How to properly lay laminate flooring on a wooden floor?

By adding durability and visual appeal, installing laminate flooring over a wooden floor can completely change the appearance and feel of the space. Gaining a professional outcome depends on your ability to comprehend the process, whether you’re remodeling a room or updating your house.

To start, planning is essential. Make sure the wood floor is dry, clean, and level. Eliminate any leftover adhesive, debris, or carpet. Let the floor settle for a day or two before filling in any cracks or gaps with an appropriate filler.

Secondly, underlayment is necessary in order to install laminate. This thin layer serves as a moisture barrier, sound barrier, and smoother for small imperfections in the wooden floor. To improve the performance and lifespan of laminate flooring, use underlayment made especially for it.

Start the laminate plank installation process by aligning the boards with the room’s longest wall. Allow for natural expansion and contraction of the laminate due to variations in temperature and humidity by leaving an expansion gap of approximately ¼ inch around the perimeter.

Is it possible to lay laminate flooring on wood?

There are a number of reasons why laminate panel manufacturers refuse to honor warranties when the panels are mounted on wood.

1. Wooden flooring is a capricious material. It is very sensitive to the influence of seasonal, biological, temperature and other factors. Under their influence, the geometric parameters of the floor base change, as a result of which the boards can warp, which negatively affects the integrity of the interlocking joints.
2. The service life of a wooden base is significantly less than the period of operation of the laminate, especially if it was laid on an old floor – over time, the wood loses its original mechanical characteristics.
3. Wooden floors are not stable. As they are used, the boards begin to sag, which leads to inevitable destruction of the locks and deformation of the entire floor covering.

Nonetheless, skilled builders continue to install laminate over the floor’s wooden foundation. What technical quirks exist, and how should laminate flooring be installed over a wooden floor? There are a few nuances that need to be considered. The required wooden base is:

• Holistic. All boards must be healthy, without cracks, fallen pieces, free from tobacco knots and other defects;
• Dry. The moisture content of the boards should not exceed 12%;
• With bottom ventilation, which allows the wood to “breathe”. In this case, the problem of drying the subfloor when humidity changes is solved – rotting is prevented;
• Durable, 150 MPa or more. This indicator is achieved by replacing weak boards and impregnating the entire floor with water-dispersion varnishes (“AquaLid Exterior”, VD-UR-202, “Tex”, etc.);
• Smooth;
• Clean.

Note: "Warm floors" can be installed on a wooden base as long as the humidity level is no higher than 5%.

You can take into consideration the aforementioned specifications for a wood subfloor when preparing the subfloor for finishing coat application.

Preparing the base

Examining the subfloor thoroughly is the first step in manually installing laminate flooring on a wooden floor. Take note that worn-out plank flooring makes the best wooden subfloor. It has become dense due to drying out during operation, which prevents it from absorbing moisture during seasonal variations in temperature and humidity.

At the same time, you’ve already overcome all internal tension from the drying process. Consequently, different deformation changes do not pose a threat to such a foundation. It’s important to note the following during the inspection:

• grease and paint stains;
• fallen knots;
• cracks;
• rotten, blackened and fungus-damaged areas;
• sagging and damaged boards;
• loose floor elements;
• bulges that appear during wood deformation.

Defects that are found are fixed.

Subfloor repair

Paint removal is the first step in repair work. An electric planer or sanding machine can be used for this. The hardware heads are hammered a few millimeters into the ground to protect the tool knives.

Broken boards are swapped out for undamaged ones. Inadequately fastened floorboards are further fastened to the joists using "ruff" nails or self-tapping screws. The crevices and areas where knots have fallen are sealed. The resource "Preparing the base for a floor screed" goes into great detail about how to prepare a wooden floor base for installing laminate.

Leveling the wooden base

A private home or apartment lacks a surface that is perfectly level for laminate installation. This holds true for bases made of wood or concrete. However, if laminate flooring is installed over uneven flooring, it will eventually need to be reinstalled and will have a significantly shorter lifespan:

• when the lamellas are attached to each other using adhesive, the floor will last about a year;
• laminate laid with locks will withstand 2-3 months, after which it will begin to creak and come apart.

Lamella manufacturers permit up to 2 mm of variance in local variations, bumps, and depressions in the floor’s base per linear meter. The maximum slope per two meters of length or width should be 4 mm.

How can uneven wood floors be covered with laminate flooring? It must be leveled using a variety of technologies in order to do this. Only a dry screed will work in old houses, particularly in Moscow and St Petersburg, where wooden boards on channels or I-beams replace concrete floors. Its construction technology is demonstrated in the piece "Dry floor screed with expanded clay."

