Your guide to installing laminate flooring in 4 simple steps

Laminate flooring can be beautiful way to personalize any home. What’s more, installing the planks is something you can do on your own. Follow these simple steps to install and enjoy your floor in no time!

• As a general rule, you should have approximately 10 per cent more flooring materials than the actual square metres of the room to allow for waste.
• Before you begin installing your new laminate flooring, it’s important for the boards to adjust to the conditions of your home. First remove all the packaging to allow air to circulate freely around the boards.

• Laminate flooring must be installed on a clean surface.
• Ideally, you should install new underlay, but if you are using your old underlay, make sure it is free of all debris.
• Old floorboards can easily be removed with a pry bar. Be careful not to break the boards.

• The finished floor will look best if you work parallel to the longest wall.
• The floor needs breathing room to prevent warping and buckling. Create this space by placing boards with a one-centimetre gap along each wall. When you replace the baseboards and trim pieces, this gap will be covered.
• To begin, push the first plank, groove side facing the wall, against a spacer. Place another spacer at the end of the plank.
• Attach the second plank by matching the tongue and groove, and tapping the pieces together. The pieces should be snug without any gaps.
• Use a piece of scrap to protect the planks while tapping them in place.
• Stagger the rows similar to bricks in a wall — planks lined up row to row weaken the floor and aren’t as attractive.

• The last row is by far the most difficult. While laminate flooring planks come in different widths, your last row will likely have to be cut to fit. Measure and cut these planks carefully. You still need to leave about one centimetre of space between the board and the wall so you have a little playing room, but try to be as accurate as possible.
• There isn't enough space between the wall and plank to tap the pieces together. Lock the pieces of the last row into the second last row and lay them down carefully.
• Tighten the planks with a crow bar, pushing against the plank and using the wall for leverage.
• Finish the floor by removing the spacers and putting the floorboards back in place. Install any thresholds there may be.

You're done! Now you’ve got a beautiful new floor and you know how to install laminate for a future project.