Hey everyone! My wife and I live in an 1100 sq ft house built in the 80s. Right now, there's carpet everywhere, including the kitchen, and with our dogs, it's become pretty hard to keep clean. We're thinking about replacing it with laminate flooring, but I'm a complete novice—my flooring experience is limited to just moving rugs around! I know how to handle some power tools, so I'm wondering if anyone else with zero flooring experience has managed to install their own flooring successfully. I'm looking for encouragement to give it a go or warnings to steer clear. Thanks a lot!
3 Answers
I just tackled 1300 sq ft of LVP myself. It'll be tough on your body, so be prepared for sore knees and back! It took a few days stretched over weeks, and honestly, if I could do it again, I might just pay someone to save the hassle. But you'll definitely save money doing it yourself if you're up for the challenge!
Removing carpet isn't too tough, and you'll just need to handle some staples. I recommend going with LVP (Luxury Vinyl Plank) since it holds up better with pets. You can totally achieve this with a miter saw or even a straight blade. It might take a bit of practice to get everything looking perfect, but you'll learn as you go. Just dive in!
If you have dogs, LVP is definitely the way to go. It’s quite easy to install yourself, the trick is making sure your subfloor is flat before you start. Check out the tons of YouTube videos available for a step-by-step guide—doing your own flooring is totally feasible with some research!
Totally agree! It’s a big job, but it can save you a lot of cash if you have the time and patience to do it right.