Leveling a wooden base in a contemporary apartment or private home can be accomplished with:

• self-leveling mixtures;
• putties;
• plywood or OSB boards.

Important: A lot of professionals advise using chipboard to level floors. Regarding the caliber of the work, there are no grievances. Operating issues include the release of extremely dangerous formaldehyde vapors into the air from chipboard sheets.

Self-adjusting blends. In order to remove the curvature of the floor’s wooden base, self-leveling flooring—like Vetonit 4310—is widely utilized. In this situation, the only elastic materials you can use are those that say what kind of base they are applied to, like chipboard, OSB, plywood, or boards.

The steps are as follows:

1. A waterproofing polyethylene film is laid on the prepared floor in an overlapping manner, covering the walls along the entire perimeter. The seams are glued together with tape. Some experts recommend treating the floor with a moisture-proof polymer primer or water repellent, which ensures good adhesion (adhesion) of the self-leveling mixture and the wooden floor. However, it is necessary to seal the connecting seam between the wall and the floor along the entire perimeter with a strip of polystyrene foam and seal it with waterproofing material.
2. A damper tape is attached along the entire perimeter of the wall, which eliminates the appearance of cracks in the self-leveling field.
3. In accordance with the instructions printed on the packaging, the mixture is prepared for use – poured with water and mixed until a homogeneous mass is obtained.
4. The resulting mixture is carefully poured onto the floor and rolled with a needle roller to remove air bubbles. The work must be done in parallel: one person pours the mixture, the second immediately behind him rolls the poured layer with a roller.
5. You can continue laying the laminate 5-7 days after pouring the floor.

Important: Because some mixtures must be used within 20 minutes of preparation, carefully read the instructions on the packaging.

Sticky. Using sawdust putty and PVA glue to level the subfloor has grown in popularity in recent years. Order of work:

1. Beacons made of aluminum guides are installed on the repaired and cleaned floor base (the technology for installing beacons is discussed in the article “How to set beacons for floor screed?"), no more than 2 cm high;
2. The openings between them are filled with a mixture of wet sawdust and PVA (the sawdust is pre-soaked so as not to draw water out of the glue) up to 10 mm thick. Each subsequent layer is applied after the previous one has dried;
3. The finishing layer is leveled by the rule;
4. After the last layer has dried, the beacon guides are removed, and traces of them are sealed with putty.

Planks. The easiest, least expensive, and most efficient method for leveling a subfloor’s base. All it takes to fix minor unevenness is to lay plywood sheets on the floor. Large curvatures are eliminated by using spacers made of this material, as well as leftover fiberboard, plywood, and boards. As a result, it’s essential to use a bubble level to continuously check the horizontality of the plywood base while leveling it.

For an apartment or house, you should buy plywood of the FK brand, which is 10-15 mm thick; for non-residential properties, you should buy FSF plywood, which has a lower level of environmental safety. Plywood sheets are treated with drying oil or an antiseptic prior to laying in order to prevent fungi and microbes.

Cutting sheets are used to start the task. In this instance, the expansion and contraction of plywood due to variations in humidity and temperature must be considered. In order to achieve this, compensation gaps of 10–15 mm are made between the plywood sheets and the wall.

Long, cone-shaped self-tapping screws are used to secure plywood blanks. They are fastened with screws 20 mm inward from the edge and 15–20 cm apart along the sheet’s perimeter. As seen in the picture, self-tapping screws are also inserted throughout the plywood’s surface at a distance of 15-20 cm to guarantee a tight fit between the plywood and the boards.

Crucial: the plywood sheets’ connecting seams must not line up, i.e., the four corners of distinct workpieces must not converge at one location.

Self-tapping screw holes are drilled gradually:

1. First, a secret deepening for the heat of the methyse;
2. then a hole for passing the screw through the plywood sheet.

To prevent creaking after the lamellas are installed, the plywood is vacuumed before the substrate or waterproofing film is laid.

Laying the substrate

Their placement on the substrate is necessary for lamellian installation technology, which serves multiple purposes simultaneously:

• eliminates the irregularities of plywood or dry screed;
• serves as a damper for the laminate;
• Provides noise insulation.

The substrate also functions as a waterproofing layer if it is treated with materials resistant to moisture. If not, the plastic film must be covered, overlapping, with a climb on the walls to stop the floor lamps from getting wet.

The material "Submit for Laminate" provides information on substrate types, ratings, pros and cons, styling technology, and costs for the most widely used materials.

