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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
9mm and 15mm around all outside edges of your new floor (figs. 1, 2).
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.
fig. 1
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 (fig. 5).
fig. 2
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HOW TO: Lay a Laminate floor
What you’ll need (cont.)
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 2.25m2:
Types of underlay
• 0.2mm thick polythene sheet
Moisture barrier for concrete, cement screed or bitumen subfloor (fig. 4)
• Foam underlay
Heating and sound insulation for wooden floorboards, chipboard,
parquet, cork, vinyl, rubber and linoleum subfloors (fig. 4)
• Fibre boards 4–6mm
Added insulation or to enable laminate boards to be laid parallel
to existing floor boards (fig. 3)
• Felting or underlay paper fig. 4
For a carpet subfloor
fig. 6
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HOW TO: Lay a Laminate floor
Before you begin (cont.)
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 (fig. 6).
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 fig. 8
For new concrete allow at least these drying times before laying your new floor:
fig. 9
Thickness of concrete Minimum drying time
50mm 2 months
75mm 4 months
100mm 6 months
fig. 10
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HOW TO: Lay a Laminate floor
Preparing your sub floor (cont.)
Cork, carpet
Remove the cork or carpet if it's stuck to a concrete, cement screed or bitumen
subfloor. Also remove any carpet over 7mm thick.
fig. 11
If you're laying on floorboards and need to lay your laminate boards in the same direc-
tion, fit 4–6mm fibre underlay boards at 45˚ to the existing subfloor boards (fig. 3).
If you're laying on floorboards, lay your laminate boards at 90˚ to the existing
floorboards (figs. 1, 2). 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 (fig. 3).
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HOW TO: Lay a Laminate floor
Preparing your first row (cont.)
Without using any adhesive, dry lay the first row of boards. Position spacers along
the outside edges to maintain the expansion gap (fig. 8).
To ensure your floor has an even colour, lay boards in the order that you take them
from the pack.
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 (fig. 3). 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 (fig. 9).
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 (fig. 10). Or use a power saw, cutting from fig. 14
the underside of the board to avoid chipping (fig. 11).
Gluing boards
Use the PVA adhesive recommended by the manufacturer or supplier of your boards.
Apply the glue in a continuous stripe to the groove. Try to avoid leaving gaps, because
the wood will swell if water gets between the boards. If glue oozes out as you fix
boards, simply wipe it off with a damp cloth.
fig. 15
Take the next board, run glue along its end groove (fig. 12) and fit it to the first
board. Tap it home using the draw bar and hammer (fig. 13) and wipe off any excess
adhesive with a damp cloth. Position spacers and check that the two boards are prop-
erly aligned.
Continue until the first row is complete, using the draw bar to fix the last board
and positioning a spacer at the wall end.
Remember that the wall might not be dead straight, so keep checking that the boards
are correctly aligned – with each other rather than with the wall.
fig. 16
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HOW TO: Lay a Laminate floor
Laying your floor (cont.)
Hint
Here's how to check the alignment of two boards you've just glued. Take a third
board and attach it – groove to tongue, but without gluing – across the join of the
boards you've glued, as if it was in the next row. There should be no gaps
between the three boards.
Apply glue to the long edge groove and fix the board to the first row. Tap it home
using the block and hammer.
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.
Using this technique, cut the boards for your last row, glue and fix into place using the
draw bar (fig. 13).
Fit threshold strips in the doorway, remembering once again to leave space
for expansion.
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,
drill a 34mm diameter hole (fig. 19).
fig. 20
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HOW TO: Lay a Laminate floor
Dealing with obstructions (cont.)
If your holes are at the short end of a board, cut across the board (fig. 20). If they're on
the long edge, make two cuts at 45˚ and finish with a jigsaw or coping saw
(fig. 21). Glue the pieces back behind the pipe and use spacers to hold them in place.
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 using acrylic flexible sealant. Masking tape will
protect the boards and doorframe as you apply the sealant (fig. 23).
Dry lay the first row against the batten. Still dry laying, use the backmarking technique
to mark and cut the boards until the area is filled.
Number the boards. Take them up and then lay them again using adhesive. Remember
to leave an expansion gap. HB
fig. 23
fig. 24
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