Laminate Flooring Question

[ANC]

Has anyone had Laminate Flooring/Pergo installed? I have a room that's 330 sqare foot. I called Empire and they quoted me $4500. I'm thinking this is a little too high. Any contractors out there have any idea of a ballpark figure that this should cost?

[Hottub]

Me and MsTub have done 2 rooms ourselves. We did a 250 sf sunroom in a day (including moldings)
The whole project cost us less than $500 and a few hours of our time. The upstairs bedroom took a bit longer because there were a lot of funky cuts, but still not too bad.

[Fat_Sunny]

Me and MsTub have done 2 rooms ourselves. We did a 250 sf sunroom in a day (including moldings)
The whole project cost us less than $500 and a few hours of our time. The upstairs bedroom took a bit longer because there were a lot of funky cuts, but still not too bad.

What Are You And Ms Tubs Doing This Weekend? Fat'll Pay You For The Travel Time And Cook You Dinner. Wait, GRILL You Dinner!

[ANC]

Me and MsTub have done 2 rooms ourselves. We did a 250 sf sunroom in a day (including moldings)
The whole project cost us less than $500 and a few hours of our time. The upstairs bedroom took a bit longer because there were a lot of funky cuts, but still not too bad.

Hmm.. well I never did anything like this before. There are a few odd cuts to make.. It might be worth it to do a small section like my closet to get a feel for it.. Thanks! I priced out materials to about $1100 and I thought over $2000 for labor is a bit much.

[Hottub]

It's really not that tough once you get into it. You lay down the sheeting first, and then the pieces basically lock into one another. Like I said the only tricky parts are the cuts. The wife also found great deals on (I think) Mohawk flooring. Check Value City or National Wholesale. You will also need, besides the sheeting, a laminate tool and spacers.

http://img164.imageshack.us/img164/6226/beachaug04045lw1.jpg

http://img164.imageshack.us/img164/4691/beachaug04047cw9.jpg

[King Hippos Bandaid]

It's really not that tough once you get into it. You lay down the sheeting first, and then the pieces basically lock into one another. Like I said the only tricky parts are the cuts. The wife also found great deals on (I think) Mohawk flooring. Check Value City or National Wholesale. You will also need, besides the sheeting, a laminate tool and spacers.

http://img164.imageshack.us/img164/6226/beachaug04045lw1.jpg

http://img164.imageshack.us/img164/4691/beachaug04047cw9.jpg

I want to commit Jewicide, for not having the Know How to do a Kick Ass Job Like That

:king:

[ANC]

It's really not that tough once you get into it. You lay down the sheeting first, and then the pieces basically lock into one another. Like I said the only tricky parts are the cuts. The wife also found great deals on (I think) Mohawk flooring. Check Value City or National Wholesale. You will also need, besides the sheeting, a laminate tool and spacers.

http://img164.imageshack.us/img164/6226/beachaug04045lw1.jpg


http://img164.imageshack.us/img164/4691/beachaug04047cw9.jpg


Damn, that looks really nice... Hmm I think I might give it a go. Thanks for the help Hottub.

[crb1]

You may not even need the sheeting. A lot of the laminates now have it already glued to the back of the laminate. And it's definitely worth doing yourself. It can be aggravating, but in the end it beats spending a couple grand.

[high fly]

Pergo is easy as pie to install, if that's what you like.
It is cheap in price and looks as well, in my opinion.
The edges have a tendency to swell slightly the way masonite does and light that rakes across the floor at a shallow angle through, say, a sliding glass door will highlight the outline of each piece, even though from above these edges are not so visible.

Then there is the image on the flooring itself.
What one gets is an image of the crappiest floor ever laid.
It looks like someone went to the dump and grabbed all the little pieces of scrap they could find because they were too cheap to buy real flooring.
Additionally, the grain does not agree - a term of art. A good carpenter will lay out the boards and shufle them around so the grain pattern and color flows harmoniously from one piece to the next. The pictures on this stuff also show lumber that is not quarter-sawn - the only type cut appropriate for a floor.

