Subfloor Prep Trips Up Laminate and Epoxy Jobs

“First time installing laminate floor by myself i’m stuck on how to make this step and nosing look good. Can anyone tell me how I can do this step-by-step? For the bottom step, I’ve already removed the old carpet nosing so now the corner is flushed But for the top step, the carpet nosing goes into the floor, so I don’t want to remove it. I’m planning to screw to laminate pieces underneath the nosing to make it flush with it. Then install the nosing and the vertical piece on top of it. Also, I don”

“I'm looking to put 8mm of laminate in my 3 bedrooms. I haven't done it before but I'm willing to give it a shot. The floor upstairs is concrete . I got a thick underlay with a shiny gold backing. The guy is In the shop didn't know what a vapour barrier was, he just said he'll give the acoustic underlay. I'm wondering would this be a Vapor barrier as well? As a first timer I'm looking to see what tools I need. I will need to take off the skirting boards too with the le”

“Hi everyone, I have a question about installing this flooring. Do you know if this wood flooring needs to be installed with glue or nails? It’s for a home renovation, so I wanted to make sure before buying it—I don't want to spend too much money. submitted by /u/Firm_Dress_837 [link] [comments]”

“Or is something else better? Will the asphalt paper give off VOCs for an extended period? Thanks in advance submitted by /u/Budget_Grapefruit485 [link] [comments]”

“I've got a few of these gaps showing up. Bought a suction cup "floor gap tool" to get it to slide back in place but the tool just slid without moving the plank. Pics are two separate locations. The one pic shows an older gap, which I fixed with a small slice of an extra board two years ago. You can see what has happened in the last 6 months... the gap has gotten worse. Shouldn't these be glued down or something? This is in the middle of the floor, not at an edge. Any recommenda”

“Went to replace tile entryway and entry closet (about a 6’x4’ area), found asbestos tile and black sticky mastic. Couldn’t set tile on top of that obviously, so tried to remove underlayment, discovered that was fully glued and nailed to the plank subfloor, so had to remove that down to the joists. Long story short, tented front entryway off, full hazmat suits with respirators and got it out and cleaned up. Blocked everything off super secure, laid 19/32” OSB as subfloor glued and screwed to jois”

“I’m looking for some advice from anyone who has dealt with old-house floors like this. We bought and need toinstall Pergo TimberCraft laminate it is 12mm with a attached underlayment. The room is approximately 20' x 11'. The existing floor is old pine plank subfloor over log beam joists. I removed the existing 1/4 particleboard because it was heavily water damaged and very wavy. The floor underneath is nowhere close to flat enough for the laminate. there are two spots where the floor hum”

“Pretty much a flooring noob here but learning some. This contractor has messed up a couple things already so I'm questioning everything they are doing. Looks like the material they used is 19/32" APA AC plywood. It looks to me they installed at least one of the sheets with the "C" side up. There are knots and cracks that will need to be filled. The cuts they made are not super straight so there are some gaps between boards. Finally, the board next to the tub has a nearly 1/2&q”

“Hi all, Hoping to get some advice on how to protect my peel and stick vinyl floor that I bought off Amazon. It’s a cheap, temporary fix to cover the hideous floors that were there when I bought the house. I understand they won’t last forever but trying to get them to last as long as possible and still retain their look for at least a few years (hopefully). The tiles are pretty thin, comparable to cardstock. I ended up using them on my bathroom floor and have noticed they aren’t holding up very w”

“I have a basement bathroom with epoxy floors. Wife wants laminate floor cause the epoxy is too slick to walk on. Do I need a moisture barrier for epoxy? I have some lvp with no padding. What type of underlayment should I use? submitted by /u/usernamespeledwrong [link] [comments]”

“I’m curious if having some planks that have the same pattern close together like this is normal for a flooring installer? submitted by /u/Environmental_Yam974 [link] [comments]”

Tore up the vinyl flooring to find this mess of a unleveled floor. What would be the best course of action to get this fixed for new vinyl? Thinking of getting concrete…

