Oh, what a horrible day you have had. Can you just lay back for a couple of days and try again to get Lauren's help?

I don't know if it's ever going to work, though. I just realized, though, that Lowes will probably take back the unused boxes. I won't have to try and sell them.

Our contractor has been installing laminate in our house and works by himself. It doesn't look hard to do, but we haven't got the equipment or the health to do it ourselves. Are you putting a foam cushion material under the laminate? Did you leave the flooring in your house a couple of days to acclimatize it? You are brave to try it. Frankly you will be much happier with laminate than stick on tiles and it will raise the value of your house over tiles. It would be worth it to get a handyman from Lowes or elsewhere to do it for you.

The laminate has been in my house for a couple months. The backing is attached to this type of laminate. I don't want to wait that long, though. I don't want to live in a house with particle board flooring for months.

I then tried to work on it myself and there's no way to hold the boards by myself and cut them with a jigsaw
I can't even imagine taking on a job like that with a jigsaw.

A Craftsman Compound Miter Saw would make sawing the pieces a breeze by yourself. Might you know anyone who has one you could borrow for the job?

Here is a link that might be useful: Just $60 at Sears

Maybe in a day or so Lauren will help you. Perhaps she is just having a bad day.
I do have a hint about cutting; if you use a C clamp to hold the board you are cutting onto a table or sawhorse it works better than just holding onto it. Perhaps you could do some research and find some utube videos about laminate flooring and maybe pick up some hints to help you finish the job.
My husband died 9 months ago and that is what I sometimes do because I have had to learn to do a lot of things myself.
Hope it works out for you.

OK, you are tired, disappointed and upset. So take a deep breath, have a glass of wine and cool down.

I haven't installed it, but my BIL, not a carpenter, just reasonably handy, has put it in more than one room by himself. Including a laundry with the odd shaped plumbing and drain pipes running down the wall behind the washer and floor vented dryer.

You're already frustrated, can I ask if you've watched a U-tube video or two on installing without really p*ssing you off ;) Home Depot even has their own...

I really think you'd like the laminate over press down tiles. Do you usually work well with Lauren, making this an oddity where she really does not feel well? Because if this is a 17 yr old just showing some attitude, she's old enough to cooperate, physically and attitude both.

Do you have a friend who could lend a hand, or at least pour the wine and cheer you on. This doesn't look that complicated, why don't you take a break from it and see if you aren't re-energized tomorrow. I'm sorry if I missed something coming up, but what's the Sunday deadline, what's the worst that could happen if not done by Sunday...

For some reason, I hate to see you settle for something else. Take a deep breath, unwind a little and give it some more thought. I don't have the laminate floors but I've seen some recently that are so lovely - and practical too.

Here is a link that might be useful: If you've seen this 10 times already don't throw one of those planks at me

If the wrong saw is part of the problem, you can rent just about anything from cement mixers to hand tools for a minimal cost....this is a small town and even we have a tool rental outfit.

Chemcurl, we have a big saw for sawing the boards across but you can't use it to cut out pieces for the register.

Rose, we are using cement blocks with towels to protect the laminate, to cut on. I have no saw horses. I've been watching you tube videos for months now. I know how to do it but it's not working. not sure if it's us or the product. They keep coming apart. Lauren thinks she can do it when she feels better but I have my doubts. I'm just fed up.

Morz8, it's times like these I wish I did drink, but I don't. lol. Lauren is having bad cramps...didn't want to say it here but that's why she's in a bad mood...and yesterday she smashed her finger with the mallet used to tap the boards together. She has a nasty blood blister on the anterior part of her index finger, making it uncomfortable for her to work.

My original plan was to use the press on tiles for a few years until I could afford laminate...including having someone else do the work. I let her talk me into to buying the laminate and installing it ourselves. Dumb idea. I would have had this done two months ago if I had just bought the tile. I have to go back to work on Monday. I work long hours as a nurse and it drains what energy I have to work around the house when I'm off. That's why Sunday is it. I leave the house at 5 or 5:30 am and don't get home unitl 8:30 or 9:00 at night. When I have a day off, I sleep late and lay around in my pjs most of the day. The next day is usually running errands, doing laundry, and running the kid around.