A properly laid wood floor will first off use quarter-sawn lumber. Lumber cut this way present long straight lines of grain without those concentric oval shapes which wear unevenly, peel up and give splinters. If one looks at the end of the average board at the lumber store, one will see a ring pattern like a rainbow. A piece of quarter-sawn lumber will have parallel lines running vertically or almost vertically due to the way the log was milled.
On a properly laid floor there will not be abrupt color transitions (as between the pieces of Pergo in the pictures above, which also have mis-matched pieces depicted within each piece) from one board to the next and the overall pattern will flow smoothly and harmoniously across the floor.





But this Pergo shit is cheap.



.

[Fat_Sunny]

Pergo is easy as pie to install, if that's what you like.
It is cheap in price and looks as well, in my opinion.
The edges have a tendency to swell slightly the way masonite does and light that rakes across the floor at a shallow angle through, say, a sliding glass door will highlight the outline of each piece, even though from above these edges are not so visible.

Then there is the image on each piece itself.
What one gets is an image of the crappiest floor ever laid.
It looks like someone went to the dump and grabbed all the little pieces of scrap they could find because they were too cheap to buy real flooring.
Additionally, the grain does not agree - a term of art. A good carpenter will lay out the boards and shufle them around so the grain pattern and color flows harmoniously from one piece to the next.

But this stuff is cheap.


What A Nice Snotty Post, Miss Debutante. Guess You Put Everyone in Their Place!

F_S Thinks It Looks Nice.

[Don Stugots]

Hmm.. well I never did anything like this before. There are a few odd cuts to make.. It might be worth it to do a small section like my closet to get a feel for it.. Thanks! I priced out materials to about $1100 and I thought over $2000 for labor is a bit much.

while you can do it yourself with no problems (remember to add 10% for extra material for the learning curve) the labor without moving any furniture should be $1500.00

also, can we set up a new forum for this type of stuff, i will moderate it?

[Fat_Sunny]

while you can do it yourself with no problems (remember to add 10% for extra material for the learning curve) the labor without moving any furniture should be $1500.00

also, can we set up a new forum for this type of stuff, i will moderate it?

Fat's Always Trying His Hand At, And Mucking Up, Some Household Project. A Do It Yourself Forum Would Be Great. Stugot It Made !!

[Don Stugots]

while you can do it yourself with no problems (remember to add 10% for extra material for the learning curve) the labor without moving any furniture should be $1500.00

also, can we set up a new forum for this type of stuff, i will moderate it?

Fat's Always Trying His Hand At, And Mucking Up, Some Household Project. A Do It Yourself Forum Would Be Great. Stugot It Made !!

sounds great. Honestly, i was a crappy tradesmen (i am great at small stuff0 but i am great consultant.

[PapaBear]

Too bad my dad doesn't come here. He'd be great for a thread like that. He's made some amazing stuff. I might even send some pics to you, Stu. You'd like some of his stuff.

[Don Stugots]

Too bad my dad doesn't come here. He'd be great for a thread like that. He's made some amazing stuff. I might even send some pics to you, Stu. You'd like some of his stuff.

i love to see what people do on their own. mainly because any contractor makes it seem like they are doing God's work, meanwhile there really is a just knack to it. post away.

BTW, GREAT WORK TUB!

[high fly]

sounds great. Honestly, i was a crappy tradesmen (i am great at small stuff0 but i am great consultant.


I am a pro.
I've been a carpenter for decades and specialize in historic restoration.

[Don Stugots]

I am a pro.
I've been a carpenter for decades and specialize in historic restoration.

very nice. i was a union carpenter for 4 years. mainly commercial work.

[WhistlePig]

My husband installed bamboo flooring in our townhouse. It was pretty cheap (about $1000) and looked as good as some of the more expensive pergo. Plus it doesn't have that plastic "ticky" sound when you walk on it in heels.

[JPMNICK]

Bamboo flooring is coming on HUGE right now. It is cheaper than wood, and looks really good. they can stain it to a lot of different colors.

a lot of companies are importing it now, so if you do buy it make sure you do your research.

[Fat_Sunny]

Hey JDMidkiff, Congrats On Being Named A Mod!

[JPMNICK]

Hey JDMidkiff, Congrats On Being Named A Mod!

i hate you

[Don Stugots]

Bamboo flooring is coming on HUGE right now. It is cheaper than wood, and looks really good. they can stain it to a lot of different colors.

a lot of companies are importing it now, so if you do buy it make sure you do your research.

i have been putting bamboo flooring in alot of my jobs for the last year. like nick said it can be stained to any color or shade you want.

congrats nick.

