noelle o designs

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Lamton laminate flooring

So I can’t believe it’s been a week since I last posted, and what a week it was…  We got the whole basement painted, the concrete floors leveled, and the laminate floor installed. This is all much easier said than done. My whole body, but mostly my hands, are sore and numb. Perhaps a sign I’m getting too old for this kind of work… I paused for a few hours on Thanksgiving, to over eat, (thank you family for doing all the cooking) and take a little nap, then was back at it.

After much research in the laminate floor department, I decided to go with Lamton flooring. The price was right, it had great reviews, and looked like a quality product. The floor we installed, and pictured here is 12mm Peruvian Gingerwood. Because we were covering about 1100 sq. ft., having it delivered was ideal. We would have had to special order that amount (it took about 87 boxes) it from any other store and had to rent a trailer or paid for delivery anyway.
There is most definitely a learning curve when installing laminate floor. Luckily, my brother-in-law who has installed laminate in his own house helped me out throughout the project. Having at least two people to help really made it go faster. I meant to take a lot of pictures as we worked, but I never paused to get the camera, then it couldn’t be found when search for by the youth. So, the picture above is the only picture I have of the process.
But because surprisingly little information is available online (and in print) about installing, I’m going to go back and hit on the important points of the installation process of Lamton laminate flooring.
1. It may sound tedious (because it is) but make sure that your subfloor is level. Get out the grinder (if you are laying over concrete), the self leveling compound and an 8 ft. straight edge and bring the floor level- no more than 1/4″ to 1/2″ per 8 ft. span. A little prep work goes a long way, otherwise your joints could pop out at some point and make for a lot more work later,  I don’t even want to think about trying to fix this sort of problem later.

 

2. Build the floor starting with the tongue side against the wall, groove side out. This fact is only imparted for only a brief moment in the installation video and is perhaps the most important fact of all. I know the perils firsthand of building the opposite way- we installed a whole room backwards (with the groove side facing the wall when you start) and paid for it all day.
Here are the reasons why you start with the tongue side against the wall:
When you use the block and your hammer to pound the pieces together, you will be hitting against the tongue side, not the tender groove edge.  If you pound against the groove end, the groove easily gets damaged and leaving the damage debris caught in the joint, leaving you with a tiny, unsightly gap instead of a nice clean gap-free joint.

3. Trim the underpad when necessary. The installation video says to carefully inspect all of the flooring just after it arrives at your house, when it is acclimating. With 90+ boxes this was a daunting task… I would recommend a brief inspection upon arrival and a thorough inspection as you go along. Damaged pieces can usually be used somewhere during the project, where the trimming down of a piece is necessary- so set those aside. We kept an exacto knife handy and trimmed the underpad when it hung out over the edge of the piece, just to be safe.

All done- here is looking down the hall to the cold storage closet. We are very happy with the Lamton product, the look and quality. We still need to get the baseboards up, and the doorknobs on, a bit of electrical too. But, we are getting close to being completely finished- hooray!

17 Comments

  1. Bess

    December 2, 2010 at 6:44 am

    It looks fabulous Noelle!

  2. Bruce

    November 14, 2012 at 10:35 am

    Are you happy with the Peruvian Gingerwood? Looks nice. I’m considering 1300 sq.ft. of it in our new house.

    1. NoelleOlpin

      November 14, 2012 at 10:54 am

      Yes, very happy! It has been in place now for 2 years and we haven’t had a single problem. It still looks great, feels great and shows no wear, even where a desk chair rolls back and forth nearly every day.

      1. Bruce

        November 14, 2012 at 11:01 am

        Great to hear. We’re excited to begin. Looked at a couple of wholesale dealer samples in town but didn’t find anything in our price range in a 12mm that resonated with us. We really like the look (and reviews) of this product. Thanks for the quick reply!

        1. NoelleOlpin

          November 14, 2012 at 11:10 am

          No problem. When we put this floor in it was with our fingers crossed! There weren’t many reviews to look at 2 years ago. So I’m happy to provide you (and others) with feedback.
          Good luck!

  3. momofthehouse

    November 28, 2012 at 12:10 am

    Can you tell me how well it cleans? Can’t tell for sure if the finish is smooth or rough?Does it streak easily, or show footprints, etc like some laminate does? We have had a laminate floor in past that was terrible to try to clean so am a little nervous about trying again! Thanks.

    1. NoelleOlpin

      November 28, 2012 at 2:58 pm

      It cleans up great. There is a texture to the finish, just enough to make it appear smooth from far away but not show footprints (etc.) if it’s been awhile since you had time to mop! Cleaning it has never been an issue, and it’s wearing better in high traffic areas than the wood floor upstairs!

  4. Sarmac

    March 8, 2013 at 1:04 pm

    Does it feel and sound like hardwood? I have been in homes with laminate and it sound hollow when you walked on it. Thanks

    1. NoelleOlpin

      March 12, 2013 at 7:56 am

      I have hardwood in my upstairs (the Lamton floor is in the basement) and I will say it doesn’t sound exactly the same when you walk across both floors, but I wouldn’t exactly say ‘hollow’, just different. That was my fear also, a ‘fake’ sound but I find the sound acceptable. There is sometimes a creaking/shifting sounds when you walk across it, this might be because it sits atop concrete.

      1. Cathy

        March 12, 2013 at 3:13 pm

        Thank you for your reply. Do you have it going down your stairs also?

        1. NoelleOlpin

          March 12, 2013 at 7:36 pm

          I don’t have the laminate on the stairs, although I’m thinking someday… Carpet on stairs (like I have) grosses me out.

  5. Matt

    April 7, 2013 at 2:28 pm

    Thanks for all the info, it’s hard to find much information on this product. Do you know where it’s made?

    1. NoelleOlpin

      April 8, 2013 at 7:13 am

      It’s very hard to find info on Lamton, which is why I wrote this post!
      I’m not sure where it’s made. Somewhere in the US, I think?

  6. ceecee

    July 14, 2013 at 9:18 am

    Hi. Thanks for your post, the details and the photos. I am feeling encouraged, but cautious. I cannot stand having the carpeting that has been in my townhouse since I moved in and the hideous poorly installed tiles in the kitchen. I really think the only way a change can be made is if I do it, or if I do it with the help of a friend. I am not overly skilled, or experienced, so I am a little intimidated. Still in the thinking about it stage and I really enjoyed reading about your experience.

    1. NoelleOlpin

      July 17, 2013 at 8:39 am

      Glad I could help, I think with the help of a handy friend, perhaps someone who has even a little bit of experience with this sort of thing– and you could definitely pull it off!
      Good luck!

  7. Chris

    September 1, 2015 at 9:34 am

    After 5 years, how is it holding up?

    1. NoelleOlpin

      September 1, 2015 at 10:32 am

      It’s holding up great! I couldn’t be happier with the product. I wish my hardwood floor upstairs was holding up nearly as well.

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