Anyone ever install Laminate Hardwoods in their house?

[sohcrates]

Got 500 sq feet of Sequoia Hampton in Cherry finish (glueless laminate)

http://www.sequoiafloorings.com/content/laminate/hampton.html

I'm just wondering if you think i can cut this stuff inside ? or will i have to take the saw outside all weekend? (i have a portable table saw and a circular saw, and i'd prefer to minimize how much i annoy the neighbors).

Also, will a regular carbide blade work?

Thanks for any insight

Do i know what i'm in for?

 

[amdskip]

Heck yes cut it outside, no need to make a mess inside. Who cares about the neighbors, they'll deal with it.

 

[sohcrates]

note these are actually the same neighbors who decided to powerwash their house at 6:30 am this morning....
hmmm...good point

i guess it's more that i might be working at night

 

[DaTT]

Cut outside, they won't mind....maybe even come over and help ya. Yes, regular blade will work. Don't forget to leave expansion room around the walls.

 

[sohcrates]

Can i make my own spacers for the walls? what would you recommend i use as spacers?

 

[RU482]

it puts off a hell of alot of fine dust. It'll do a number on your sawblade, so make sure you use a high quality 60+ toothcount blade. I don't know much about saw blade types, but I don't think the one I used was carbide tipped. About half way through the job, it basically started burning through as it cut. There were metallic chips all over the ground from the blade. I can't even cut a 2x4 with that blade now. A miter saw works alot better than a table saw or skill saw, due to the hardness of the material. You'll also probably get a more accurate cut.

I installed laminate in my dining room...the lock together no glue type. EASY job for a saturday afternoon. Wife keeps nagging me to finish the kitchen too. I'm really impressed with the stuff, considering we paid 88c a sq/ft at Menards.

have fun!!

 

[DaTT]

You don't need spacers, just don't cut it tight to the walls, but not short enough the the base board won't cover.

 

[RU482]

Originally posted by: sohcrates
Can i make my own spacers for the walls? what would you recommend i use as spacers?

I just eyeballed the space when I did my project. Just make sure trim will more than cover it and you should be fine

 

[Rogue]

I cut a 2x4 into thin spacers that I put at the end of each row as I laid them. That allowed me to use a rubber mallet and a block of wood to snug the joints real well until I got to the other side of the room with that row, then I cut the last piece to size with the proper spacing for expansion. I laid about 300-400 square feet of the stuff in my upstairs in about two days time. Looks good!

 

[shimsham]

Originally posted by: redly1
it puts off a hell of alot of fine dust. It'll do a number on your sawblade, so make sure you use a high quality 60+ toothcount blade. I don't know much about saw blade types, but I don't think the one I used was carbide tipped. About half way through the job, it basically started burning through as it cut. There were metallic chips all over the ground from the blade. I can't even cut a 2x4 with that blade now. A miter saw works alot better than a table saw or skill saw, due to the hardness of the material. You'll also probably get a more accurate cut.

I installed laminate in my dining room...the lock together no glue type. EASY job for a saturday afternoon. Wife keeps nagging me to finish the kitchen too. I'm really impressed with the stuff, considering we paid 88c a sq/ft at Menards.

have fun!!

any pics? we have some shatty vinyl or whatever, and wed like to tile but want to save up until we can have it done nicely. this may be a good compromise for the short term.

 

[sohcrates]

I actually have a 10 inch compound mitre saw. forgot about that. so that would be my best option?

i'm paying $1.25 per sq foot from BJ's Wholesale

also...where do you think i can get stair "nose" pieces? can i make my own out of oak and stain them? or should i try to find matching custom pieces that are like $30 bucks a pop?

i'm planning to line the room with quarter round molding to hide the gap i think

 

[cjgallen]

We did our whole freakin' house in laminate. Good times.

Originally posted by: sohcrates
I'm just wondering if you think i can cut this stuff inside ? or will i have to take the saw outside all weekend? (i have a portable table saw and a circular saw, and i'd prefer to minimize how much i annoy the neighbors).

I used a table saw outside. Fvck the neighbors

Also, will a regular carbide blade work?

Ours was a metal blade that came with the cheapo Ryobi table saw we bought for the job. No clue what metal it was, but it worked fine. Still use it regularly.

 

[cjgallen]

Originally posted by: sohcrates
I actually have a 10 inch compound mitre saw. forgot about that. so that would be my best option?