[ANC]

while you can do it yourself with no problems (remember to add 10% for extra material for the learning curve) the labor without moving any furniture should be $1500.00

also, can we set up a new forum for this type of stuff, i will moderate it?

Thanks Stugots, that's what I was expecting for labor. I'm gonna get a few more estimates to see what others will charge...

DIY Forum is a tremendous idea! Good Call!

[high fly]

very nice. i was a union carpenter for 4 years. mainly commercial work.

I thought about joining the union, the money was sure a lot better, but I didn't want to travel. I live near Fredericksburg, Va. and on many jobs I can go home for lunch and have a 5-10 minute commute.
I have several years under my belt as a slavedriver in component and modular home plants.

Check this out - I'm sure you'll appreciate it. On one job we remodelled an 1840 church and turned it into a residence. When we took out the choir loft, we removed a piece of quarter-sawn old-growth pine t&g flooring that is 28 feet long. One chap still has it in his shop.

[ANC]

Well I had another estimate done last night and was quoted for $2500. A hell of a lot better than $4500 for the same thing.

[Bulldogcakes]

Has anyone had Laminate Flooring/Pergo installed? I have a room that's 330 sqare foot. I called Empire and they quoted me $4500. I'm thinking this is a little too high. Any contractors out there have any idea of a ballpark figure that this should cost?

$4500 for laminate? Dude, are you OUT OF YOUR MIND? I did my entire 600 ft living room IN REAL HARDWOOD OAK from Home Depot for under 2 grand. Did it myself, with my Dad on a Saturday & Sunday.

I'm glad HT has had luck with the laminate flooring, but I can tell you I didn't. Not at all. God forbid you move around any heavy furniture. You have pets or a fish tank? Mine was warped after a few months.
I had it, hated it and tore it up to do the hardwood. You're talking 2 grand instead of 1 grand, for a floor you'll have for 50 years or more. If your situation is like mine, do it with the hardwood. Its cheaper to do it once than twice.

Hardwood flooring is very easy to install. All you need is mallet, a crowbar and a circular saw to trim the edges to size. Not rocket science. You MIGHT need some leveling cement if your floors look really uneven, but generally you don't.

BTW-If you want some help with the job and speak about 10 words of espanol, PM me and I'll tell you where to find some day laborers. Give them $100 each and a sandwich for lunch and they'll do all the work for you. 2 guys should cover it.

[Bulldogcakes]

while you can do it yourself with no problems (remember to add 10% for extra material for the learning curve) the labor without moving any furniture should be $1500.00

also, can we set up a new forum for this type of stuff, i will moderate it?

Maybe we can call it "This Old Thread"?

or "Flip this Stugots!"



come on, help me out here!

[cougarjake13]

Maybe we can call it "This Old Thread"?

or "Flip this Stugots!"



come on, help me out here!



how bout the stu yankee workshop ???

[Bulldogcakes]

how bout the stu yankee workshop ???

YES! Stu's a Yankee fan, too!

[ANC]

$4500 for laminate? Dude, are you OUT OF YOUR MIND? I did my entire 600 ft living room IN REAL HARDWOOD OAK from Home Depot for under 2 grand. Did it myself, with my Dad on a Saturday & Sunday.

I'm glad HT has had luck with the laminate flooring, but I can tell you I didn't. Not at all. God forbid you move around any heavy furniture. You have pets or a fish tank? Mine was warped after a few months.
I had it, hated it and tore it up to do the hardwood. You're talking 2 grand instead of 1 grand, for a floor you'll have for 50 years or more. If your situation is like mine, do it with the hardwood. Its cheaper to do it once than twice.

Hardwood flooring is very easy to install. All you need is mallet, a crowbar and a circular saw to trim the edges to size. Not rocket science. You MIGHT need some leveling cement if your floors look really uneven, but generally you don't.

BTW-If you want some help with the job and speak about 10 words of espanol, PM me and I'll tell you where to find some day laborers. Give them $100 each and a sandwich for lunch and they'll do all the work for you. 2 guys should cover it.

Oh no way would I pay $4500. Actually the new quote I got for $2500 was for hardwood.