Laminate Floor Expansion Gap Size

When laying laminate flooring it is essential that you leave at least a 10 12mm expansion gap around the perimeter of the floor.
Laminate floor expansion gap size. The gap should be a minimum of 5 16 of an inch 8 mm. This space allotment is referred to as an expansion gap. Without an expansion gap laminate floors would buckle as the material took on moisture in the air. Laminate floor expansion joint size.
When you install laminate flooring you must leave a 3 8 inch space on both sides of the transition molding. What size expansion gap is required for laminate flooring. It is an essential gap that must be left around the edge of the room when fitting hardwood bamboo or laminate flooring. A civil engineer 9 jan 2017.
Laminate floor expansion gap. Expert installers say that the larger the space the larger the expansion gap should be as the floor needs more space to expand and contract with temperature. Hen laying laminate flooring it is important to remember to leave a gap around the edge of the room whether it be walls fireplaces doorways or even radiator piping. Floors stairs and lofts.
An expansion gap is a term used when fitting wooden flooring. Expansion space must be left around fixed objects such as pipes cabinets fireplace hearths sliding glass door tracks floor outlets floor vents and thresholds. Typically laminate flooring calls for a. Stephenw 2 nov 2013 in forum.
This includes walls permanent cabinets pipes etc. The recommended expansion gap is a minimum of inch. The expansion gap should be around the whole perimeter of the room wherever the flooring may be against fixed objects such as walls doorways radiator pipes and fireplaces. Discussion in floors stairs and lofts started by roberta1000 8 jul 2008.
However you won t need to worry about any spaces around the perimeter of your installation. An expansion gap is necessary to provide breathing room for laminate to expand or contract when the weather is cold or warm. An expansion gap is essential when it comes to laminate flooring installation. If the proper expansion gap is not left during installation and the planks on the sides push up against the wall the pressure will cause planks elsewhere in the room to buckle.
Without the proper expansion space a floor may buckle and gap due to the normal expansion and contraction of the laminate floating floor. There are important reasons to do so and we will cover them in this article.