Where to start installing your wood flooring?

A good start is the path to a perfect finish. Make sure your flooring installation goes as smoothly as possible, saving you both time and materials. Installing your wooden flooring is simple, but before you begin, make sure you’re well prepared. After that, just follow these straightforward steps.

1. Start by measuring the room. This helps you avoid waste and prevents you from having to work with lots of small, narrow pieces when finishing up. Small pieces make the floor not only less attractive but also less stable. Measure the width of the room and divide it by the width of the planks to determine how many rows of full planks you will need. Divide the remaining measurement between two planks, which you will lay at the edges of each side of the room.
2. Open several boxes and check your planks for damage. If you find a floorboard that is cracked or damaged like this one, don’t throw it away. You can still use part of it as the first plank of a new row.
3. Don’t start directly against the wall. Mark reference points on the wall where you’ll be laying your first full row (row #2). The width of the first and last row should be at least 5 cm.Mark a reference line on the subfloor between the reference points on the wall.
   
   
   Follow this guide to ensure your floor straight:
   
   
   • The length of the first and last panel of a row should be more than 20 cm. Make sure to alternate your alignment so that the end joints of panels in adjacent rows are never line up. There must be at least 30 cm between them.
   • Install the first two rows (row #2 and #3) away from the wall (as walls are rarely perfectly straight) and do your cutting work there. Align your rows with the reference points on the wall and the subfloor/underlay. Install the panels one by one, alternating between rows #2 and #3, so that each panel has both the short and long side locked before you install the next one (do not lock only the short side). After fitting three rows, go back and lay the split plank positioned at the edge closest to the wall.
   • When installing your row (row #1) against the wall, always saw off the click profile and make sure to cut the panel so that it follows the shape of the wall. To mark the saw line so it matches the wall’s contours, place the plank you want to cut on top of the first full plank you laid. Hold a pen against one side of the piece and place the other end against the wall. Slide it along the wall as you draw a line on the plank you want to cut.
   • Click it into place at an angle of 20–30 degrees. Press the short side down. Slide the panels together horizontally. You may use a tapping block if needed. Knock it firmly into place using a pull bar. Place spacers between the panels and the wall to ensure the correct expansion gaps.
   • Once this is done, you can start working directly from the floor.

Learn more:

• Discover all Quick-Step hardwood flooring

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