In most cases, you should lay your laminate flooring parallel to the longest side of the room or your home. This will create a more natural flow and will accentuate the length of the room better. This, however, is just one of the many ways to lay your laminate flooring.
Lay the first course of flooring along the wall that forms the inside of the "L." Follow the wall, keeping a gap of 1/4 inch between the flooring and the wall to allow for expansion of the flooring material and extend this course past the wall, all the way to the opposite perpendicular wall.
You can lay your flooring either horizontally or vertically. Vertically will elongate a room and works great if pointing towards a window, as it will follow the natural light. Laying laminate flooring horizontally will can make a small room appear larger.
Laying your floors diagonally is one of the most effective ways to create a larger space. Diagonally laying floors tricks the eye into seeing the pattern in a different perspective, which also creates more visual interest.
Wood floors should always be laid perpendicular to floor joists—across rather that in between them. This will make the floors structurally sound and will help prevent the planks from separating, sagging or buckling. So, there is no right or wrong way to lay your wood flooring.
Contrary to what some might think or say, wide plank flooring does NOT make your space look smaller. It's interesting, even though the planks are wider, because of the visual tricks wide plank plays on your eyes, the room often appears even larger than it is…not the other way around!
It is common to see the laminate or wood flooring boards running with the direction of the longest walls in a room. Think of hallway flooring for a good example. The length of the flooring board will more often than not, run with the length of the room.
Laminate flooring should be laid in a “random” stagger pattern. The remaining piece of one row should start the next row. Each piece must be 6 inches or greater. If the remaining piece is less than 6 inches, start the row with a full piece.
Laminate flooring manufacturers often require their floors to be staggered anywhere between 6 to 12 inches, some manufacturers even want more.
If the room is narrow, such as a hallway, a corridor or a long kitchen, planks should run the length of the room. In the same vein, it's typically recommended that planks are installed parallel to the longest wall of the room.
Staggering Floor Planks That are All the Same Length
To do this, start the first row with a full plank, install the row, cut the last plank to length and save the off-cut. Cut two more fresh boards to start the next two rows, but from the fourth row on, start using the offcuts from previous rows.
The tongue is the side that you will want to place against the wall as you start your laminate-flooring installation.
If you don't stagger the flooring by more than 6 inches on every row, it will be unstable and may lead to damage later on. But on the other hand, a lot of flooring installers get a little too strict when they stagger their flooring.
When laying laminate flooring it is essential that you leave at least a 10-12mm expansion gap around the perimeter of the floor.
Many home experts agree that the floor color should be darker than the walls. The rule generally applies because lighter walls and a dark floor make the room seem larger. Most homeowners prefer a spacious looking interior. However, the rule can change with low ceilings.
Which do you prefer – light or dark hardwood? Both dark and light floors work very well, and only you can choose which is best for you and your home. Dark floors tend to be more stylish and hide imperfections while light floors tend to show dirt less and last longer.
Begin the first row of flooring by placing the planks with the tongue side facing the wall. Install the second plank next to the first by aligning the tongue into the groove and press the plank down to snap it in place. When you come to the end of the first row, cut the length of plank needed to complete the row.
Start in the upper left corner of the longest wall and install the planks in the same direction as that in which the main light falls. Planks are always installed from left to right.
The tongue on laminate flooring is the small flat edge on one side of the board, this is the top edge that is going to angle and lock into the bottom side of another board.
The basic rule to remember for creating a strong stagger is that all planks should overlap by 6 inches or more. This means that the short joint between planks should be at least 6 inches away from the nearest joint in any adjacent row. This type of stagger will lock the flooring tightly together.