Laminate flooring is popular due to its affordable price and reliability. That is why the demand for them is growing every year. But, when using such a solution in the interior of their home, many customers do not know how to correctly lay the laminate in relation to the window, which direction of installation to choose according to the length or width of the room.
What to pay attention to
An important factor determining the direction of the flooring is the presence and number of windows, especially if they are all located on the same wall and there is a specific direction of light. Taking into account all the features, the following coating laying techniques may be used:
- By length;
- Width;
- Along the windows;
- Across the windows.
Each of the above options is appropriate in a particular situation, if you want to obtain the necessary decorative effect. Let's take a closer look at each of them to find an interesting solution.
Length mounting
How to properly lay laminate flooring along a room? It should be taken into account that if the room is long and narrow, the additional creation of parallel stripes will visually increase the length, breaking the symmetry. Large-format, wide segments are best suited for this type of layout. If installation along the length is chosen, then it is better to use a board without a chamfer, forming a solid, monolithic coating without visible relief.
When choosing materials, it is worth considering that long laminate is optimal for simulating solid boards. It is appropriate in a classic or country interior. If you need to create space without additional geometric lines, then it is better to give preference to a wide board. Materials with a texture imitating natural granite, marble or polished concrete slabs are on sale especially for such cases. Using textured surfaces, you can effectively add unexpected accents to your interior.
Width mounting
Laying along the width of the room will help to visually enlarge it. This solution is best suited for elongated rooms, where the length exceeds the width by 1.5 or more times. A clear separation will help provide the visible geometric lines found in a coating with a visible chamfer. When using a coating with segments without a chamfer, a monolithic surface is formed that levels the geometry of the object.
The seams are clearly visible here Along the rays of sunlight
Sunlight spreads evenly throughout the room, but at the same time it can highlight and make the joints more noticeable. This can be used to highlight a decorative effect.
We recommend laying the flooring in the direction of sunlight - from the window to the opposite wall.
The joints will be the least noticeable, since the relief of the joints will not create a difference in light, forming a shadow. This is optimal for monolithic surfaces without a chamfer, most often used in the interiors of residential buildings and apartments.
Against the light
If installation is carried out against the direction of light, or more precisely, parallel to the window, then the falling rays of the sun can effectively emphasize the texture of the surface. With this installation technology, a board with a “V” or “U”-shaped chamfer is often used, emphasizing the joint area. This technology provides the necessary roughness and relief of the surface, giving the material a resemblance to natural wood. This option is common in country style interiors.
Diagonal laying
If you cannot decide in which direction to lay the laminate along or across the room, you should consider the possibility of a diagonal layout. The technology is often used to divide a room into two parts, smoothing out the geometry of large rooms.
The diagonal layout immediately attracts attention and becomes a bright accent in the interior. An original design solution could be the use of contrasting color combinations from the same series, dividing the room into two parts.
Type of layout and material consumption
Depending on how you decide to lay the laminate in relation to the window or in accordance with the geometry of the room, the amount of material consumed may change. This dependence is determined individually, based on the area of the object and the ratio of its sides, as well as taking into account the dimensions of the finishing board. In particular, if a long board is used and laid across a narrow room, it may appear large number scraps that cannot be used in the future. Therefore, if decor is in second place for you after cost, then it is better to choose the option with the lowest cost.
The laminate dispenser on our website will help you choose this option. This application will automatically calculate the required number of boards and the area of the object. Having this information, you can optimize finishing costs and stay within the amount available in the budget. Universal calculator, suitable for calculations with laminate flooring different sizes, from various manufacturers.
We bring to your attention a laminate calculator, with which you can quickly calculate the volume of material before purchasing. It is universal, allows you to carry out calculations for flooring, differing in the length and width of the board.
Laminate manufacturers in their advertising campaigns emphasize that the installation of this most popular floor covering has become so simple that anyone can handle it. Who has no experience working with laminate at all. You need to read the instructions, watch the company’s advertising video, and as a result of your efforts, the room with the new floor will quickly be transformed, and the admiring family will extol your construction achievements. Despite the fact that before installing the flooring, your success in this field was not much different from the ability of one of the characters of the English writer Jerome K. Jerome Uncle Podger to hang pictures.