Understanding the correct way to install laminate flooring over a wooden floor is crucial to getting a long-lasting and beautiful finish. This tutorial will take you step-by-step through the entire process, from properly installing the laminate planks to preparing the wooden subfloor. You’ll discover the equipment needed, how to measure and cut planks, and how to achieve a smooth, durable finish. Knowing how to use these techniques will help you produce results that are on par with professionals, whether you’re a homeowner looking to update your space or a do-it-yourself enthusiast.

Laminate laying

Where do I begin when attempting to install laminate flooring myself over a wooden floor? Purchasing supplies is the first step in any repair.

Calculation of the amount of laminate

Calculating the necessary amount of material is simple. After calculating the area of the room, 10% of the resultant value is added to the scraps if the laminate is installed normally (directly); this amount increases to 20% when the laminate is installed diagonally; and 30% when the laminate is laid in a pattern (this technique is known by builders as "checkerboard" installation).

Laying methods

On a wooden floor, how should laminate flooring be laid? Lamellas can be laid in a variety of methods:

• straight;
• diagonally;
• pattern (chess method).

Whichever way the installation is done, the following tools will need to be used:

• jigsaw or wood saw for cutting lamellas;
• mounting bracket (can be replaced with a crowbar or a large flat-head screwdriver);
• wooden (rubber) hammer (mallet);
• a special tamping block for laminate (you can use a piece of lamella 30-40 cm long) if there is no mounting bracket;
• spacer wedges;
• drill;
• square;
• construction pencil;
• long ruler or tape measure.

You need to adhere to these guidelines in order to get laminate flooring that is both long-lasting and attractive:.

• The laminate purchased must be from the same manufacturer and year of manufacture. Otherwise, you may encounter the problem of incompatible locks.
• Before installation (2-3 days before), the laminate packages must be placed in the room where the floor will be installed so that the panels take a geometric shape in accordance with the local temperature and humidity.
• The first row of lamellas is laid with a tenon to the wall both along the length and at the end. The thorn must be cut off.

• Along the length of the first row, at a distance of 30-40 cm near the wall, spacer wedges are installed to form a compensation (technological) gap, as well as at the beginning of each row (when connecting the end locks, padding will be required – the lamella will simply rest against the wall and remove the necessary gap).
• When installing the laminate panel, it is necessary to take one of several packs to avoid pronounced color spots – the color of the surface of the lamella in each package may differ from each other, which is allowed.

• The end locks of the neighboring rows of the laminate should not coincide, so as not to increase the load on them – this type of locks is much weaker. Therefore, at the beginning of the first three rows are laid: the first row is a whole panel; 2 row – shortened by 1/3 lamel; 3 row – cut to 2/3. Lamelian laying scheme in length is clearly visible in the photo.
• Work should start with the far corner of the room. However, if the platbands of the doors are cut under the laminate, you will have to start with the corner from them, since the last lamel will not work under the platband. As a way out, dismantle them during the installation of the floor.
• Rows of slats are laid perpendicular to the wall with the window. If they are laid across the room, sunlight will highlight the connecting seams, which will reduce the aesthetics of the floor.

Note: The author has not even seen how the lamellas are installed, so proceed right away to the second site if the instructions for laying lamellas state that a panel cut from the first one in the second row is laid in the third row. Because the end lock is removed, this type of laminate board cannot be positioned at the start of the row. It can only be resized to the appropriate size at the end of the row.

Direct laying technology

How can laminate flooring be installed conventionally over a wooden floor? Comprehensive, step-by-step instructions for directly installing laminate:

• A strip of substrate is laid on which the first row of laminate is mounted. If you lay the underlay all over the room, you will have to walk on it, which is undesirable and, in some cases, unacceptable. Many craftsmen lay three rows of lamellas at the same time.

• Along the first line of laminate from the wall, spacer wedges are installed to form a technological gap (10-15 mm). The same operation is carried out at the beginning of each row.
• Starting from the second row, the lamellas are first installed in the locking connection along the length, and then hammered with a mallet to connect the end locks. It is strictly forbidden to hit the lamella directly – it is necessary to use a mounting bracket or a piece of laminate. In this case, a piece of lamella is installed in the lock of the adjusted panel.

Important: The way laminate is laid down is unaffected by the manufacturers’ use of two different lock types: Click and Lock. As the figure makes evident, differences only occur when two lamellas are connected along their length.

• After closing the first strip of the substrate, the second is laid and the process is repeated in the same order as it began.
• Before laying the last row of laminate, you must carefully measure the distance between the wall and the penultimate line of lamellas. When calculating the width of the panel to be laid, it is necessary to take into account the technological gap.