“So I have been helping my in-laws move in to their new place. I noticed that the bathroom and the adjoining room’s laminate flooring is glued with noticeable gaps everywhere. I had considered a polyurethane coating to maybe help fill in and level the gaps? Does anybody have any suggestions on what we could do (other than redoing the entire floor)? submitted by /u/Lorosfyr [link] [comments]”

“I'm going over my floor, coming up with a plan to get it flat before I install my new laminate flooring. I know the ideal solution is to pull up this overlay, but I really do not want to deal with trying to cut new boards to fit in place, and juggle around my furniture while doing so. Also doing this entire project solo. The rest of the floor looks pretty good, just had to smooth out a few seams and bumps. But I have this high spot or crease in the center of my house. It's flat with this”

“I have laminate flooring throughout my first floor that was installed by the previous owner. A large portion of the floor has an issue where individual planks slide very easily along their length, separating at the short-end joints. I can literally move some of the planks with my foot and create gaps of 3 inches or more. When I slide them back into position, they sit perfectly flush with the surrounding flooring, but they don’t stay in place. There is no quarter round, just baseboards. I’m not s”

“How soon would you notice issues from an improper expansion gap? Installed laminate throughout my house first timer DIY in December. I did leave a gap throughout but it may not be as large as the manufacturer recommended. I’ve made it through the hot, humid summer without any issues. Is this something you’d notice immediately or could take a few years to develop? submitted by /u/jobtown502 [link] [comments]”

“Have new tile installed by contractor. The floor was very rough after taking out the old tile so they used underlayment. The underlayment turned out with large white streaks. These are soft and I can press my fingernail into them 16 hours after pour. What will they have to do? submitted by /u/Independent-Bus601 [link] [comments]”

“Im trying to lay new flooring in bathroom - pulled up old particle board underlayment to find this mess around the toilet. This is a 114 yr old house. To me it looks like they cut out the wood floor planks and replaced the section under the toilet with plywood and did a piss poor job. What can i expect to find under that section when i remove to replace? submitted by /u/Trixievolt2015 [link] [comments]”

“Hi, After removing the carpet, I see some areas are uneven and need to be leveled. I got the Henry 549 feather finish to level out the areas. My questions: - Should i sand down the whole floor to level the uneven edges and then level it or just level the uneven floorboards using the feather finish. - should i use self leveling vs feather finish. Attaching some photos for reference. Thanks submitted by /u/lampin_larry1 [link] [comments]”

“Redoing a small area of floor that got taken up for a plumbing job. We want to reuse the planks vs trying to match a new set. What type of barrier or underlayment is this beneath the flooring. Its blue and breaks like a brittle cement board. This is not foam or plastic. It appears to be layed in 12x12 tiles. submitted by /u/Top_Significance9121 [link] [comments]”

“I have a concrete (I believe gypcrete) above grade subfloor that had old laminate that was just taken up. I’m getting ready to install Karndean art select hickory nutmeg lvp and will glue it down. The install guidelines say I need to manually abrade my floor to remove contamination. Is this necessary? If so, what’s the best way to go about doing so? My plan was to make sure the floor is within the flatness guidelines and then shop vac the floor, roll Mapai L primer onto the floor and then start”

“Stainmaster laminate in the color Ambleside Elm over concrete flooring in the basement bedroom. Installed over a 6 mil poly film moisture barrier. Would rly appreciate any tips/advice. Used YouTube for help. Bought this cheaper flooring to be able to practice in this bedroom. Plan on getting Mohawk LVP in a similar color for the 1st and 2nd floor. submitted by /u/sumtingcool [link] [comments]”

“Hey guys. I’ll be changing my linoleum floors with laminate tomorrow. I watched loads of youtube vids, but wanted to ask you skilled folk. What are the main things to remember/consider when installing laminate? I’ll be installing 8mm laminate, planning to leave the same 8mm gap on the edges. Thanks! submitted by /u/Lost_Set_4452 [link] [comments]”

“Going to be installing oak laminate flooring with an underlay. Sees to be plywood with some sort of softer material on the outside of the room, up to 3/16” difference in height in some places submitted by /u/Robm1234 [link] [comments]”