Kath, slow down! BREATHE! In, out, in, out!

Yes, you can do it. If my friend Esther can, so can you.

Esther is using concrete blocks to hold the boards tight, till she gets to the other end of the room, where they then no longer be able to move.

She just sets them on the concrete, against the boards.

Check out the you tube video again.

I have confidence in you. You can do it!

Moni

Moni, I saw one video where they put down the unopened boxes but then forgot about it. I'm just so frustrated. So happy last night that we were finally making progress to then today's mess.

Kath-where do you live?? If it isn't too far away I could loan you Tony & DS Sam,to work on your floor.

Be sure you are for following directions for the exact laminate flooring you have because they are definitely not all the same. We have done our formal living room with it and once we went back and had them tell us exactly how to do the type we had it was a breeze. Before that we were where you are about to throw it out. Each type has a very specific way to click in and should not take any hammer actions once we learned that we never touched the hammer again. Ours also has the foam built on the board but since we were putting it right onto cement we had to first put down a plastic sheeting underlayment to prevent moisture.
Starting the first row correctly will make all the difference in whether it lays right or not.
The best saw to use for cutting those types of cut is a Dremmel tool with the right blade. It is very easy to use with one person.
If you don't have a laminate floor pull bar tool go get one before you get Started again. This is one at Lowes it's the one we have. This makes the job so much easier.

Here is a link that might be useful: Blue Hawk Wood and Laminate Floor Pull Bar

I have never installed laminate floor, but I do have a few tips about the jigsaw.
1. clamping is a good idea.
2. put masking tape over the area you want to cut. Draw your cut-out on the tape. The tape helps prevent splintering.
3. Make sure your blade is sharp
4. make sure you are running saw at full speed. Slowing the reciprocation down causes the wood to catch and vibrates with the saw, making for rough, uneven cuts.

About the boards popping up...can you stand on them and work on the new piece with your backside to the work you've already put down?

I hope today goes better for you!

Make sure you are installing it in the right direction for the product you have! We had fits with our living room, same as you. Watched video after video, ruined several boards. We were starting in the top left corner of the room, working towards the right and down.

Guess what? We SHOULD have been working from the top RIGHT corner and working towards the left. Once we changed it went much faster, although DH didn't want to go back and fix the first two rows so there is a section still in the floor that doesn't fit right (and I can't stand it LOL).

Dances.

Time to regroup. Start fresh. Bring a board to Home Depot and ask them to help you figure out what is going wrong. They will be happy to assist you. DH laid it by himself in 3 rooms several years ago. He said it was very easy except for the trim. I wouldn't know where to start. I am not handy at all. I give you credit for tackling this. You are getting great tips. Maybe you could call the manufacturer as well.

We talked to the Lowes people before we even bought the laminate, he gathered all the tools, except the jigsaw. I also went back and bought more spacers because I didn't think we had enough. Have the pull bar, etc....

Ravencajun, the boards click in at lengthwise but the ends then have to be tapped together. They don't go in otherwise.

Orchidlauraga, I live in Kentucky...if ga stands for Georgia, I think we are too far away, thanks anyway.

When I did a floating, click-together cork floor in our rental house last year, one thing I did that helped was to take a piece of scrap board, perhaps 4in x 4in, with the edge intact, and screw a piece of 2x4 to it to use as tapping block.

Once a piece was mostly in place, I would put the tapping block in place and tap it the 2x4 lightly with a hammer until the piece clicked firmly into place. Since the block perfectly matches the profile of the piece on which it attaches, it greatly reduces the chances of damaging the piece.

I also remember putting small spaced blocks around the walls to stop the boards from sliding during installation, and to ensure the required gaps were maintained around the edges.

good luck.

Bless your heart. How nice of Orchid to offer to help, even if she is too far away. I know the frustration....I hope you are able to re-group and get this done. Hugs to you.

Kathy
We are all pulling for you. Hope our good wishes and thoughts enable you to get this done.