratch the floor when rearranging rooms.  Though laminate flooring can be replaced easily, you really don't want to have to replace boards unless there is a serious need.

Sit back enjoy your new floor and marvel in your work.