“Hey everyone. Im undertaking my first flooring project. It’s a bedroom, about 162 square feet. Im removing old carpet from the 70s and the pad it’s on, then Im planning to lay down Laminate flooring with a wood pattern. Im not sure what to look for when it comes to laminate. I want to make sure it’s a good quality without spending too much. Any tips or advice for me? What should I look out for? Thank you submitted by /u/Lilac_Jack21 [link] [comments]”

“I just moved into a 1979 house and I'm trying to redo the bathroom floor with tiles. I've been scraping up linoleum and the plywood layer it was glued down on. Below that is at least one more layer of plywood and two more layers. There is a gap thatets me see two more layers. What could these layers be and how far down should I go before prepping the floor for tile? Layers I can see (so far) Linoleum + glued plywood (scraped off in photo) Plywood (nailed down) Greyish textured layer with”

“There is this wavy wooden floor and I had to put laminate flooring next to it. I still have to cut the expansion gap, but first I want to know how am I covering the gap. Any ideas? submitted by /u/Accomplished-Oil6886 [link] [comments]”

“My flooring is the kind of vinyl that interlocks. This piece has gradually slid under the wall it is up against and left this gap. Is there a way I can slide it back out without having access to the end of it that's under the wall? Don't ask why my wall isn't attached to the floor in that spot, idk submitted by /u/Glittering_Bonus4858 [link] [comments]”

“This floor had the 1inch hardwood on it. We also pulled up some type of vinyl. This is some type of plywood and under it is another wood slat floor. The plywood has dried glue and the black is flooring. I think. The floor seems pretty solid. Do I pull up the plywood or stop here and clean this? How do I. Lean the glue up? It's pretty hard and very difficult to scrape. Can I just cover it with subfloor? Lotsa questions. The hardwood floor pictured is what's going down. submitted by”

“So I’m laying plywood over a concrete slab and laminate flooring on top of the plywood. My question is where do I place the underlayment, under the plywood? Or on top? I’ve heard mixed reviews about this. I’ve also seen it’s not good to sandwich the plywood with 2 underlayment a cause it can trap moisture. I appreciate any type of feedback. submitted by /u/ColdCoconut835 [link] [comments]”

“I installed Mohawk Revwood knotted chestnut on my whole first floor. I ran slightly short on padding so I went to check the size to see if I could just pick it up at Lowe’s. However, when I went to check the size specs on the box it said it was 1.5mm for Luxury vinyl flooring. I used this under laminate. How screwed am I? The floor was installed over plywood subfloor with builder grade rolled vinyl on top. submitted by /u/dbarila [link] [comments]”

“So I'm not new to laminate flooring but I made a bit of a mistake today, I started in a room that has a small square hall and floor was running through. I started in the living room and all went well until I got to the hall and realised the leading edge was the groove, meaning every new board I lay I have to put the tongue in. Is there an easy way to click the new tongue edge into the previous groove edge? The hall is small and only a board and half wide so not much wiggle room to bend and m”

“I have rustic-looking vinyl laminate flooring throughout the house. The problem is that this rustic look comes with grooves. And dirt from the garden gets in there and will only come out if I scrub it with a brush. Any ideas that could make my life easier? submitted by /u/Play_With_Colour [link] [comments]”

“I have bathroom flooring from the 80s and she’s on her last leg, it’s two sheets (one very large and a second piece in the clostet not seamed together) and I’m unsure if either vinyl or laminate tbh. I was hoping to add LVP instead. The bathroom is 6x10 for flooring needs with a smaller 3x3 closet and that is where the separate sheet is. I had been hoping to layer LVP on top, but after reading through this subreddit I’m thinking I need to take out the old, check the sub floor, replace if needed”

“This is in a second floor bathroom that we decided to renovate. I had a feeling there would be some water damage but I feel like this is a bit more than some. Probably going to pull the subfloor up and check the joists. Any advice or things I should consider.. I feel a bit overwhelmed by this. submitted by /u/AggressiveTactic329 [link] [comments]”

