Have you been wondering why the laminate flooring in your home didn't last as long as expected? Read on and discover some of the installation mistakes that could have affected the service life of that material. Use this information to hire an experienced professional to replace the flooring instead of undertaking that project yourself.

Installation of Warm or Cold Flooring

It is wrong to install laminate flooring as soon as it is delivered to your address. This is because the flooring may have contracted or expanded due to the temperature it was exposed to during transportation. You will, therefore, be installing a flooring material that isn't in its proper dimensions. It can then crack or warp rapidly once it adjusts after installation. It is better to keep the laminate flooring for several days so that it can acclimate to the installation environment. You can then install it correctly once it has regained its proper dimensions.

Not Leaving Expansion Allowances

Laminate flooring can also degrade quickly if the installer didn't leave sufficient space for the material to expand around the edges of the rooms. How much expansion space is enough? Different areas experience different temperature fluctuations. Considerable skill is therefore needed to determine how much space to leave for this periodic expansion.  Areas that have high humidity levels may require a larger gap because the laminate flooring is likely to expand more due to the absorption of moisture.

Allowing Gaps Between Planks

High-quality laminate flooring is made with grooves which help to lock each plank onto the next to minimise gaps during the installation process. However, some manufacturers don't create this provision in the laminate flooring. Consequently, some gaps may remain during the installation. Those gaps can keep widening as the planks drift away from each other. This defect can eventually cause the flooring to fail once the gaps widen so much that the edges are no longer able to expand as temperatures rise. Planks can be knocked to return them to their original positions. Blunt mallets, especially those made from rubber, can perform this role. This method can prevent the flooring from separating and failing.

The discussion above reveals that two major factors (the quality of the materials and the installation methods used) can determine the performance of laminate flooring. Work with a company that provides building supplies to find a way around those issues so that your laminate flooring lasts without developing any defects shortly after installing it.