Rex Burkheimer had some questions about laying laminate flooring. . .
Having done this a few weeks ago, I'd say installation of this stuff is a
cakewalk!
As far as tools are concerned, I used my table saw to rip the planks, and a
miter saw for the crosscuts. I'd rate the table saw as more important,
however you could probably get by just fine with a reasonable amount of
care and a sharp sabresaw blade. Remember that any edge you cut is
actually covered by your trim -- nobody will ever see any errors you may
make!
Clamps are really important -- the place I bought my flooring loaned me
several straps to hold the tongue/groove planks together while the glue
set. My experience with the clamps is that you should also put something
heavy on the plank when you crank up the pressure to keep it from folding
up. I learned that the hard way. As well, a 'wonder bar' or similar
prybar is really handy for closing the gap in the last plank in each course
To lay the planks, first measure the room -- you need to figure out how
wide the first and last courses will be. You don't want any of the strips
to be less than about 3 inches wide -- especially if you're having a
floating floor. For example, my planks were 7 5/8" wide, so if the room
was 170 inches wide (22.3 courses), and I placed a full width plank for the
first course, my last course would end up being about 2" (.3 of 7 5/8, less
expansion room). To prevent this, I'd rip the first course to be 4 1/2"
(half of 1.3 courses of 7 5/8", less expansion room). Once you have this
first row down, just start laying left to right -- the portion you cut off
at the end of a course is the first plank of your next course. . .nothing
to it!
I made my own transition strips to the tile -- bought some oak trim and
just ran it through a router to give it the shape I wanted. . .I like the
look of it better, and it was significantly cheaper than the strips sold by
the floor manufacturer.
Hope this helps.
Steve Dillen
E-Mail: SDILLEN@ca.ibm.com
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