“Asked in a separate subreddit but got little traction... I demoed my flooring which was a mix of hardwood and laminate and planning to lay down laminate again and tile in bathrooms. The wood plank subfloor (house from the 80s) has some imperfections in areas with unevenness and squeaks but overall in good shape. Would it be ok to lay down 23/32 AdvanTech over this and then laminate? submitted by /u/bedroomgalaxies [link] [comments]”

“This kitchen floor I'm updating currently has a layer of self-stick vinyl tiles, and a linoleum sheet under that. When I peeled up some linoleum I was left with this papery brown/gray layer that will not come off the plywood. (Edit: it's actually hardwood flooring, not plywood subfloor.) First of all what is this stuff, just the adhesive layer of the linoleum that has split off? Not asbestos, I'm hoping! And what's the best course of action to prep this floor for new self stick t”

“So I got this pergo Outlast laminate floor stuff. My dad wanted to use it in a bathroom. Had a guy install some of it. recently replaced the toilet with a brand new one thing was 40 years old. Probably that we had in there. Went to try and install the rest of the flooring. There was one piece in front of the shower. Missing going all the way across and then maybe four pieces that would be needed to go from the front of the toilet to the back of the toilet to the wall. Not much left to install. T”

“We are installing snap on flooring downstairs in our finished basement. We are in installing it over linoleum that has been there for probably 50 years. We do not want to rip it up because it is definitely asbestos. We recently bought the house and discovered ourselves that this was the case. So my question is because we’re going over linoleum do we also still put down the underlayment? If we do, can somebody please recommend what we should use? The price range on underlayment is crazy. We are b”

“First time posting, with a question for you all. Does variance in the subfloor need correcting before laying the vinyl, or is this 'good enough? I am about to DIY a bathroom install, and have just put down the 5.5mm hardwood ply subfloor, onto which I will lay a vinyl roll. Did the recommended 150mm grid, set in 10mm in from the edges. Because of that 10mm border, the screws do not all align on the long edge, and there is a slight wavyness to the long edge, high-low-high-low, but not in harm”

“Hey all - we'd like to install 9mm quickstep laminate on our top floor tenement, with uneven wooden subfloor. The fitter suggested to repair the subfloor where needed and depending on the state of it. 1. Use 9mm ply wood (that can be omitted if unevenness is not that bad) 2. Fibre felt board 6mm 3. Underlay (either basic or silent walk) 4. Laminate on top. Wouldn't layering fibre felt board and underlay create issues for the clicking system? From my understanding it should be thinner ply”

“How important is plywood underlayment over a wood subfloor for laminate flooring submitted by /u/DevilishManny [link] [comments]”

“Hi everyone! I’m about to try and tackle my first time laying loose lay vinyl flooring. I have an old house with a ton of really weird cut outs and rooms. The issue I am having is I don’t really know where to actually start laying the planks, or the main chalk line. Should it be the largest room, should it be the hallway etc. I’ve watched a bunch of YouTube videos and they all seem to have a different opinion. I just want to limit really thin strips at the end, or terrible entries into new rooms”

“We’re starting plans to renovate an upstairs bathroom (I’m guessing the laminate tile is original to the house, built in the early 80s). There are uneven gaps between the current tiles, and the wood floor on the first floor is similarly gapping. Our house is generally pretty creaky, and I’m really nervous about getting tiles installed that will crack. What do I need to look out for when we pull up the existing floor? Are there sure fire ways of making it rigid enough to support tiles (and a much”

“Hi all! These darned stairs are the final part of my project and my YouTube research has provided very limited advice. I am using 10mm laminate, I'd like to use it to cover the tread of the steps. What to do with the nosing? I've found this to be my greatest challenge. I CAN NOT cut the current baseboard nosing off - the step already has a 9" tread, cutting off the nosing will bring it to 8" which is well below code for my state (code says 10", yikes). OK, no big deal righ”

“Previous solid hardwood floors were ripped out of the basement along with glued/nailed plywood. When the contractor ripped out the nails, the concrete broke apart. My whole flooring is like this... is it okay to install my laminate on top of this or should it be repaired? submitted by /u/Ok_Country_6376 [link] [comments]”

