[mantispf2000]

So I started vacation Wednesday, and wifey and I decided that the first thing to do was remove our dog-stained carpet and replace it with wood floors. So off to Lowes, and we find American Beech to be our liking. 30 cartons later, we get home all excited about the job to come.

Co-worker agreed to help me out, so I'm ripping up the old carpet/pad/tack strip and get the floors ready. Thought we'd have to get extra underlayment, but after comparing the planks to the tile/bedroom carpet, decided against it. We get started, and had such a great time cutting around our odd-ball corners, it really slowed things down. Main area went fast, only to be slowed again by the strips we needed to cut, as well as the hall to the kids' bedrooms. Oh, how a table saw would've helped instead of just a chop saw/jig saw.

Either way, we're mostly done, though now we see the need for new floor boards (originals still used, and a bit of gap with new floors), and heck, might as well paint the inside while we're at it.

Isn't home ownership just grand?????

 

[chuffer]

Yeah, gonna go grab the trowel & some mud to get started in on some Friday night excitement. Part of me hates it. Part of me loves it.

 

[j.les]

I spent most of my spring and early summer last year putting in laminate flooring. It took forever and a day of preperation. Under my carpeting was some old tile from the 40's. Could have been asbestos. Oh well, most of them popped up in one piece. And under that is my slab.

The thing that sucked the most was that the carpet tack strips were nailed right into the slab. I had to stand on a pry bar to pop the nails up. Everywhere a nail came out, it also pulled up a chunk of concrete about 2" in diameter. I probably didn't have to fill in all the divots, but I did anyway.

The best advice I can give you is make sure the floor is flat. And when I say flat, I don't mean level.

If you need any tips, PM me. I also have a bunch of pics hosted of the process.

 

[dhmike]

nice upgrade with the floors and have a good vacation !

 

[sstalder5]

When we moved into our current house, there was nasty carpet over hardwood floors in every room of the 4000 sq ft house. We spent about a day pulling up all the carpet and the foam crap under it, then another 2 weeks pulling up tack board and about 4 million staples one by one. Like with pliers

 

[TreeSaw]

Yeah, we just did a tin roof, new porch, are running electric to our pool and Syd's playhouse and are working on re-doing our landscaping. Our next couple of projects will be to re-paint our shutters and do laminate flooring in our office/music room and dining room. Being a homeowner is a lot of work, that's for sure.

You should definitely post up some pics when you're done!

 

[N8 v2.0]

Yeah, post up!!!

Loves me sum home construction pix...

 

[jimmydean]

n8, did you make out OK on the house biz? You were right in the mix of it.

 

[manimal]

i've been wanting to do laminate floors upstairs for a while now...just haven't had the time or money to get it done. i need a new roof and vinyl siding first. ah the joys of a single income family

any pics mantis? i'd like to see the progress.

 

[Quo Fan]

I did laminate in the living room and the hallway. Went down easy, and looks good. Most importantly, the wife likes it.

Now she tells me that she wants laminate in the upstairs hall, too. When we redo the kitchen, the laminate I have stored in the basement is going to be put in. I'm going to lay it wall to wall, even under the new cabinets.

 

[mantispf2000]

I'd like to post some pics, however, I'm told I'm over my limit if I do. How do I get an extended limit? Granted, their not fully done yet. I still have some threshold trim to install, some small gaps that some wood caulk will clean up, new baseboards since the original ones are pretty worn, and, oh heck, maybe haul off and paint the interior while I'm at it. After all, that's what vacations are for if you can't travel, right?????

 

[manimal]

I'd like to post some pics, however, I'm told I'm over my limit if I do. How do I get an extended limit? Granted, their not fully done yet. I still have some threshold trim to install, some small gaps that some wood caulk will clean up, new baseboards since the original ones are pretty worn, and, oh heck, maybe haul off and paint the interior while I'm at it. After all, that's what vacations are for if you can't travel, right?????

just get a photobucket account, it's free and i've yet to run out of space.

 

[Crashby]

Yeah, post up!!!

Here's a similar project for me... ~350 pounds of leveler... the floor was a mess...

 

[greengreer]

Looks good.
Table saw would be nice to have but the chop saw can't be all that bad.
I did the den in my parents house some years ago and I remember how much of a PITA it was to cut.

I much prefer it to wood for maintenance though.

 

[N8 v2.0]

I had the floors laid on 45 deg angle in the house I built for myself in La. Talk about a crap load of cuts!

 

[ultraNoob]

I find that a sliding compound mitre saw works best on laminate floor planks. Last one I did I was able to link all the bedrooms, living room, dining room, etc.. without those joint pieces. Came out really nice. Been 6 years and all the joints are as tight as the day I finished. After the carpet was removed, it took me about 2 weeks to finish all the floors in the 4br single level by myself.

 

[mantispf2000]

Got the baseboards and threshold boards. Had to cut the thresholds down a touch (too thick and wide, not that that's a bad thing), stained with golden oak, still working on base boards, and that photobucket account so I can post some pics. I really think it's going to come out nice.

Of course, the pics will tell all, haha.....

 

[mantispf2000]

So here's the link to the pics--

New floors pictures by pinkies4 - Photobucket

Let me know if it works. I'm happy with how they turned out. Yes, there are a few cuts I would've done differently, which may mean re-doing some of the thresholds in the future. For now, me likey................

(BTW-- the pinkies4 name, yes, it's another I use. Here's a hint to its meaning- if you know what polydactyl is, you'll have an idea what it stands for.)

 

[j.les]

Looks good!