Starting to Lay Laminate
In this case, like I said, we didn't get to start on a long wall. It was actually a very short one. We went down the hallway and measured from our chaulk line on one side of the hallway (see diagram) and then measured from the chaulk line on the other side. We could then line up our first piece with these two measurements and we'd be parallel with our chaulk line.
This type of laminate goes down very nicely. It was 5/16" thick. I found that most of the boards were the same thickness but we did run into a few that were a bit higher than the others. Nothing to stub your toe on, but noticable. First thing is to open about 3 or 4 boxes at a time and pull from each of them. The first piece should be the longest you can do. They come in the box with varying lengths. You need to determine one thing right off. Do you want a 'stairstep' look or a very 'random' look?
I prefer the random look so that it doesn't resemble a pattern. This takes some though while you're installing, but it isn't that much work. It means watching your seams more carefully and planning ahead. Let's get the first piece down and then we'll worry about the seams.
The Bostitch flooring stapler worked excellent. We turned the pressure down to 80psi so as to not over sink the staples and they came out perfectly flush. The gun lined things up easily and enable some quick action. Staples should be placed every 4 inches or so. Stay away from the ends about an inch.
What about these tongues and grooves?
This type of laminate goes down very nicely. It was 5/16" thick. I found that most of the boards were the same thickness but we did run into a few that were a bit higher than the others. Nothing to stub your toe on, but noticable. First thing is to open about 3 or 4 boxes at a time and pull from each of them. The first piece should be the longest you can do. They come in the box with varying lengths. You need to determine one thing right off. Do you want a 'stairstep' look or a very 'random' look?
I prefer the random look so that it doesn't resemble a pattern. This takes some though while you're installing, but it isn't that much work. It means watching your seams more carefully and planning ahead. Let's get the first piece down and then we'll worry about the seams.
The Bostitch flooring stapler worked excellent. We turned the pressure down to 80psi so as to not over sink the staples and they came out perfectly flush. The gun lined things up easily and enable some quick action. Staples should be placed every 4 inches or so. Stay away from the ends about an inch.
What about these tongues and grooves?