Indeed, the improvement of panel interlocking systems has greatly simplified the installation process. If laying laminate flooring with a Lock lock requires certain experience and skills, then the next generation of locks - Click - does not impose such requirements. And the market already sells laminate flooring with 5g and Megalock locks, and even with aluminum locks. Soon everything will be like in Russian fairy tales, when all you need to do is bring the packages into the room where the installation will take place and hold the flooring without opening the boxes for a couple of days. To adapt to the temperature and humidity in the room. And then you open the packages, and the panels themselves are laid out “at the behest of the pike.” However, the devil, as we know, is in the details.
Laying laminate
The work of installing the flooring has become much easier. The same cannot be said about preparing the base before laying. The base must be level, stable and dry. The difference in height is permissible within 2 mm per 2 m. In some cases, a waterproofing device is required before laying the substrate and the laminate itself.
Laying the substrate
Substrates differ in the material from which they are made, characteristics and cost:
Manufacturers claim that the substrate is able to level the base under the laminate. This is an exaggeration. The substrate must provide heat and sound insulation. The underlay can compensate for minimal unevenness in a leveled old wooden floor or plywood base, but no more.
Important! The substrate is laid end-to-end, the joints are fixed with tape. This way it will not move when laying the laminate.
Choosing a installation method
We determine the method of laying the covering: diagonally, perpendicular or parallel to the light (along or across the room). Diagonal installation is more often used in narrow rooms - this is one of the ways to visually expand them.
It is usually customary to lay the laminate perpendicular to the light source (the long side along the flow of light) - this is a window in the room. In daylight, the joints between the panels are less noticeable.
However, when laying the covering on a wooden floor, you must be sure to focus on the direction of the floorboards. On such a floor, the laminate is laid perpendicular to the floor boards to reduce possible deflection. If the old wooden floor is covered with plywood on top, the flooring should be laid in the traditional way - perpendicular to the window.
In small narrow rooms without natural light (corridors, hallways), laminate flooring is laid across in order to visually expand the room.
Laying laminate flooring with different types of locks
For installation work you will need:
First, plastic wedges are installed to maintain a 10 mm gap between the laminate and the wall. The first row is laid horizontally from the corner of the room in the direction from left to right. The ridge of the panels of the first row is directed towards the wall. The panels are connected at their ends. The last panel in the row is cut with a jigsaw or hacksaw and laid in a row. You can start the next row with the remaining piece of the panel (provided that its length is more than 300 mm). It is important that the seams in adjacent rows do not match.
Advice. To give panel offsets a more accurate appearance, a technique such as “offset by a third of the board” is used. One third is cut off from the new panel, after which it is laid.
The first and second rows are joined. When using panels with a Lock-lock, you will need to hammer them with a mallet (through a die) to fix the ridge in the groove of the adjacent panel.
Click system panels are laid at an angle of 45° until they click into place. This coating can be disassembled if necessary.
The panels of the last row will most likely need to be cut to width. Remember that the cutting line will be covered by the baseboard, so small unevenness in the cut area is not a problem. After laying the laminate on the wooden floor is completed, the wedges are removed and the baseboard is installed. First, see how much you need to trim the panels of the last row. The flooring will not look very good if the width of the panels of the first and last rows is very different. In this case, it is better to trim the panels of both the first and last rows.
Laminate deserves it reputation as a practical coating with high aesthetic qualities. Laying laminate flooring is a simple task and accessible to almost everyone. If you want to save on the services of third-party specialists, you can easily install the coating indoors yourself. Of course, you need to familiarize yourself with the installation rules, for example, find out how to lay laminate flooring lengthwise or crosswise. When choosing the direction of layout of the lamellas, you need to take into account some nuances.
Options for laminate layout directions
You will have to choose from three possible directions:
- transverse;
- longitudinal;
- diagonal.
When choosing, take into account location of the natural light source,those. windows, as well as the shape of the room. Let us note the features of each method.
