floating laminate floor installation
I am in the process of renovating our 30 year old kitchen and need an opinion on the best method of putting down a (Mannington)glueless floating floor. The original floor was vinyl over particleboard. I gutted the old floor and put a new plywood subfloor down and also got rid of the old cabinets.
The old kitchen layout had cabinets on one wall, but the new ones will be “L” shaped. Since the entire area is gutted, it would be easier for me to just lay the new floor wall to wall and then have the new cabinets installed over it.
I am concerned about the weight of the new cabinets and (Silestone)countertop.Would I encounter a problem with movement of the new floor?
Thanks
Chuck
Replies
Yes you will have problems! I'm sure if you check the instructions they will tell you NOT to put under the cabinets. Sure it would be easier, but that wouldn't allow it to expand unimpeded.
I'm not familiar with that product, but the problem with most of the new glueless laminates is that you can't work 'backwards' and fill in going the opposite direction. With the glue together direction doesn't matter, they just slide together. But the glueless need to be assembled the second boards groove being applied at an angle to the first boards tongue. Therefore if the floor is already down flat on the floor there is no way to slide the groove under it AND at an angle.
The best advice I can give without a floorplan is to make sure you don't have to work backwards (into stove or fridge spaces,closets) and to make certain you leave the correct expansion space (especially in kitchen/water). Most cheat and regret it later. Please plan on putting base shoe 1/2" x 3/4" or quarter round 3/4" x 3/4" on and maybe even a 1/4" plywood on the toekick to help build out.
Lastly most of these products have a very short learning curve when it comes to the angle to assemble them at. Don't get frustrated with the first few, it'll come to you just about the time your done (ha)
The advice given to me by my FIL after he put laminate flooring in was to leave as large a gap around the edges as you can. He recommended the larger quarter round as well.
I wouldn't put cabinets on the laminate flooring either.
Ditto what the others have said.
Don't think that you'll be able to work backwards. You might get it to work, but you might also ruin a hundred dollars worth of stock.
Don't plan on putting the cabinets on the laminate.
Do use a vapor barrier if one is not applied to the product at the factory.
And do leave the recommended space around all edges -- covering that gap with the shoe molding.
Although I'm not familiar with the specific product that you've chosen, I'll say that laminate flooring is yet another of the products where paying the higher price WILL get you a better product -- and probably one that is easier to install. (The really cheap stuff is REALLY a pain to assemble.)
Unless you're the lead dog, the view just never changes.
why not lay the floor, then mark out where the cabinets will be, and then cut out that area....? either leave the section under the cabinets in place, but make your cuts with a dadoe blade, to give you the required 1/4 inch, or pull up the cut out, and replace it with 3/8 inch (or so) ply?...
it's really not that tough to install the floating floor up to the cabinet toe kicks, however...LOL
You are getting consistently good advice here... Cabinets first, then floating floor, with the recommended space for expansion.
Contrary to some comments here, many floating floor products can "work both ways." Slipping tongue into groove is easier, but with a little fiddlin'--grooves do slip onto tongues (if you get the angle of insertion right).
Building up the floor where cabinets go provides a skosh more room for working, as does waiting to add the cabinet toekick. European cabinets have a typically taller toekick which also helps. You can even build up the cabinets more than the thickness of the floating floor if you want an increased counter height (36" as a standard was adopted when the average joe or jolene was a couple of inches shorter, so a taller counter could be better--espescially if you are...tall, that is.