Preparation

• 1). Measure the room's dimensions. Select and purchase enough laminate flooring to cover the area, plus extra to accommodate mistakes and necessary waste.
  
  
• 2). Leave the opened boxes of laminate in the room they will occupy for at least 48 hours to acclimate planks to room temperature and humidity.
  
  
• 3). Prepare the sub-floor. Remove the carpeting. Remove any wood flooring that is installed over concrete. As long as the surface is clean, dry and level, laminate can be installed directly over ceramic, concrete, vinyl and plywood sub-floors. Fill any depressed sections with leveling compound and let it dry.
  
  
• 4). Lay a moisture barrier of plastic sheeting over the sub-floor, if doing so will eliminate a moisture problem or threat. Always use the barrier when installing laminate over cement; do not use it over a wood sub-floor, as trapped moisture may cause wood to mildew and warp.
  
  
• 5). Consider rolling out a sheet of underlayment foam for sound absorption and comfort, unless the laminate already incorporates a foam layer.
  
  

Installation

• 1). Undercut the doorjambs and either remove or undercut baseboards using a trim saw with the side of its blade resting on a scrap plank. The plank serves as a clearance guide to ensure flooring can be slipped underneath doorjambs and baseboards. Cut deeply enough to allow for a 1/4-inch perimeter of horizontal space around the finished floor to accommodate expansion. Pry waste wood free with a chisel or screwdriver.
  
  
• 2). Determine a starting point, usually a long length of wall. Working from left to right, loosely arrange planks, "tongue" side toward the wall. For only this first row, remove the tongues facing the wall and the tongue on the end of the first plank, since it also faces a wall.
  
  
• 3). Set the first plank on the floor about two feet away from the starting wall with a 1/4-inch gap separating its left side from the wall it faces. Holding the second plank at an angle, insert the end tongue to the end groove and rotate downward until they snap into place, leaving no space at the joint.
  
  
• 4). Connect the other planks in the same manner. Use a circular saw to cut the last piece in the row to size, minus 1/4-inch to allow expansion room for the floor. Snap it into place and begin the second row. Connect these planks the same way, except remove the tongue only on the end of the first plank. Maneuver each new plank to lock the tongues on its left end and wall-facing side to the corresponding grooves on other planks, so both planks and rows are connected.
  
  
• 5). Slide the two finished rows of connected planks toward and slightly beneath the starting wall. Wedge spacers between the wall and floor at 12-inch intervals to maintain a 1/4-inch expansion gap. Tap the planks securely into place with a hammer and tapping block or, in tight spaces, pull bar. Place a plank box or other weight on installed planks to hold their position.
  
  
• 6). Connect the other rows in the same manner, removing the tongue only on the end of the first board in each row. Use hammer and tapping block or pull bar to secure planks and rows tightly together. To avoid an unattractive grid pattern and reinforce floor strength, stagger board placement by trimming the first board of each row to a length unlike the first plank in the row before it. Use spacers at the ends of rows to preserve the expansion gap.
  
  
• 7). Prepare the last row. Measure the remaining width, minus 1/4-inch for expansion, cut planks accordingly and lock them into place with a hammer and pull bar. Remove spacers and nail the baseboards and quarter-rounds into place, covering the expansion gap around the room. Attach transition strips wherever laminate meets other flooring, if necessary.