What does diagonal laying give?
Diagonal laying can visually expand the room. She more relevant for small rooms
, not filled with furniture. The diagonal layout gives the floor an interesting look and attracts attention to it, but for a beginner it will be challenging task. Firstly, there will be a lot of pruning here. The slats will have to be adjusted against the walls, especially at ledges or niches. In addition, this is not a very profitable option if you want to save on material. Of course, it is always worth purchasing material with a reserve, but in the case of a diagonal arrangement, the reserve can reach 30%. Not all trimmings can be used in subsequent rows. 
Advantages of longitudinal arrangement
This the most economical installation option and least labor intensive. Minimum pruning. You will have to seriously work only when going around the heating pipes. In general, installation using a direct longitudinal method will not be difficult even for an inexperienced person. By shifting each row by a third of the board, you can use the trim from the previous row at the beginning of the next.
Laying longitudinally is especially justified if the window is located on a short wall, i.e. the room is extended towards the window. The joints between the laminate slats will then not be visible. This is achieved due to the fact that the beam of light lies along the joint, and the joint does not cast a shadow.
The longitudinal layout allows even inexpensive laminate to be presented from its advantageous side.
This advantage of longitudinal placement of slats may be lost if there are two windows in the room - on a short wall and on a long one, i.e. on adjacent walls. The light from one window will fall as it should, and the lighting from the other will emphasize those very joints, and the effect of a solid canvas will disappear.
Features of transverse laying
The transverse layout is not as economical as the longitudinal one. Although it would be more accurate to talk not about efficiency, but about labor intensity: you can put fewer whole boards here, you will have to cut more. And the trimmings, as with the longitudinal arrangement of boards, can be used in subsequent rows.
The cross-laying method also has an advantage. Thanks to the transverse placement, the room visually expands, so this option is often used in extremely narrow rooms to eliminate this drawback.
If they try to hide the joints of a regular laminate, then, on the contrary, they focus attention on the joints of chamfered boards. When laying lamellas with a chamfer, it is better to choose the transverse layout option.
On video: how to choose laminate color.
How to choose the right laying direction
In general, the principle of choosing the direction of laying laminate in a room should already be clear. However, difficulties may arise, both aesthetic and technical.
Difficulties of the design approach
What to do if there are two windows in the room? See which window provides more light: the one on the long wall or the other. If the lighting from a window on a long wall is more intense, then it may be worth abandoning the longitudinal installation. Sometimes the decisive role can be played not by natural lighting, but by artificial lighting. It all depends on your sense of taste and wishes. 
The most common way to do this is:
- In rooms with a shape close to a square, installation begins from the far corner, and the slats are placed along a longer wall so that the joints are across the window.
- To emphasize the unusual shape of the room, the irregular shape of the room, choose a diagonal layout. But you should not start this work if you have no experience in installing laminate flooring.
- When choosing the direction of placement of the boards, they are even based on the height of the ceilings. For example, with low ceilings it is preferable to choose longitudinal installation, and with high ceilings it is preferable to choose transverse installation.
If the laminated flooring is installed in a room with high traffic, then it makes sense to place it in the direction of the flow of people, discarding all recommendations regarding lighting and the shape of the room. Thanks to this trick, the service life of the laminate is extended.
It may even matter furniture arrangement. When highlighting an element of the interior with the help of floor finishing, it may be necessary to neglect general rules and focus exclusively on this parameter. Sometimes there is no need to think about the direction of laying the lamellas. When you decide to put a fairly large carpet in a room, the laminate, which will be visible around the edges, will not have a significant impact on the visual perception. Therefore, it is worth taking the most economical route and mounting the boards lengthwise.
Technical requirements
When choosing how to lay the laminate along or across the room, it is important to take into account one more parameter - technical. The fact is that the base on which the coating is laid decides a lot.
