"HeyBub" wrote in
m:

Alex wrote:
Hi...

We're about to lay laminate floating flooring throughout our house,
but given we'll be doing almost every room (except bathrooms),
there's no way we'll be able to have a single starting point. Is it
recommended to start a new row in each room then use a transition
piece at the door where the floors meet (for example hallway and
bedroom or kitchen and living room) or is there anyway to have the
floors move seamlessly throughout the house? I'm not sure what the
standard process is for this.


The standard process OUGHT to be that which minimizes the work. I'd
use a transition only if I had to do so or if it made the installation
easier.

There are four tools you'll need that you may not have considered:
1. A cheap table saw - there will be ripping.
2. A rubber mallet.
3. Ratchet clamp
http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/cta...emnumber=90416

The last is useful because no matter how much you beat on some planks,
they just refuse to snap together!

I presume you'll be removing the baseboards (excellent opportunity to
recondition them). (Hint: Don't drive the nails out from the backside:
cut them off instead.) If so, you'll also need:
4. Tool for undercutting door jambs.

A pneumatic brad-nailer is a god-send when re-installing the
baseboards.

Good luck on your project: Laminate flooring is kinda fun and you'll
be tickled with the results. Downstream, laminate flooring is MUCH
easier to keep clean than carpeting and a lot more durable.

P.S.
The plastic-impregnated laminates are okay for the kitchen and batch -
they're virtually waterproof.



Get a pull bar or make one if you have the resources. Not sure if the HF
ones are any good. Lip may bend from hammering on it if gauge is light.
One I got from the Borg was good. Part of a kit.

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/cta...emnumber=97751
http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/cta...emnumber=96447

1. A cheap table saw - there will be ripping.

I lived without using that. Just used a jig saw. I would think you need a
taper jig if you use a table saw for ripping since walls are not going to
be straight, Heck, at some corners, the wall may even bow out from a
taper..

What I could not have lived without was the chop saw. Lesson I learned is
MAKE SURE you use a carbide tipped blade otherwise the saw blade will
blue smoke after about 10 cuts. Laminate I used had aluminum oxide used
in it's surface (better wear). Keep in mind Al Oxide is what's automotive
sandpaper used for metal.