Laminate flooring is modern flooring. This material is often chosen for finishing the floor in an apartment or in a house. By popularity, the laminate only loses to linoleum. Now you can find a lot of varieties of laminate flooring. But today we’ll not talk about choosing a laminate. What tool is needed for its installation? The work is simple, but requires preliminary preparation. If all the tools are at hand, the process will go much faster.
Features of work
This is not to say that laying a laminate is something very complicated. No, this is not so, especially if you already have experience in this matter. The main point in such work is strict adherence to technology and a good tool. In this case, you do not need to invent anything, because everything has already been invented before you, carefully checked and approved. Lay the laminate exactly as experts and instructions recommend.
Saving on tools can very sadly result in poor quality work or damage to material. Consider this fact when you plan to abandon some tool, so as not to spend extra money.
Also note that the installation of the laminate may vary depending on the type of material itself and the type of panel mounting locks.
Expendable materials
In addition to the tool, certain consumable building materials will be required . With them, the process of laying a laminate is more convenient and faster, and maybe even more correct. Here is a list of the main consumables:
- Special film for waterproofing flooring.
- A skein of (one or more) masking paper tape.
- The usual wide adhesive tape (2-3 pcs.) For gluing the joints of the substrate under the laminate.
- The substrate itself under the laminate (there are many types, choose depending on the technical characteristics of the room, financial capabilities).
- Sealant and gun for him.
- Special mix for the floor (leveling).
Laminate Laying Tool
Your main tool will be a jigsaw, it is advisable to take a model with a power of at least 500 W from a well-known manufacturer from the middle price category. In general, a jigsaw is not a very expensive tool, in this case you can spend money on it, if there is such an opportunity. In addition to the jigsaw, you will also need other tools, among them:
- Hacksaw. It will be required if you are not using a jigsaw.
- A mallet for tamping lamellas.
- Roulette. Five meter will do.
- Stationery knife (sharp). It is necessary for cutting the substrate and other small works.
- A simple pencil or marker. It is better to take with a soft or medium hard lead. Laminate is marked with a pencil.
- A square for marking working materials (it is preferable to take a tool at least 30-40 cm in length).
- Protractor (regular, school) or goniometer. Useful for laying the laminate diagonally.
- Drill or screwdriver. It will be needed if you cover the floor with sheets of plywood under the laminate (it is more convenient to work with battery models).
These are basic general purpose tools. In addition to them, you will also need auxiliary highly specialized ones: drill-feathers, a clamp, restrictive wedges, a pad block. We have provided a complete list of laminate flooring tools. Some people do without this or that tool, but you must decide for yourself.
Clamp
This highly specialized tool is needed for laying the extreme lamellas of the laminate, placed along the walls of the room. The tool is a kind of bracket. It is needed to align the extreme panels, which, in turn, helps to evenly distribute the load on the coating. It is advisable to take clamps no thinner than 0.5 cm. If the tool is thinner, it will quickly become worthless.
Pad block
It is easy to understand from the name of the instrument why it is needed. A bar is tamped with each panel. Using such a tool, you will not damage the locks. As a rule, a tamping block is not too expensive, so you should not save on it when buying a tool for a laminate. You will lose more time and money if, abandoning this bar, damage the lock on the laminate panel.
A bar (pad) is made of wood or plastic. Buy not the cheapest options, the weight of the bar should be between 1.4-1.6 kg. When knocking them out, always pay attention to the fact that its face applied to the laminate is absolutely even. If any defects appear on the bar, then it must be urgently changed, otherwise this will damage the panels.
Feather drill
They are needed for precise and very accurate hole making for pipes of radiators, as well as, possibly, for other pipelines of engineering systems. The diameter of the holes is drilled with a margin. The stock should be at least 5 mm. This tool is necessary for everyone, because a good set of such drills will then be useful to you more than once during other repairs.
Modern tools
They can significantly facilitate your work and replace many other tools necessary for laying the laminate. Let's consider such modern solutions in more detail. Some of them are quite expensive. However, one must remember that you invest in quality. In addition, using them, save time and effort. It’s worth thinking about buying such a tool when, for example, you plan to cover the entire apartment with a laminate, rather than one room.
PVC floor plate cutter
The machine silently saws the laminate and does not emit dust during such work. Such a machine replaces a hacksaw or electric jigsaw. The cut line is always flat. The blade of the machine has a special structure. It is relatively inexpensive. Do you need such a tool for laying laminate or not - decide for yourself.
Automatic square
Such a device will help you quickly, simply and accurately measure the angle between any contacting walls, and you can transfer this result to the laminate panel without any problems. As a rule, a scale with degrees on such automatic angles starts at 30 degrees. Is this laminate tool mandatory? Not. However, this is a very convenient device, eliminating errors and simplifying work.
Layout Template
This fixture will help you outline the place to cut in the last row of laminate panels. It’s completely optional equipment, but for the convenience of work, having one in stock will not hurt. Replaces a classic measuring tool. If we turn to the reviews, then this tool has a good rating and it is recommended to purchase it to perform this kind of work.
Contour bends and shapes
The device is designed for simple and quick marking of all necessary cutting lines on the laminate panel. The device helps in the projection of complex geometric shapes and their further application on the lamellas of the material, for example, this is necessary for further figured cutting. Actual if you make some cutouts for decorative elements and more. You can create interesting design solutions. This is clearly an optional equipment, but sometimes it can be very useful.
Buy or rent
Sometimes a DIY tool for laying laminate is easier to rent than to buy. People who provide this tool for rent can be found on the announcement on the relevant resources. Also, sometimes construction stores rent all the necessary tools for rent. Before deciding which is better, buying or renting, you need to clearly assess the amount of work and calculate the time required to complete it. Do not forget about a small supply, because unforeseen circumstances or difficulties may arise. Ultimately, you decide for yourself which option is more profitable.
Also, if you are not completely sure that you will cope with the task, it may be worth entrusting the work of laying the laminate to professionals. At a minimum, you will be able to look at the whole process of work and gain the necessary experience, so that later you can independently carry out such work.
Summarizing
Today we learned what tools are needed for a laminate when laying it. Of course, you yourself will determine the need for each of them. Based on experience, we recommend that you do not give up such specialized tools as a clamp and a timbing block. These are inexpensive devices that will greatly simplify your work. If your budget allows, it is better not to abandon the above tool at all. If it is limited, then think carefully, perhaps some tools can be abandoned by replacing them with something else.
The main thing when laying the laminate is the qualification of the employee and adherence to the technology. And whether the person carrying out the work will have the basic set of tools for laying the laminate, expanded or complete, is not so important. The absence of an item can affect speed, but should not affect the quality of work.
For example, the tool with which it is made does not affect the result of cutting the laminate. Observing the technology, you can do this with a hacksaw, a jigsaw or a special cutter. In this case, which tool for laying the laminate you choose will only affect the timing of the work.
Another point that is important. When answering the question about what tool is needed for laying a laminate, we recall that more expensive does not always mean better. Of course, do not give preference to suspiciously cheap instruments of dubious origin. Try to choose a medium-price instrument, if possible.