Installation of skirting boards

Installing skirting boards completes the laminate flooring installation process. They serve an aesthetic purpose in addition to concealing cables that run along walls and the technical space between the floor and the wall. You can buy skirting boards made of plastic, MDF (medium-density fiberboard), and wood.

The high cost of wooden plinth (470–1350 rubles/pog.m.) prevents it from being used for laminate floors; parquet is the primary use for it. However, mounting it on uneven walls is nearly impossible because of its rigidity.

While laminated MDF skirting boards cost between 100 and 500 rubles per square meter, they are significantly less expensive than their wooden counterparts in terms of aesthetics. But because they are so delicate and break when installed if there is any curvature, they also need a perfectly flat wall.

Laminate floors are a great match for plastic skirting boards. He:

• cheap – 55-100 rubles./pog.m.;
• looks aesthetically pleasing;
• durable;
• not afraid of water and sunlight;
• has special channels for television and fiber optic cables (Internet);
• flexible, which allows the plinth to be used with walls of any curvature.

Self-tapping screws with dowels or liquid nails are used to secure this plinth. Although using liquid nails is a very straightforward technological method, the baseboard cannot be disassembled in this instance. As a result, this approach is rarely applied in real life.

It’s a little more involved to install skirting boards with dowels and self-tapping screws, but even a novice builder can handle it. The methodical process of fastening technology is as follows.

1. The strip is removed from the plinth clip.
2. A polyethylene film is laid along the laminate wall along the entire contour of the room, which is removed after installing the baseboard. Many people ignore this operation, believing that if the baseboard does not fit tightly to the laminate, dust will accumulate underneath it. But when the baseboard and laminate come into contact, a sound bridge is formed between the wall and the floor. Therefore, it is necessary to choose between dust, which is easily removed with a vacuum cleaner, and increased noise in the apartment.
3. The clip is installed at a distance of 5 cm from the corner from which installation will be carried out, and is pressed tightly against the wall and laminate.
4. The first hole for the dowel is drilled 5-6 cm from the edge of the clip. Subsequent ones are drilled 50 cm apart. In this case, the diameter of the drill must match their size.
5. Dowels are driven into the resulting holes.
6. The baseboard clip is applied to the wall and a self-tapping screw with a large head or washer is screwed in to press the baseboard tightly against the wall.
7. The strap snaps into the clip.
8. Special locks are installed at the corner and joint of the plinth to hide the joints, after which the process continues in the same sequence.
9. Carefully remove the film from under the baseboard.

Conclusion

A laminate floor can be installed by a novice builder themselves. All you have to do is pay close attention and follow the directions to the letter:

• repair the rough wooden floor and then level it with fiberboard sheets, plywood or self-leveling mixtures;
• waterproof the base;
• lay the substrate;
• install laminate;
• close the technological gaps with plinth.

The outcome is a stunning and long-lasting floor covering.

Installing laminate flooring over a wooden floor can add durability and significantly improve the appearance and feel of your room. A seamless and durable installation can be guaranteed by adhering to a few essential steps.

First, give the wooden floor a thorough cleaning. Make sure it’s dry, clean, and level. Any old flooring materials should be removed, and any exposed nails or uneven areas should be fixed. If you want to avoid gaps or uneven areas in your laminate flooring, you must have a level surface.

Install an appropriate underlayment over the wooden floor after that. This acts as a moisture barrier, dampens noise, and smoothes out small imperfections. For best results, select the underlayment that the laminate flooring manufacturer recommends.

Start in one corner of the room and work your way toward the other wall when installing the laminate planks. Allow for some natural expansion and contraction of the flooring due to variations in humidity by leaving a small expansion gap around the edge of the space.

Make sure the planks are correctly interlocked as you lay them to ensure a tight fit. To ensure seamless joints, carefully tap each plank into place using a hammer and tapping block. During installation, take care to avoid damaging the planks’ surfaces or edges.

Install matching trim around the room’s edges after installing the laminate flooring to cover the expansion gap and give the space a polished appearance. Finished nails or adhesive can be used to secure trim pieces, depending on your preference and the type of trim.

Finally, give the recently laid laminate flooring at least 48 hours to adjust to the humidity and temperature of the space before using it extensively. This lessens the possibility of expansion or contraction following installation and stabilizes the planks.

You can install laminate flooring on a wooden floor with a professional-looking finish by following these steps. Whether you’re remodeling a space or updating the interior of your house, correct installation guarantees years of visual appeal and long-lasting functionality.

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