I have three questions about installing laminate flooring. I would appreciate any help with one or all of these questions.
1. We are installing laminate in our house and are having a hard time figuring out what direction it should go. Our front door opens into a large living room. There is a staircase to the right and then a hallway that leads to a family room. The hallway runs perpendicular to the living room and family room. Should we run the laminate with the long dimension extending inward from the front door (forcing the long axis of the laminate panels to be perpendicular to the length of the hallway) or the other way around? We've heard that it is more inviting, and makes the living room look bigger if the long axis of the laminate extends inward from the front door however we are concerned it may look strange to have the floor panels running perpendicular to the hallway.
2. We have a concrete subfloor. What sort of underlay should we put under the laminate?
3. My husband and I have differing opinions on whether to put laminate in the kitchen or not. I think that it would look nicer and flow better to have laminate across the entire lower floor of the house, including in the kitchen. My husband worries about the laminate getting ruined if the dishwasher breaks down and leaks. Can individual panels be replaced easy enough if they are damaged provided extra panels from the same lot are purchased when the floor is installed? Or is it really not a good idea to have laminate in a kitchen?
1. We are installing laminate in our house and are having a hard time figuring out what direction it should go. Our front door opens into a large living room. There is a staircase to the right and then a hallway that leads to a family room. The hallway runs perpendicular to the living room and family room. Should we run the laminate with the long dimension extending inward from the front door (forcing the long axis of the laminate panels to be perpendicular to the length of the hallway) or the other way around? We've heard that it is more inviting, and makes the living room look bigger if the long axis of the laminate extends inward from the front door however we are concerned it may look strange to have the floor panels running perpendicular to the hallway.
2. We have a concrete subfloor. What sort of underlay should we put under the laminate?
3. My husband and I have differing opinions on whether to put laminate in the kitchen or not. I think that it would look nicer and flow better to have laminate across the entire lower floor of the house, including in the kitchen. My husband worries about the laminate getting ruined if the dishwasher breaks down and leaks. Can individual panels be replaced easy enough if they are damaged provided extra panels from the same lot are purchased when the floor is installed? Or is it really not a good idea to have laminate in a kitchen?