Laminate flooring is very demanding when it comes to the evenness of the base.. A surface that does not sufficiently meet this requirement may cause the coating to fail much faster than expected. The wooden floor boards should run perpendicular to the direction of the slats so that the covering does not sag along with the boards. Those. rooms where boards are laid along a long wall leave no choice for the owner. Here you need to lay the laminate across the room. There is only one way to avoid this option if it is unacceptable. You will have to additionally cover the base with plywood, which will make it more stable. Then the lamellas can be laid in any direction.
A novice craftsman may also be interested in something else: how to correctly lay the laminate along or across the substrate. Traditionally, lamellas are laid across the substrate. When laying longitudinally, the coating may sag slightly at the joints of the substrate. Visually this will not be noticeable, but it will be enough to cause squeaks.
Installing slats across the substrate helps prevent it from shifting under load.
How to lay laminate flooring in the hallway
Laying laminate flooring in the hallway has its own characteristics. The layout of most apartments is such that there are no windows in the corridor, which means that recommendations regarding natural lighting are simply discarded and not taken into account. Here, the ability of the laminate to influence the visual perception of the room will be more important. The following tips apply:
- A narrow corridor can be visually expanded thanks to transverse or diagonal laying. In this case, the longitudinal one will visually elongate the room even more. In this case, the lamellas are positioned so as to use as few short sections as possible - the strength of the floor if this requirement is ignored will decrease.
- You should not choose boards with a narrow longitudinal pattern, for example, zebrawood. If, however, longitudinal installation is chosen, the pulling effect will intensify, and with a transverse arrangement, the desired aesthetic effect will not arise.
- Sometimes the solution to the problem when installing a covering in a corridor can be a square laminate that imitates porcelain tiles.
- If there is no window in the corridor, they are guided by an artificial light source. They act in the same way as with natural ones. They look at how strongly the joints stand out in this or that option. Sometimes artificial lighting has no effect on the appearance of the joints between the slats.
In L-shaped corridors, diagonal or herringbone laying is appropriate. This unusual arrangement of lamellas will emphasize the non-standard design of the corridor and at the same time “pull apart” the walls. You don’t have to limit yourself in choosing a laminate design and choose a pattern that you like. Boards with bleached stripes look especially good.
Pay attention! For the “herringbone” you need a laminate with special locks.
Try to follow the above tips so that the laminate remains in a new condition for a long time and corrects the shortcomings of the room. These recommendations will help you install laminate flooring in any room.
How not to lay laminate flooring (2 videos)
Laying laminate flooring can be turned from a mundane task into a work of art. To do this, you will have to choose an original pattern according to which the planks will be located. But in most cases, it is necessary to choose such an arrangement of laminate joint lines in order to visually expand or, conversely, reduce the room. The light falling from the window helps to achieve this. What is the best way to lay laminate flooring in relation to the window? This article, as well as the choice of laminate for the room, will be discussed in the article.
Preparatory work
The successful installation of laminate flooring largely depends on how the preparatory work is carried out. They include preparation of the base, tools and calculation of the required material. These three steps are the ones that take the most time. Each of them will be described in detail below.
What should be the basis
Laminate flooring can only be laid on a flat floor or other surface. In this case, an error of more than 2 mm per linear meter is not allowed. In this case, it will not be possible to implement the required contour. That is why the following requirements are imposed on the foundation:
- level consistency;
- strength;
- minimum humidity.
Substrate preparation will depend on which laminate installation method was chosen. A room with a wooden floor may require minimal intervention. To determine this, you need to carefully inspect the floor for imperfections. It is important to identify creaks and deflections that occur when walking. It is advisable to evaluate the condition of the joists and support beams on which the plane is supported. If several need to be replaced, then you might want to consider keeping the wood floor. In cases where extensive intervention is required, it is better to carry out complete dismantling. The reason is that the affected tree will deteriorate further.
Damaged joists are removed and eliminated. If mold or mildew has appeared under the floor, it must be thoroughly cleaned and the affected areas treated with an antiseptic. It is important to determine what caused the mold to appear. All paths for moisture penetration must be blocked, since it will certainly condense or leak out again. The shingles, which hold together when walked, are strengthened. It is better to go over the surface with a sanding machine so that it becomes perfectly flat. To bring the floor to the required level, linings are made from blocks of wood. After sanding, the wood is coated with an antiseptic composition.