Table Saw. Table Saw. Table Saw. IMO

also...where do you think i can get stair "nose" pieces? can i make my own out of oak and stain them? or should i try to find matching custom pieces that are like $30 bucks a pop?

We don't have stairs, no clue what you're talking about

i'm planning to line the room with quarter round molding to hide the gap i think

Yes Yes Yes. Looks trashy without quarter round.

 

[mwmorph]

Originally posted by: cjgallen

Originally posted by: sohcrates
I actually have a 10 inch compound mitre saw. forgot about that. so that would be my best option?

Table Saw. Table Saw. Table Saw. IMO

also...where do you think i can get stair "nose" pieces? can i make my own out of oak and stain them? or should i try to find matching custom pieces that are like $30 bucks a pop?

We don't have stairs, no clue what you're talking about

i'm planning to line the room with quarter round molding to hide the gap i think

Yes Yes Yes. Looks trashy without quarter round.

when i did it, i did it on the cheap. no need for spacers. used a hacksaw. took 3 days to do my downstairs(~800sq ft) Nose pieces have to be bought for best color match. handmade costs less but wont be as durable. btw, quarter molding is necessary. ugly gaps without the molding.

 

[Maetryx]

I just installed this stuff last week in a living room and dining room. We bought a $14 tool kit which came with all the spacers we needed, a plastic block that allowed us to hammer on the edges of a laminate wood member without damaging the engineered edge, and a "periscope" crow bar thingy that let us hook the end of a section close to a wall and beat on the tool to snug up hard to reach side and corner members.

The $14 was well spent. BTW, we used a jig saw to do almost all the cutting. We bought a circular saw blade with all the fine teeth (high teeth count) but found that the jig saw was much easier. Also, we bought the kind of wood panels with the rubber already installed on the back. That was very convenient. It probably saved money in the long run.

Good luck! Oh yeah, we found that a Shop Vac (tm) and some saw horses were really really convenient.

 

[sohcrates]

where did you find the tool kit?

 

[mwmorph]

Originally posted by: sohcrates
where did you find the tool kit?

anywhere they sell laminate flooring. home depot has a pergo tool kit. basically any brand tool kit works with any brand laminate. almost the same thing designwise anyway.

 

[sohcrates]

Allright, well i'm off to buy some 60 tooth carbide blades!

Very pumped. Looking to do my whole first floor in laminate hardwood for less than $700

That's about 1/3 of what it would cost just to carpet it

 

[fastz28]

I did this last month, here are some pics:

Boxes of planks
Before - carpet
Before - pads
Sold these for $30
WIP
After 1 - without trims
After 2 - without trims

 

[lancestorm]

bleh laminate

 

[Papagayo]

I did it on my house..

Make sure that you tape the area you are cutting or it will chip.

 

[rondor]

You can pick up a blade at Home Depot/Lowes for under $10.00 that is made for cutting laminate. I put it on my table saw, and it worked great. The carbide tip is ok to use, but this one has finer teeth, and there is less of a chance of chipping the laminate on the edges. Also, instead of using a block to hammer the pieces together, I used a scrap piece of the laminate so the grooves would line up -- less possibility of damaging the edge. It's pretty easy for a do-it-yourselfer. Good luck!

 

[sohcrates]

cool, i'll look for a laminate cutting blade

also, fastz28, thanks for the pics! looks great!

 

[elektrolokomotive]

Originally posted by: sohcrates
I actually have a 10 inch compound mitre saw. forgot about that. so that would be my best option?

I've done about four of these flooring jobs. 10" or better miter saw w/laminate blade, or sliding mitre saw is the way to go.

BTW: the substrate for the various manufacturers is quite different. IIRC, Pergo = really hard, Johns-Manville cuts like butter.

 

[sohcrates]

Originally posted by: elektrolokomotive

Originally posted by: sohcrates
I actually have a 10 inch compound mitre saw. forgot about that. so that would be my best option?

I've done about four of these flooring jobs. 10" or better miter saw w/laminate blade, or sliding mitre saw is the way to go.

BTW: the substrate for the various manufacturers is quite different. IIRC, Pergo = really hard, Johns-Manville cuts like butter.

so a 10inch compount miter saw should be able to do the job? I believe the wood is 7.5 inches wide or so

also, do i need to get the expensive T-moldings and stair noses? Or can i just make my own and stain them? Same question for the quarter round molding along the edges