Laminate flooring is best described as a synthetic product that happens to be multi-layered and is fused through a process known as lamination that can be used as a flooring option.
Other flooring options abound, such as tiles, carpets, bamboo, et cetera. The primary focus is on laminate flooring and the best way to lay them.
So, do you lay laminate flooring vertically or horizontally? There is no fixed answer to the question because it depends on several factors, such as the room’s length and its design
If you’re about to install laminate flooring in your home, do you lay the laminate flooring vertically or horizontally? This and many more questions will be answered in this article.
Related: How to Install Laminate Flooring in a RV With Slide Outs
Places to Install Laminate Flooring
Table of Contents
Laminate flooring can be installed in most rooms in a home. For the most part, Laminate floorings can be installed anywhere on most surfaces such as concrete, wood, et cetera.
Laminate flooring can also be installed without the need to remove your carpet.
Laminate flooring coupled with the perfect underlay makes for a quiet home devoid of the usual noise of heavy foot traffic.
Places Not to Install Laminate Flooring
While we established that laminate flooring could be installed almost anywhere in the home in the above paragraph, there are unsuitable places for laminate flooring.
Most experts agree that laminate floors are not suitable for wet prone areas such as the bathroom and kitchen.
Moisture is mostly bad for laminate floors as it causes distortion or swelling.
Do You Lay Laminate Flooring Vertically or Horizontally?
Whether you lay laminate flooring vertically or horizontally depends on several factors.
There is no fixed answer to the question because it depends on several factors, such as the room’s length, design, et cetera.
Generally, it is assumed that you lay your laminate flooring parallel to the longest side of the room, but that is just one of the several ways of installing laminate floors.
How to Lay Laminate Floors
There are several ways to lay your laminate floors to bring out the best possible outcome.
There is no fixed way to install laminate floors, and you do whichever way feels best to you.
However, this article is a guide to help you bring out the best in your laminate floors. These are some of the ways to install your laminate floors;
- Install the laminate floors perpendicular to what you consider the most important part of the room.
The most important part of the room could be where the television is mounted or where the artwork or sculpture you are particularly fond of is located.
It could be anywhere; it is important that you lay the laminate floors perpendicular to that point. - Another way to lay your laminate flooring is to lay it perpendicular to the point of entry to the room.
This is also a beautiful way to lay your laminate floors as it helps to bring out the beauty of the laminate floor planks. - You can also decide to lay the laminate flooring diagonally across the room. This particular method ‘bangs’ if you have a wall placed diagonally in the room.
It is important to note that this particular method is not suitable for every room, and you must be careful so you don’t run the risk of creating something truly awful to the eyes. - Laying down your laminate floor perpendicular to the window where the sunlight enters the room is another innovative way of installing your laminate flooring.
The light helps accentuate the beauty of the laminate flooring. Remember, this is only doable if you have a window that brings in sunlight. - If you have a small room and intend to install a laminate floor, you might want to consider laying them perpendicular to the long wall of the room to help create an illusion of a larger room.
How you choose to lay your laminate flooring in an unusually small room helps to give an impression of a much larger room. - Or you can choose to lay the laminate flooring in the direction you feel is easier. At times looks might not be the most important thing to consider.
Sometimes there might be too many doors or windows and too many focal points making the options above unrealistic.
In such situations, you choose a direction you feel is the easiest.
Read: Can You Put Laminate Flooring Over Linoleum?
Are Laminate Floors Durable?
Laminate floors, on average last between 15 to 25 years. Certain factors might aid in how long it lasts or how short it lasts.
Proper maintenance and quality of installed laminate floors help ensure a longer life span.
Poor maintenance coupled with low-quality laminate floors would most likely result in a shorter life span.
A definitive answer to the question posed above would be Yes! Laminate floors are durable and quite elegant.
Pros and Cons of Laminate Flooring
There are several flooring options available to select from, and several factors influence our decisions.
Like every other flooring option, Laminate flooring has unique advantages and disadvantages. These are some of the advantages and disadvantages of laminate flooring.
Pros of Laminate Flooring
- Laminate flooring is quite easy to install. Laminate flooring mostly involves a Do-It-Yourself (DIY) process.
It involves little to no expertise to lay laminate flooring in your home. - Laminate floors are durable. Laminate flooring can sometimes last for as long as 25 years.
Laminate floors last longer than some other flooring options, such as carpets.
A very good laminate floor quality will last as long as you want it to with proper maintenance. - Compared to other flooring options, laminate flooring is quite inexpensive.
If you’re on a budget and need flooring options that are within your budget, it would be smart to consider laminate flooring because they are affordable. - Laminate floors are beautiful. They are perfectly capable of imitating wood, stone, et cetera.
They are also elegant, which is probably why they are one of the most popular flooring options in the United States. - Laminate floors do not stain easily. When compared to some other flooring options, laminate floors hardly stain.
A simple wipe with a soft cloth would likely eliminate the stains.
Cons of Laminate Flooring
- Laminate floors are easily damaged by moisture, so installing them in areas with high moisture incidences, such as the bathroom and kitchen, is terrible.
- Laminate floors are quite noisy when walking on them. You can place an underlay before laying the laminate floor planks to reduce the noise.
- Laminate floors are not environmentally friendly because there are chemicals present. They’re non-biodegradable.
Read: Common Mistakes When Laying Laminate Flooring
Conclusion
In the above article, we pondered whether you lay laminate flooring vertically or horizontally? The answer was sufficiently provided in the article.
For all intent and purposes, Laminate floors can be installed in several ways, with the article providing guidance.
We hope you found it helpful and informative. If you did, please share it across your entire social media pages.
