Spork wrote:
How hard is it to install laminate flooring? I recently picked up the
home improvement bug but lacking in diy skills.
The house is 6 years old with the original carpet. With pets and
everyday usage the carpet is looking a little used. It still looks
better than a lot of other carpets I have seen though. On occasion we
go over it with a carpet cleaner but that can only do so much.

I would never want to do a entire floor in carpet EVER again. Its like
a big dirty mop that you can never clean all the way. A area rug would
be ok but not the whole floor. Is laminate the best choice for
durability?

Let me start by saying I also hate W/W carpet, and wish I'd had it
ripped out before I moved in, and the hardwood underneath refinished.
But it was brand new carpet, and I was in a hurry and feeling broke from
the closing costs, so I said the heck with it. Cream color, of course,
and after 5 years, looks like crap, even without pets and kids here.

What is under the carpet at your place? Given the age, I predict
particle board underlayment. If so, laminate (as much as I hate it) is
probably your cheapest choice for a smooth floor that (sort of)
resembles wood, with okay durability. (Vinyl is cheapest, but I presume
you don't want that other than in kitchen/bath/entry hall.) A step up is
engineered floor, which goes down like laminate, but has a layer of
actual wood on top. Both can be done DIY, given attending a free class
at the Borg on Saturday (or having a buddy that has installed one
before), and buying a cheap cutoff saw someplace like Harbor Freight or
CraigsList. Most expensive would be the traditional choices of real
hardwood and real tile for the wet areas, like near outside doors. But
to put that down would require pulling up the underlayment, unless you
want to modify every single door. Removing underlayment can be done DIY
(unless glued down), and still have a pro lay the new floor. I do not
recommend either real wood or tile for a first-time DIY project. It
isn't hard, but at least watching someone with experience do it a couple
times, saves a lot of learn-as-you-go.

--
aem sends...