Direction for laminate - L-shaped room

[ginola]

I know the recommendation for laminating a L shaped room is to lay the laminate in one direction, however our situation has a couple of complications:

The L shaped hall (room 1) is parallel to another room (room 2) that is also laminated, the rooms have an adjoining doorway.

Room 2 has laminate laid parallel to the wider, but much shorter, part of the hall. But the longer part of the hall is at 90 degrees to this.

So according to all advice I have found, the laminate in room 1 should be laid parallel to that in room 2, so this would be lengthways for the wider but shorter part of room 1.

But this would mean that the laminate would be laid across the longer part of the hall, which is about 20' long! This would look odd.

So advice on how to lay the laminate in room 2 would be very welcome.

Untitled

• ginola
• 6 Jul 2012
• 1

 

[mysteryman]

The advice is to have the natural light from the window shining along the planks, but I chose to do it the other way. After a few weeks, the joints became a bit too obvious, where I suppose the edges have lifted very slightly. I may have hammered them together too vigorously, or maybe a bit of damp has caused it.

Best to follow the manufacturer's instructions. Otherwise, do it the way that pleases you best. I chose to fit it the way it would have been if it were a suspended floor with the joists spanning the shorter way. I was wrong.

 

[ginola]

the only natural light in room 1 is at the very end, so that would also mean that the planks should be laid lengthways, but that would go against the instruction to keep them parallel to those in room 2.

I think they have to be laid lengthways down the corridor, but then they would be 90 degrees to those in the adjoing room, which would not look good.

 

[PaulJR]

How about using a threshold trim and changing direction in the doorway?

tried to hotlink an image but it failed

http://www.flooringsupplies.co.uk/s...ange/accessorytype/price/fscstatus/door trims

 

[ginola]

All instructions I've read say that you shouldn't change direction at a doorway as it wouldn't look right. Maybe I'm being too pedantic?

 

[crazydaze]

Your issue is purely cosmetic, lay toward the light source for the best results, lay the other way to keep all floors running the same way, your choice, it won't affect the performance of the floor at all.

 

[ginola]

Ah, sorry, I didn't mean to suggest that this issue is anything but cosmetic.

I suppose my question should have been; Do you not think that laying the laminate across room 1 for this length would look odd, or will running the laminate at a right angle to an adjoining room look odd?

Which way would look less wrong?

 

[crazydaze]

Would personally work with the light source, that way you will get the best possible look in that room, it's only the doorway area that you may notice the floor running a different direction, depends if you have a real OCD for it all to run in the same direction or not?

I've seen lots of properties with the floors running in different directions, often the householder hasn't really noticed it and rarely questions it unless it 'bugs' them. It's a very personal decision with no right or wrong answer.

 

[ginola]

OK fair enough, so laying laminate in a different direction to an adjacent room wouldn't be as bad as the instructions claim it would be.

We are selling the place though, hence it's useful to get other's opinions; do you think running the laminate across the long length would look wrong (regarding the light, there is an exterior door, with glass, at each end of the L-shape)?

 

[kjacko]

Personally, i'd do it lengthways so its perpendicular to room 2 and let the threshhold strip be the dividing line.
If you did it across the long hallway, unless i'm wrong there would be nothing to 'tie' the planks together so to speak. Lengthways at least you get the brickwork pattern to give strength to it.
Or does that not matter on floors?
I've done about 10 floors in different houses in rooms of all differeng sizes. I have laid floor at right angles to each other where the door threshhold is. Didn't cause an issue.

 

[crazydaze]

So long as you use the correct laminate to laminate door threshold strip, it won't make a scrap of difference to the performance of either floor.