Help on Laminate Flooring???????

[1Garageman]

My wife and I have are house up for sale and we need to put a new floor into the kitchen. The relator suggested Laminate Flooring would be the way to go, cheap, and quick.
Well I am a handy man but have never done floors .
So I am curious, is it very hard?
What type of floor would you recamend? I've seen laminate with stuff on the back of it, and not it.
Do you know anyone who is good at doing this in Columbus, Ohio, at a decent price???
Thanks a ton guys/girls!

I added a pic of the kitchen.

 

[ghnl]

Many of the laminate floor products are fairly easy for the DIY-er. If the old floor is in decent shape but merely dated, you can install the new right over the old. Some are 'floating' - the flooring is not glued or nailed down. The edges are tongue & grooved and either glued together along the joints -or- the joints interlock & snap together.

The big box stores (Home Despot & Lowes, etc) all sell the stuff. If you want to hire someone to install it, I'd suggest finding a flooring store. If they don't do it themselves they should be able to provide you with the names of independant contractors that do.

 

[plplayer]

It is very easy to install. The stuff you saw on the back of it is just the underlayment. If you get it without the padding on the back then you'll have to buy it in roll form. Most laminate sold now days is snap lock which is another plus. Just cut your door jambs and make sure you use spacers to keep an expansion joint around the perimeter.

 

[Bojans]

Very easy to install. I did Pergo in our old place. Looked nice and certainly added to our resale value. I did about 400 sq feet in 6 hours or so. That included new quarter round on the trim as well as cutting the doors and jambs.

 

[Vicegrip]

check Costco if you have one around you. I installed 1000 Sf and it has held up well. Made in USA too.

 

[Fleetwiz]

Please post up what you find out and some "after" pics...I want to do the same as one of my "winter" projects...

Thanks in advance

 

[bazzateer]

I put laminate down in the workbench area of the garage at my old house. I used all the left overs from a small project in the house. Made for a nicer floor where i was standing all the time.

Looking on eBay there's loads for sale dirt cheap, so cheap in fact that I'm seriously thinking about buying it all up and doing the entire floor of my new garage (22' x 30') with it. If I can get it locally enough it'll only cost me about £150 to do the lot. It won't last for ever but at least it will give me time to save up for a better floor in the future.

 

[tcianci]

Laminate is an extremely easy system to install. Like the guys said, cut back your casings and jambs, (that new HF multi function power tool works great for this although the blades from them ****) and leave a little expansion space all around the job. If you want to get real fancy you can pull up the baseboards and then replace them on top of the laminate or you can cover the gap with 1/4 round. While the flooring itself can usually be had for well under 3 bucks a sq. ft., the accessories can be spendy. For instance, the color matched 1/4 round costs a lot. Consider using plain old wood 1/4 round stained or painted to match the woodwork, not the floor. If you are handy, you can mill up your own transition and finish strips, you can save a bundle here too.

 

[BerBer5985]

We own a flooring store and laminate was originally designed as one of the first do it yourself flooring systems. If you're handy at all, you can install laminate. If you get the pad attached to the back, I would make sure you put down some sort of moisture barrier to be safe. Just the plastic sheeting, like 5-10 cents a sq ft. Be careful of going too cheap and doing it yourself for two reasons, one is this is one of those things that you get what you pay for. If you don't want it to fall apart and start separating in 2 years and you want it to go together when you're installing and not fight it, get a good laminate. Armstrong was the best in consumer reports last year, but wilsonart is fantastic, although a little more expensive. Mohawk (Or quickstep) laminates have the uniclic system which is one of the best and some other brands use that locking system. If you do it yourself, do yourself a favor and get a good product since you're saving on the labor. You'll hate yourself if you don't. If you have any questions, let me know and I can point you in the right direction.

 

[RedVise]

BerBer, any moisture issues with laminate if used in a 10 x 12 laundry room.
Typical washer dryer set up?
I am raising the floor to match the rest of the house. Planning on floor joists, OSB subfloor and laminate.
Would a moisture barrier be needed also?


Thanks

Brian L.

 

[lpigg]

Very easy. I cant imagine an issue in the laundry room unless you have an older washer that leaks