Now that our new floors are in, I want to share some more detail on the installation process, just in case you're considering a similar project in your own home.
We ordered our flooring from this BC-based company and I was really impressed with their customer service and quality of product (this isn't a sponsored post, by the way). Even with the cost of shipping and the pricey sealer we chose, it was still cheaper than going to a big box store, and their selection was bigger, too. We ordered LOTS of samples - for free - so we knew exactly what we were getting in terms of colour and pattern. I also worked closely with their sales manager to determine what type of flooring we wanted (floating? glue down?), how much we should order and how to time delivery so the flooring would have enough time to acclimate without us having to store it for too long (small house problems!). She was great at answering all of my questions and even walked me through the installation process over the phone.
So, with our flooring in hand, here's how installation went down!
Thursday p.m.: In a burst of energy, I removed all of the laminate flooring on Thursday evening after work. I went to bed exhausted, but happy for the head start.
Friday a.m.: Adam and Hannah dropped me off at work and drove to Adam's parents' house (his parents volunteered to watch Hannah for the weekend while we installed the floors). When Adam got home that afternoon, he pulled up two layers of linoleum and one layer of plywood in the kitchen to make that floor level with the living and dining room floor. I had assumed this would take forever and probably lead to some kind of disaster that required ripping up the entire subfloor, right down to the joists (with a few DIY projects under my belt, I now hope for the best and mentally prepare for the worst). It took around an hour and the subfloor underneath was in perfect condition. So yeah, I was totally kicking myself for removing all that laminate solo.
Friday p.m.: The floating cork floor we chose didn't require underlayment, but we decided to keep the existing foam underlayment in place. If anything it would add some extra insulation and cushion, right? We moved every last piece of furniture into either the garage or one of the upstairs bedrooms, and used cardboard to drag our fridge into the entry (we moved the stove with a borrowed dolly). And yet somehow we had enough energy to start installing the floor that night.
To lay the first row, we measured the distance between the longest uninterrupted wall and the chimney that divides the entire space, then used our table saw to rip the first row of planks to avoid a super narrow strip of flooring in the most visible part of the room. After that, it was just a matter of locking our planks together and knocking them into place. It takes a bit of finesse, but once you find your rhythm it moves along pretty quickly. I found it hard to get new planks in tight without accidentally knocking out the rest of the row, but strategically placed boxes of flooring worked wonders.
Saturday: We worked like dogs on Saturday to install as much flooring as possible. There were some tricky cuts (I'm a big fan of making paper templates to mark tricky cuts), but also plenty of open stretches where we could make up time. Still, it was tiring work and I admit to wanting to call it quits at least twice. Both times I tried to convince Adam (we have all day tomorrow, I just don't think I can do anymore) he was determined to keep going alone and I'm pretty competitive, so...
We also needed to add an extra layer of plywood to the area in front of the stairs to level the subfloor. We were able to use a piece we already owned, that Adam's band had apparently used as a screen printing test at some point. I like that we have an actual, hidden stamp on this house now :)
Sunday a.m.: We installed everything save two tiny rows the day before, so Adam finished installing the flooring while I packed our overnight bags and cleared the room. I even taped a few cords to the wall to get everything off the floor. When Adam was done, I swept and lightly mopped the entire floor. On Cancork's recommendation, we sealed the floor with Loba 2K Supra AT in a satin finish. It's a water based polyurethane designed for high-traffic commercial spaces, and it's supposed to be extremely scratch resistant. It was expensive, but we have a dog and a toddler, and we figured this wasn't the place to skimp on materials.
I was nervous about applying it, but the process is actually quite simple. You give the hardener a good shake before pouring it into the container of polyurethane, and shake again. Once it's combined, you have about two hours to roll it onto the floor before it hardens into plastic. Because it dries quickly, the sales manager recommended applying it in a typewriter motion: roll out one row, then immediately return to the start of your row and roll out the next.
Again on Cancork's recommendation, we let the sealer cure for three days before returning home. I didn't notice any fumes while applying it, so this was really just to let it cure completely. Adam's parents and my mom kindly put us up during that time - pets included. It helped that we installed the floor over a four-day weekend (Canada Day + 1 vacation day), so I only had to get ready for work at someone else's house once. The finished product has a slight sheen to it and it feels really durable. So far it's held up great to the dog's nails and Hannah's furniture pushing habit (the kid thinks everything's a stroller).
We had four boxes of flooring leftover, which is basically the amount of overage we ordered. Unlike the hardwood we installed upstairs, the colour and pattern variation was pretty minimal, so there was maybe only one unusable plank in the bunch. And we got lucky and ended up being able to use many of our 'scrap' pieces for other cuts, so there was very little waste overall. I'd rather be safe than sorry, especially since it's not like we could just run out to the store for more, and hopefully we'll be able to make a little money back by selling the leftovers. In fact, compared to the hardwood installation, the floating floor was significantly less time-consuming and less error-prone (but I guess our hardwood-laying experience helped).
So that's what worked for us and hopefully this helps if you're considering a similar project. We're really happy with the look and feel of the floor, and of course I'll let you know how it holds up over time.
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