“Ripping up the porcelain tile and I've got the original 1953 linoleum underneath exposed obviously. I'm going to be installing 5 mm WVP (ik - 5 mm is 💩 and asking for future trouble but this install is only meant to be temporary (2-5 years) and it's only a 100sf kitchen with at best 30sf high traffic area) of Lowe's style brand #1857680 w/ 12 mil wear layer with a quiet walk 1.4 mm underlay. Pic 1: is there such a thing as too much space on the perimeter? The grout was the suppo”

“Planned to install 12x24 porcelain tile in a 3 season porch. Purchased Ditra underlayment and Schluter All Set. Removed the carpet today (was installed by prev owner) expecting to find the wood subfloor but was surprised to find old 9x9 tile -- presumed to be asbestos. These tiles appear to be in good shape and well adhered to the subfloor. I won't be removing/remediating these tiles as I don't have the time or budget. What is the best way to install the porcelain tile now? Any special p”

“Hello! I'm hoping someone who is familiar with flooring can decipher some old microfilm details. Specifically, what is beneath the DIATO layer. Thanks in advance! submitted by /u/Traditional_Bet_6297 [link] [comments]”

“Trying to install laminate, but hit a major subfloor issue. The subfloor is clean and rot-free, but there’s a severe ridge running down the middle of the room. The plywood slopes upward from opposite directions to meet at a high seam in the center. Across a 1.5m level, the gap reaches almost 4cm. I guess planing the plywood down isn't probably viable since shaving off that much wood would ruin the structural integrity of the subfloor? Has anyone dealt with a ridge this severe? What are my be”

“Hello, so I have a new double wide that is only about a year old. In one of my bathrooms the seams on the floor seem to be splitting. I believe it is vinyl sheet flooring. I did have some problems with the vinyl lifting when I first moved in with the flooring in the area, but they claimed to have fixed them. What caused this ( my major concern hidden moisture ) ? What is the fix for this ? Thank you submitted by /u/Double-Part2016 [link] [comments]”

“Laying laminate basement with foam and osb subfloor. Flooring company recommended a waterproof underlayment? Worried this will sandwich moisture? Should we just do the standard? Thanks submitted by /u/Cathyg_99 [link] [comments]”

“Husband and I installed laminate flooring for the first time. It took about a week between work and travel, but I think it turned out well. Now we just have to pull up the LVP in the bathroom and replace it with tile. We used Mohawk Revwood Plus laminate flooring submitted by /u/Own___It [link] [comments]”

“Just booked someone to do timber flooring in our place and honestly have no idea how to tell if they are actually good until it is too late. Checked reviews but half of them sound the same. Keen to hear from people who have been through it. What made you realise you had picked a good one, or the opposite- what were the signs it was not quite right after the job was done? submitted by /u/No_Perception_4164 [link] [comments]”

“Hi, I am going to be installing wood underlay in this bathroom in preparation for vinyl sheet install. Do i meed to scrape this paper up before i install the wood underlay or can i go over it? Thanks for the help! submitted by /u/SnooRabbits4509 [link] [comments]”

“Hello all, I am trying to install rubber stair nosing on 23 steps of newly installed marmoleum flooring. The rubber nosing company recommends a product that only comes in a gallon size and is $250 USD. Do I need a gallon? Or does anyone have a cheaper solution? Preferably clear or easy to clean up excess. TYIA submitted by /u/just_me_2006 [link] [comments]”

“Just bought a new house that had bamboo installed through out the basement. Never noticed this during the showing or walk through, but as I was moving some stuff in noticed the two planks were separated. Should I attempt to fix this? Or just let it be and cover it? It’s right in the middle of the room, so not sure how to fix it without removing a whole bunch of other blanks on either side submitted by /u/Enough_Bid1032 [link] [comments]”

“I am prepping the subfloor for Mohawk SplashGuard Inspirations. It's a laminate plank system. I have a nasty dip at the nose of the steps 5/8ths inch on one side 0 on another. I was wondering what the best product or a good product would be. I am thinking DAP Flexible Floor Patch and Leveler dud to it's thickness and workability. Would rather avoid a fast setting compound. I will be using self leveler too but later. Also have radiant heat holes on another side of the floor and think DAP”