Has anyone here installed their own laminate flooring?

[Erica in PA]

We're trying to decide what to do about the flooring in our new house. The existing carpet needs to be replaced in all rooms. We love the look of wooden floors, and have heard that when you do it yourself, it may not be much more expensive per sq. ft than having carpet installed. We would probably only do the living room and hallway in laminate for now, and have the rest of the rooms carpeted, to save time and money.

 

So, how difficult is it to install laminate flooring oneself? Of course dh would be the only doing it, since I can't even cut a straight line on construction paper. I also find googling laminate flooring to be incredibly overwhelming-- so many different kinds, prices, etc. So where is generally the best place to get a good price on solid quality flooring? Any specific brands to recommend?

 

Any btdt would be wonderful!! Thank you!

[OnTheBrink]

I had the my living room floor done last year and a friend's dh installed it for me. He's a computer programmer, not a flooring specialist, and from the looks of it, it wasn't hard. He told me what to buy and I just got it at Menards ( a local hardware store). I don't remember the brand, but it was on sale for $1.29 a sq ft, which seemed to be a decent price. It was the kind that locks together. I bought the laminate, the foam that goes under it (I did get the best lining stuff the store had), quarter round so the baseboards didn't need to be pried off, and the strip that connects the laminate to the tile in the kitchen. For my 170 sq ft space, I paid around $400 for the supplies and then $300 to my friend's dh. He had all the tools and it took him 2 afternoons to get it done. I do remember having to return one unopened box of laminate (always buy more than what you need at one time. That way, you have extra flooring from the same lot in case of mistakes).

 

So, I've been very pleased. I have a dog and 3 cats, and tend to move things around a lot and I've yet to scratch the floor up at all.

[BakersDozen]

We did this in all our bedrooms and living room a few years back. It's not difficult at all to do (I did this when 35 weeks pg!). Dh did the more difficult cuts but I did straight cuts and we both laid it. You want to make sure you have a vacuum handy to keep the debris under control. We bought ours at Home Depot - got a great deal on a close-out! As far as price goes don't go for the cheapest especially if you are doing a hallway. Since our areas are not high-traffic we bought mid-range price/quality but if we could have afforded it we would have bought even better quality.

 

The last tip I have is to avoid dark flooring as it shows everything including scratches.

[hornblower]

We did our open floor plan living/dining/kitchen & the hall to the bedrooms. Our legs were sore, ours took more energy to 'click' than I was expecting (definitely needed that rubber mallet!) & we had a # of tricky things (like the huge stand alone brick fireplace which separates my lr from the kitchen) where laying out the boards & making sure things actually lined up right was a bit of a PITA but overall, it wasn't hard. Just tedious. Get knee pads, stretch your hamstrings beforehand.

 

Remember to leave expansion gaps around the perimeter (you'll need to cover these with baseboards/quarter round).

 

If you're doing smaller areas, in my town there are several auction houses that sell small lots @ very good prices.

Edited January 11, 2010 by hornblower

[2cents]

My dh installed some in one of the kids rooms. It took him a couple of days but he said it was easy. It is hard on the knees so make sure you get some of those knee pads. It looks nice!! He is a programmer and he had never done anything like that before either. :)

[mom2att]

My dh installed our laminate flooring about 6 years ago. It was purchased at Costco and he just did a room at a time until we'd done the whole house. He had a friend who does flooring for a living to give him pointers and lend him a tool when necessary. The only time he ran into a problem was in the living room, where the concrete floor was uneven and needed to be sanded down--that was a mess. But other than that, I can say it was a piece of cake, since I did none of the work! He would definitely do it again to save money, and the floors themselves have been great.

[Mrs Mungo]

My husband did our house in NC and a few weeks later "helped" (in other words, did most of it) our neighbor do the same. It just took a couple of days in both cases.

[In The Great White North]

I have installed laminate flooring (in a school) and it is a piece of cake. A bit time consuming but that's it. The right tools make it easier, so rent the pneumatic hammer thingy with the rubber mallet and a big saw. It cuts down on time and frustration.

 

Much easier and less messy than tiling.

[Erica in PA]

We're trying to decide what to do about the flooring in our new house. The existing carpet needs to be replaced in all rooms. We love the look of wooden floors, and have heard that when you do it yourself, it may not be much more expensive per sq. ft than having carpet installed. We would probably only do the living room and hallway in laminate for now, and have the rest of the rooms carpeted, to save time and money.

 

So, how difficult is it to install laminate flooring oneself? Of course dh would be the only doing it, since I can't even cut a straight line on construction paper. I also find googling laminate flooring to be incredibly overwhelming-- so many different kinds, prices, etc. So where is generally the best place to get a good price on solid quality flooring? Any specific brands to recommend?

 

Any btdt would be wonderful!! Thank you!

 

Thanks everyone, this is sounding very encouraging! Dh would also have the help of his dad and a good friend who both recently did laminate flooring in their homes, so it shouldn't take more than a couple of days.

 

Now, how about which brands/types are best, and where to buy them?

[newbie]

We did Armstrong and love it. This is our second run at laminates. WE did pros the second time.

 

The first time dh installed and it just wasnt perfect. The second time pros did it and its beautiful.

 

I think Home Depot has install special, I dont know if its just for carpet though.

[Carol in Cal.]

I have never seen laminate flooring that really seemed like wood. It seems like it will, but it doesn't. It doesn't have the same texture, feel, warmth, or even sound as wood does. It's nice, but if you are used to hardwood, it just not the same. Again, it's nice though.

 

If you want something that is more like hardwood but not as costly, you might look at bamboo, although I have heard that it's somewhat soft. It seems to have more of the warmth, feel, and sound of hardwood.

 

I hasten to add, laminate flooring is nice, in and of itself, but it's not really much like wood. Our church put some very high quality laminate flooring into our main meeting room, church office, and other office, and it's been a big disappointment.

[hornblower]

I have never seen laminate flooring that really seemed like wood. It seems like it will, but it doesn't.

 

Otoh, if you have dogs, it's better than real wood because it's harder. I have big dogs & even with regular nail trims, their nails would scratch real wood but they're not able to mark the laminate. We went for a grade which is transitional between residential and commercial so it's really tough stuff. Having it not be like real wood is a bonus for us :D