Laminate Flooring Questions...

[Luckydevil]

I saw an ad today for a local wood laminate store that is closing out some inventory at $0.48 sqft. I'm thinking that is a pretty good deal and some laminate would look pretty damn good in my garage.

No cars get parked in my garage, just a single motorcycle. I don't do any welding, so that won't be an issue either.

Now I don't know jack about laminate so I was hoping you guys might be able to help me out with this.

1) My floor is concrete with epoxy, so how exactly would I go attaching the wood to the floor?

2) Does laminate need to be stapled, or does it snap together? How hard is it to install?

3) Am I crazy for wanting to do this?

Thanks guys.

 

[6t7gto]

here you go...
http://www.floorings.com/laminates/installation.shtml

david

 

[Luckydevil]

Thanks, that sounds easier than I thought. I have a small concrete single step going into the house and I think making that look good will be the hardest challenge. I guess I could always just epoxy a piece into into place on the vertical part of the step and then use some right angle trim to blend it in.

 

[bje31]

I have a friend that installed laminate in his garage "office area". He used the recommended padding and his flooring snapped together...The store salesman told him it is very duarable, resistent to some degree of scratching, etc....His flooring is a darker shade of oak against a creme colored epoxy---Rustoleum?....looks real nice....His garage is 90% show and at times he details his ride inside....no water though.

 

[Runum]

That's a great price. I put laminate in my living room, kitchen, and hall. I doesn't seem to scratch easy and it is easy to sweep up. Also I don't believe that you are supposed to wet mop it. We use a broom and swiffer. Get you some knee pads when you install it. My knee caps amd lower back were shot after 2 days of installation. Good luck.

Greg

 

[dboat]

The wife and I have put down laminate in 3 rooms of two homes. It has gotten to the point where she likes to do almost the entire job herself. I didnt look at the product you were buying to see if its click or glue together. Either way is pretty simple to do.

The price is good but if you go to Lumber Liquidators, they always have some on sale fairly cheap. You can always just paint your steps if you have to.. You may want to overbuy at that price to keep a few extra boxes of product around so that you can swap out pieces if you need to..

Dana

 

[wienerwater]

I've done several homes myself with it, and is a good alternative. The snap together stuff is nice, since you can take an area apart if need, and replace a piece. The difference you may pay is in thickness, 6-8 mm. A 7mm thickness is plenty, and as far as cleaning, you can use a damp cloth, as long as it leaves no water behind or dripping wet.The big fear is water getting in the joints, making it swell and ruining a good thing. Some brands have a so-called waterproof edge, which is green dye on the edge making you believe it is waterproof-not really.But after a few months of sweeping etc, you get dust and debris sealing the joints, making it less easy for any water to get inside the crack. As far as on concrete, I have been told numerous times not to, since moisture is trapped under with the foam backing. This is debateable, since I have seen it work with no issues.As far as underlayment, I would suggest the cheap white roll of foam VS the fancy blue...whatever stuff, at double the cost. It's just backing , not comfy sound deading etc, since it's on concrete. Since it floats, you need to incorporate some kind of edge, unless you go wall to wall with it.It needs 1/4-1/2" around the perimeter for the floor to "float".

Another tip- I used this stuff, glued to the bottoms of inside/lower cabinets in my shop.These cabinets were for large heavy items-table saw, miter saw etc. When you need them, they slide out so slick and easy, and no scratching!
Good luck!

 

[Luckydevil]

Well turns out my Uncle has 500sqft of leftovers from the laminate flooring he used in his house. Very nice stuff, light in color, and it cost him $2sqft. I'm getting it for $1sqft and he said he'll show me how to do it. It will probably be a couple weeks before I get around to installing it, but I think it is going to look very good in the garage.

Thanks for all the input guys.