Advice! The easiest way to check the difference in the floor plane is with a laser level. The best one is one that can project a beam with an angle of 360°. The main points are selected and a tape measure is taken from the beam to the floor plane. The difference in values will indicate a difference.
Concrete foundations sometimes require longer preparation. The floor must be carefully inspected for damage. It is also important to identify hidden weaknesses. To do this, you can gently tap it with a hammer. If there is a dull sound in some places, then over time they may peel off, which will bring unpleasant consequences with it. All potholes are sealed with tile adhesive or another similar solution. After this, you can proceed to identifying surface level differences in the manner described above.
If the difference in floor level is no more than three centimeters, then it can be compensated using a self-leveling mixture. Before starting work, it is necessary to remove dust and dirt from the floor surface and treat it with a deeply penetrating primer. If it is quickly absorbed, then the procedure can be repeated twice. After the primer has completely dried, the dry composition of the mixture is obtained. It is diluted with water in the proportions specified by the manufacturer and filled to the marked line. The next step is to remove any air bubbles from the solution. If this is not done, they can weaken the strength of the entire plane. For the procedure, you will need a needle roller, which must be passed over the thickness of the poured solution several times.
Advice! If the difference in floor level is greater, it may be necessary to fill a full screed.
Instead of pouring screed, you can apply leveling using plywood or OSB sheets. Before starting work, the floor surface is cleared of debris and treated with a primer. All potholes are sealed with glue. The next step is to lay the waterproofing film. It should protect the wood from swelling and mold. The film must be laid with an overlap of 10 cm between the individual sheets, the joints are taped. The film is also laid overlapping on the wall. The next step is to adjust and lay the logs. They are attached to the concrete base using anchor bolts. In this case, the bolt heads must be recessed into wooden beams so that it is possible to lay the flooring.
All logs must be leveled. After adjustment, sheets of plywood or OSB are laid on them. In this case, the material must be selected so that it does not contain harmful impurities that may be released during operation. The bedding sheets are laid with staggered seams to ensure they are intertwined. The heads of the screws should not protrude beyond the sheet, so they must be recessed. A gap of 5 mm must be left from the walls to the sheets. This gap serves as a thermal seal that compensates for expansion with changes in temperature and humidity.
Pay attention! Plywood can also be used to level a wooden floor.
Calculation work
After preparatory work Before laying the laminate, it is necessary to carry out calculations that will be the key to rational use of the budget. It is necessary to determine the area that will be covered with laminate. If it is only one room, then it is enough to multiply the width by the length. In the case of several rooms, you will need to calculate the area of each and the numbers are summed up. After this, you need to accurately determine the type and size of the laminate that will be used for installation. It is important to know the size of one laminate plank. This will allow you to calculate its area. The next step is to calculate the number of strips required. To do this, the total area of the premises is divided by the area of one plank. Next, the total number of planks is divided by that contained in one package.
After determining the total number of packages, you need to make a reserve of 10%. It will help out if the laminate planks are damaged or something goes wrong. After purchasing laminate flooring, it cannot be installed immediately. It is important that the laminate is acclimatized. This usually takes one day, but it may take more. During this time, it acquires the temperature and humidity of the room in which it will be installed.
Tool
Everyone lays laminate flooring using their own tools; if this is a one-time procedure, then there is no need to purchase expensive power tools and you can get by with the following units:
- mallet;
- styling hook;
- roulette;
- fine-tooth hacksaw;
- spacer pegs;
- marking tool.
If the installation will be carried out constantly, then you can additionally acquire a miter saw. It will allow you to cut the laminate at a precisely specified angle and with minimal damage to the surface.
Laying methods
When purchasing a laminate, it is important to choose the right class. Those that start with 2 are intended for rooms with a small load, so for passage rooms such as hallways and corridors it is better to take class 33; for the bedroom and guest room you can stop at class 31. Everything will depend on the price. The next step is to choose the direction of laying the laminate relative to the window and correctly implement the project.
