Modern laminate flooring - it is not easy to imitate wooden or ceramic floors with a flat surface. On sale are boards with a lumpy surface, as if the texture of wood sawing. There is also embossing that imitates a surface scratched with a metal brush (“brush”).
Light focuses on volume, the play of the resulting pattern created by seams, chamfers of individual floorboards and the texture of the laminate. If the floor becomes an additional decoration of the room, you should carefully consider the direction of installation.
Longitudinal laying
The option is suitable for beginners and economical. With any choice of styling pattern and the size of the row offset (for example, by a third of the board), only a few elements are cut. Part of the cut pieces will be used at the end or beginning of the row. Small pieces will also be needed to lay the laminate around the heating pipes.
Important. If the laminate boards are not chamfered, longitudinal installation, taking into account the direction of light along the rows, will create the effect of a seamless canvas without joints.
Cross laying
Installing floorboards in this way is a more time-consuming task: there are more elements to trim. But if laminate boards with a chamfer (bevel of the edge) are chosen for the floor - this installation will additionally emphasize the beauty of the picture.
Tip. Choose transverse styling if you want to add extra volume to the space of the room. Rows of stripes visually expand a narrow room
Important nuances of laying laminate flooring along or across the window
Before you begin, determine what will be the basis for the new coverage. You can leave linoleum, parquet, if:
- the surface is solid, even;
- no wet areas;
- no mold and fungus colonies;
- the wooden floor is not damaged by a wood bug (grinder, bark beetle, cough), rot.
Carpet, any kind of soft flooring is removed. A laminate laid on such a foundation will quickly fail.
Small irregularities in the floor are eliminated by self-leveling mixtures (for concrete and cement), sealant or grout.
Important. A vapor barrier is first placed on the concrete floor, then a sound-absorbing substrate.
In narrow and long corridors, even if there are windows, the direction of the light is usually not taken into account. It is more important to visually expand the space. In some cases, several colored spots from a laminate of different colors and widths turn a regular floor into a stylish room element.
Suitable for direct corridors:
- wide floorboards with a uniform pattern of one tone (light additionally expand, and dark visually narrow the space);
- Laminate with imitation of ceramic tiles, stone.
Attention. If individual elements have a “lock”, and not a usual groove, when laying transverse to the direction of regular movement of people, fastenings quickly come out, creaking and crevices appear.
Many manufacturers apply a small drawing along the length of the board with a regular larger image (saw cut wood, stone). When combining individual rows, the joint is hidden, the seams become invisible. If the wear resistance of the laminate is high (see package marking), you can lay the floorboards on the floor both along and across.
Useful tips: how to lay laminate flooring along or across the room
Traditionally, the boards are laid on the floor in the direction of the light from the window. This decision is followed by:
- when a single element is three-layer (not five) with low indicators of wear resistance;
- instead of a “lock”, a normal groove.
The reason is simple. It is difficult to achieve a beautiful, even distance between the joints. And the light falling from the window will highlight the flaws. When the laminate is of high quality, there are no doubts about the skill of the workers, and the designer's idea is to visually expand the room, the boards are laid perpendicularly. However, such installation will be more expensive: more laminate packages are bought with a margin for cutting.
When choosing a solution in the direction of the laminate board, consider:
- If the new coating is laid on wooden floors, the right choice is perpendicular to the boards. This prevents bending of floor areas.
- If there are no windows, and the room is narrow and long (corridor) - laminate boards are laid across, achieving a visual expansion of the space.
- If the room has two or more windows, consider the overall light intensity.
- If the arrangement of furniture is known, consider the load being created. The legs of the chair or sofa should not press on one floorboard - otherwise, due to the load, the mount will quickly break. The degree of withstanding load is indicated by the marking.
- If the room is not high, longitudinal installation is preferable.
The psychological perception of the pattern on the floor is also important. It is more comfortable to walk along a long row than to “step over” floorboards. In some cases, after the repair is completed, the laminate is rebuilt due to this.
Are you still in doubt? Lay a few laminate boards on the floor. Turn on and off the chandelier, lamps, pull and pull the curtains. Turning a piece of laminate flooring, select the optimal pattern on the floor.
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