You have picked out the perfect new laminate floor for your home. Now, it’s the big day and the installers are soon to arrive. What should you expect? How is this new flooring going to be installed?
Getting ready
Before the arrival of our crew, there are several things that you can do to get ready for the big day. To begin with, all breakables should be removed from the work area. Whether these are pictures, ornaments, china, or other keepsakes, removing them ahead of time guarantees that there will be no accidents that might see one of these items damaged or broken.
Furthermore, any small items that you have in the room or rooms should also be removed to another area to facilitate the work to be done. The bottom line is that flooring installation means that our installers will need to get access to the floor and anything you can do to help that process, the more swiftly our installers can complete your floor.
Preparation
One of the most important parts of installing any floor is making sure you have a clean floor to work with. If there is carpet or another floating floor, the first thing that our installers will do is to remove the old flooring to prepare for the new one. Once the floor is clear of take-up, staples, old tack strip, and any other items will be removed. If there was quarter-round molding, that will be removed as well. If needed, our installers will also use a door-jamb saw to make sure that there is room for the new floating floor to go under it.
Underlayment
Once the floor is clean, the underlayment will be laid out and taped at its seams. Some laminate products have an underlayment built into the flooring and in that case, no additional underlayment will be laid out. Sometimes a chalk line will be struck on the floor to ensure that the underlayment is running parallel to the wall of the house.
Installation
Typically, laminate flooring is run perpendicular to the floor joists; this makes for an overall stronger floor. If you are installing laminate over a concrete subfloor, this is irrelevant. Our installers will ensure that the boards are running square with the main wall in the room and then planks will be snapped together one at a time, staggering the seams in a random pattern. You will notice that our installers will also make cut-outs as they go to cut around doors, make room for floor vents, etcetera.
The gap
As this is a floating floor, about a finger-width distance will be left between the flooring and the wall or other fixed items in a room (like a hearth or stairwell). This gap provides room for the floor to expand and contract with different temperatures and cycles of humidity in the air. The quarter-round molding will be installed at the end to hide those gaps. Transition molding will go between your new laminate floor and another flooring that is in your home.
When it comes to laminate flooring installation, we, at Young Interiors, have the best installers in the area working for us. We are so confident in their work that we guarantee their installation. So, if you live in the area of North Myrtle Beach, Carolina Forest, Calabash, Ocean Isle Beach, Longs, SC (or anywhere in between!), give us a call or stop by our showroom in Longs and let us show off your options in residential flooring installation products. We think you will be glad you did.