Choosing a direction
The choice of direction for laying the laminate is determined by several factors:
- number of windows;
- location of windows;
- room parameters;
- laminate design.
If laying laminate is being done for the first time, then it is better to choose the method of laying perpendicular to the window. The advantage of this type of laminate installation is that the light from the window falls on the slats parallel to the seams of the laminate. This allows you to hide their presence. Thanks to this approach, the laminate floor appears monolithic. This also allows you to hide some flaws that may be made when laying the laminate. At the same time, the laminate boards look monolithic, which creates a certain charm. If the laminate is embossed, then this incidence of light will further emphasize the texture of the laminate board. However, it is better not to use this installation method for low-class laminate. The reason is that it wears out at the joints, which will ruin its appearance.
Pay attention! When choosing this method of laying laminate flooring, you should pay attention to the configuration of the room. If the window is on a larger wall and on a smaller one, then this approach will lengthen the room even more.
The next option for laying the laminate in relation to the window would be a parallel arrangement of the slats. The reason for its choice may be the location of the window in the room, as discussed above. This installation method is also chosen in narrow rooms where light comes from the next room. This method of laying laminate allows you to emphasize the texture of the planks in a special way. This creates a feeling of an uneven surface. This option for arranging laminate boards is also suitable for laying mixed lamellas. Some may be glossy, while others may be matte.
Advice! For walk-through rooms in the best possible way Laying the laminate will be laid according to the direction of movement. In this way, it will be possible to achieve a long service life due to minimal abrasion of the laminate planks at the seams.
If the windows are arranged in a mixed manner, then you can lay the laminate diagonally. At the same time, the room acquires elusive lines. The gaze goes along the laminate not up or down, but to the corner of the room. To further accentuate the corner, a table or fireplace is placed in it. The angle of laying laminate in this way is within 40-60 degrees. Diagonal laying of laminate flooring is considered the most uneconomical, since a lot of waste remains from the laminate planks.
Installation process
The installation process requires due attention and skill, which is acquired as the work progresses. It is better to start from the far corner of the room and move towards the exit. Most often, laminate flooring is laid from left to right. The prepared surface is covered with a lining. If the laminate is laid on a concrete floor, then additional waterproofing in the form of a film is required, which is laid according to the pattern as described above. The lining can be made of foamed polyethylene or cork. An overlap is made between its individual sheets, and the joints are taped. The tenon of the first laminate strip is cut off to make it easier to place parallel to the wall.
A gap of 5 mm is made between the wall and the plank. To make it easier to store, plastic pegs are used. The first row is completely assembled and placed in its designated place. If it becomes obvious that the last plank will need to be cut by more than half, then it makes sense not to start with the whole part, but to divide the size of the final plank in half and lay the short one. The size of the first laminate strip in the second row should be selected in such a way as to ensure interlocking seams. After laying each plank, it must be tapped with a rubber mallet using a metal bracket. To get around pipes and other protrusions, you will need to make a hole with a jigsaw. A video about the installation technology can be viewed below.
Resume
As you can see, the choice of direction for laying the laminate is determined by many factors. According to the designer's idea, the styling pattern may contradict generally accepted rules. This is required to achieve a certain effect or to match the arrangement of furniture, which will compensate for the dimensions of the room.
To solve the difficult problem of how to lay laminate flooring in a narrow corridor, you should thoroughly understand the properties of this excellent material and its ability to optically change the perception of the surrounding space,
Quantity calculator
This is especially important when laying floor coverings in architecturally complex rooms.
The high strength of the coating, excellent abrasion resistance and fairly good moisture resistance allow you to successfully use laminate to lay the floor in a hallway or corridor, and the variety of colors and textures of this material allows you to solve the most complex design problems.
