Laminate floors are a beautiful addition to any home and can also increase the property’s value, especially if they use higher grades of flooring. When it comes to installing laminate flooring though, the question is whether you should do it yourself or get a professional to do it. There are pros and cons to each option, but it also depends a lot on your experience.

Laminate Floors: Professional Installation Pros

The main advantage to hiring a professional to do the job is that they have a lot of experience and also all the equipment required to do a great job. Installing laminate floors is often not as easy as some people think and they only discover the truth once they have already started the job. An experienced floor layer will be able to complete the project much quicker than you as well.

If a D.I.Y. Job goes wrong there is very little you can do about it other than sue yourself which is not exactly a solution. However a professional will give a guarantee so that if anything goes wrong due to faulty installation the layer must fix the problem at no charge to you.

Laminate Floors: Professional Installation Cons

The main disadvantage to having a professional do the job for you is that it will cost you a fair amount of money as floor installation is not a cheap service, if you want quality work of course. There are many things that can go wrong with the installation of laminate floors which a professional will be able to handle, so usually the cost offsets itself due to the time you will be saving.

Laminate Floors: D.I.Y. Pros

By installing the laminate floors yourself you will learn the procedure and be able to do it at a later date effortlessly. Another big pro to a D.I.Y. job is that you will be saving quite a bit of money which you would have otherwise paid out to the floor layer.

D.I.Y. Cons

The downside to a D.I.Y. Job is that if you have never laid laminate flooring before it is a skill that can take a while to perfect. In addition, it will probably take you a lot longer to get the job done compared to a professional because it is not a job that you can do in an afternoon. There is a lot of work involved from laying down the sub floor to cutting the laminate flooring to fit into all the nooks and crannies.

Of course, none of the above are applicable if you have installed laminate floors before and have a bit of experience under your belt.

In most cases, if you have the cash available, it is preferable to hire a professional because they know exactly what needs to be done from leaving spacers next to the wall to cutting the boards to the right length. Even though you may think installing laminate floors would be a fun project, you will soon regret trying to do it yourself because of the lack of experience.

About the Author:

Geoff is the proud new owner of a great little project house. As usual, he writes about his real life experiences and gives hints and tips along the way. The last job the wife got him to do was install laminate flooring in the kitchen and living room. Geoff doesn’t care so much because he hates area rugs on carpet and thinks the laminate looks pretty cool.