Interlocking laminate flooring puzzler

[unluckypixie]

Hi all!

I'm about to lay laminate flooring in our hallway and I have a question re the door frames. In the other rooms we cut the laminate around the door frame, this cutting was mostly covered by the trim over the join between the flooring but is less than perfect I would say.

This was ok because those rooms only had 1 doorway, my hallway has 3. I have also since read that you are "supposed" to cut the bottom of the frame and slot the laminate underneath. This makes sense if you are laying solid wood floors but the laminate stuff has to be clipped together in a whole row and then that row clipped to the previous and lowered to the floor - how can that operation be achieved while slotting it underneath the doorframe?!

Also a more simple question - is there a standard as to which way the floor boards should be layed with regards to a front door? i.e. lengthways or perpendicular to it? I know normally the board is run along the longest lenght of the room but the hall is quite small and almost square (maybe 2m x 2m).

If I chose to run the floor through into the downstairs loo (which at some point does need a floor!) how would I go around/under the frame and should the boards be going across the doorway or is the other way acceptable? Is it even possible to continue the flooring seamlessly through a doorway I guess you have to stop and have a join so there is an expansion gap?

Finally, if I put the floor down then use the skirting to cover the expansion gap (there is currently no skirting in the room it's just been plastered). Then does this mean if we ever need to change the floor we'd have to rip the skirting off? Any tricks I could do to plan ahead for this?

Thanks

Dave

 

[WoodYouLike]

Oh the pleasures you have with "easy to install" click systems (be it laminated, wood-engineered or solid) - give me standard T&G any time!
You'll have to cut off the click bit of the last row otherwise you'll never get the last board in - and indeed undercut the door frames.

Install the boards in the direction that is most eye pleasing when you come in your home - use your aesthetic opinion to decide which way it will looks best.

And yes, there is a great chance if you change your floorcovering later you will have to remove your skirtingboards again

 

[unluckypixie]

got it all sorted. I realised that I needed to put the last piece under the door frame and slide it into it's expansion gap to give me enough space to drop the second row behind it.

Just as I was pondering this plan a guy came to give me a quote for windows, turns out he was an ex wooden floor fitter so he quickly dropped in the last couple of rows for me!

Now the wife thinks that this guy is brilliant for "doing her floor" and doesn't believe me that he did exactly what I was planning to do! (only maybe slightly faster and with less care)

It looks good anyway. I'm glad I undercut all the doors it certainly helps the finish.