How to properly lay the floor in a narrow and long corridor to compensate for the lack of natural light and visually change the perception of space. It turns out to be very simple, you just need to fulfill a few conditions:
- Avoid purchasing flooring with a very pronounced narrow longitudinal pattern, and use models in the form of a wide board, with a monochromatic pattern or in the form ceramic tiles;
- Choose the right installation direction to visually change the space;
- Take into account the location, nature and intensity of light sources, because some types of lighting contribute to the “appearance” of seams between the coating slabs on the surface;
- Be very careful when choosing a color, taking into account that a lighter tone visually expands the room
- Due to the increased load on the floor, it should be remembered that installation is only possible on a high-quality substrate of minimal thickness and very carefully prepared surface of the screed or subfloor.
Surface preparation
In order to install laminate flooring in a high-quality manner in a narrow and long room, it is necessary to take the preparation of the screed very seriously and, if necessary, putty the surface, and given that this is a corridor with a large load on the coating, it is best to do finishing layer using a self-leveling mortar that guarantees minimal shrinkage and high strength.
Select the underlay for the laminate with a minimum thickness to ensure the least shrinkage in areas with maximum load. It is best if it is a cork that is not afraid of moisture and has excellent springing ability. If the installation is carried out on a correctly selected substrate and a perfectly flat screed, this does not allow the coating slabs to bend, which additionally masks the seams and improves appearance floor.
Along or across?
There is an opinion that in a long narrow corridor it is best to lay the laminate across the room so as not to visually lengthen it even more. But as reviews show, this statement is only partly true, because a narrow and long pattern placed across it will not add beauty to the coating and balance the perception of the room as a whole.
You can lay a plain laminate across, a covering in the form of a wide board with a uniform texture, and a laminate in the form of ceramic tiles, which is also somewhat wider than the traditional one, which is ideal for such complex rooms.
A laminated coating with a small, uniform pattern or imitating porcelain stoneware can be placed on the floor and along the room, especially if such a long and narrow corridor may end with a window, the light from which falls on the laminate at a certain angle, revealing the tile seams. In this case, you should definitely take into account the rule that laying laminate flooring in a corridor or other room with a window should be done so that the long seams are parallel to the incident rays of light.
Neither along nor across
But what if you need to put laminate flooring in an L-shaped corridor? Here, the method of laying boards diagonally or in a herringbone pattern, well known since the times of parquet floors, comes to the rescue, which, firstly, creates an original pattern, secondly, does not visually narrow the space and, thirdly, allows the use of a more varied coating texture.
Of course, you have to put up with a lot of waste, but light laminate flooring in a narrow corridor, laid diagonally, creates that balanced perception of the room, which is clearly visible in the photo.
Variety of colors
The color palette of the laminate flooring should not only be in harmony with the overall style of the room, but also meet some specific requirements.
You should not put either very light or very dark laminate on the floor in the corridor, which will require more frequent wet cleaning, which will negatively affect the durability of the coating. The light laminate in the hallway in the photo from various angles looks very respectable, but on such a coating traces of dirt carried on shoes are very visible, on a dark coating traces of dried water will be very clearly visible, but a floor of restrained gray or beige tones is the optimal solution for a corridor or hallway
Having finished preparing the surface and choosing the color and pattern of the coating, you can lay the laminate on the floor, taking into account a few simple recommendations:
- Before laying laminate in the hallway, the material should be kept in this room for 48 hours for acclimatization.
- Laying begins with careful marking and the most accurate placement of the first three strips, which will serve as the basis for the future coating;
- The parts of the covering are connected in a checkerboard pattern, and the lock on the short side is snapped after the long side of the strips are aligned;
- Since the corridor is a room subject to significant changes in temperature and humidity, installation is carried out with a mandatory gap between the wall and the covering to compensate for the linear expansion of the material. The easiest way to maintain the gap is with a removable strip, which is dismantled after installation;
- When placing laminate crosswise, you should not use very short pieces of board at the edges in order to save material. This reduces the strength of the coating, which is unacceptable in a room such as a corridor.
As reviews show, laminated coating in narrow and long corridors is the maximum effective way installation of durable, wear-resistant floors with a minimum amount of waste, which is laid on any type of subfloor, which is impossible when using ceramic tiles or linoleum. Laying a laminate floor shown in the video is so simple that if you have the necessary tool and with the proper level of accuracy can be done independently.
