Putting carpet over Laminate flooring may sound like an easy task, but there is more to it than most people think. If you’re planning on installing your new carpet over your old laminate, this ultimate guide might be of great help.
You can install Carpet over Laminate flooring without having to remove your flooring. However, it’s strongly advised not to do so because when you switch back to your existing Laminate floor, they may get damaged when removing the carpet.
You just saw this beautiful carpet, and you know this will suit perfectly in your living room, but you don’t want the hassle or the cost of removing your Laminate flooring. You are lucky because there is a way of installing your new carpet over your laminate without removing or even damaging it.
Should You Put Carpet Over Laminate Flooring?
Installing a carpet over your laminate floorboards is an option many consider doing. But many don’t really know if their laminate floor is suitable to have a carpet installed on it. The good news is, if your current laminate flooring has not deteriorated at all and is in excellent shape, then installing a carpet should be just fine.
When the time comes, and you wish to remove the carpet, you might end up damaging the underlying laminate flooring. This is because you may need to glue down the carpet on the laminate floorboards, making it nearly impossible to separate them without damaging the floorboards in the process.
The good part is that you can still reuse some old Laminate floorboards for another DIY project or another floor if enough is left. Or you can also try out some new things like using it on your shower walls if they are suitable for use. You can find more details in this article if you wish to know more about it.
Can you put any type of carpet on your Laminate flooring?
The best type of carpet that can be installed on top of Laminate flooring is one that is made of nylon fibers.
Pros of Putting Carpet Over Laminate Flooring
As with everything, there are cons and pros to installing carpet over Laminate flooring. The following are some of the advantages of installing carpet over your laminate floorboards.
- Savings
If you are on a limited budget, then the last thing you’d want to do is to spend more than you can afford. You don’t want to end up with an incomplete project because you’d realize somewhere in the middle that you won’t be able to finance the whole thing. Therefore, installing a carpet over your current Laminate flooring can be a cheap way to change the look of your room at a minimal cost.
- Time
Saving time is another vital factor you need to consider when starting a new project because, let’s face it, we all have pretty busy lives. It could be convenient just to tear out your floating laminate floorboards. However, removing panels can become tricky and tedious if glued down. So, installing carpet over it will make your life easier.
- Options
It might be possible that in the future, you will change your mind and want to go back to the old look. Installing carpet over your panels allows you to keep that option open. It also makes it easier for you to switch back whenever you want to. However, it’s important to remember that this option is only viable if you didn’t nail the tack strip down, damaging the laminate in the process.
Cons of Putting Carpet Over Laminate Flooring
Below are some of the cons of installing carpeting on your existing laminate floorboards.
Surface
The surface of the laminate is usually relatively smooth. While this is advantageous for you in several ways, it could also have downsides. When installed over laminate flooring, your carpeting could stretch or shift as time passes. Unless you think about re-stretching your carpeting for some time, you will end up with wrinkles and lumps on your floor.
It’ll ruin the aesthetic of your space, and it might even become a tripping hazard.
Elevation
Although laminate floorboards are relatively thin, their underlayment, the carpet’s padding, and carpeting can add layers to your room. Thus, transitioning from carpets to any floor in your homes, such as tile or laminate, could be challenging. While there are transitioning strips out there that you could use, the elevation could sometimes pose a problem. This is espeically the case when you decide to transition from flooring to stairs.
Cleaning
Another consideration to keep in mind is the cleanliness of your carpeting. It will need to be carried out from time to time for cleaning purposes. Suppose you spill something on your carpet, and it gets too wet. In that case, it’s probably best to handle it swiftly, or the padding may suffer significant damage. If neglected for too long, your laminate floorboards underneath would similarly suffer.
Limited Movement
Installing carpeting over your laminate floorboards also limits the floating floor’s movement. This entails that the panels will stay in place even when seasonal changes in humidity and temperature occur. The only way to prevent this is to ensure you do not install a tack strip and nail it to the subfloor. As a result, the floating floor will not be bound by anything.
What Tools Are Required to Put Carpet Over Laminate Flooring?
So, you’ve decided to go for it but have no idea where to start? Then, it would be best if you got the tools listed below.
- Hammer
- Tape measure
- Carpet knife
- Hand stapler.
- Tack strip cutter
- Knee kicker
- Knee pads
How to Put Carpet Over Laminate Flooring?
So, now that we are ready and set. Below are steps you can go through if you consider installing carpeting over your laminate panels.
Step One: Start inspecting.
Before starting any home improvement project, you need to inspect the area where you will be making the upgrades or renovations. Similarly, putting carpet over your laminate floorboards will require you to take a closer look at the current flooring. Make sure to look for imperfections such as peeling, bent, or cracked panels and fix them at your earliest.
Ignoring them may look like a good coverup, but even though carpets are known to be relatively more forgiving than laminate, those bumps and lumps will still be felt.
Step One: Put in the tack strip
Once you have inspected your flooring and fixed existing issues, you can proceed with installing a tack strip that covers the entire perimeter of your given space. It’s strongly advised to be careful in this process, especially if you choose to nail it down to the subfloor.
Nailing can cause damage to the laminate since you will have to do it this way to reach the subfloor. This will further restrict the movement of your laminate floors when the humidity and temperature change from season to season.
Thus, if you hope to go back to laminate after a couple of years, you must take a different approach. Install the strips as close to the room’s edge as possible. Be sure to drill the hole beforehand not to cause damage to the planks underneath.
Step Three: Install underlayment
You will require underlayment before you can install carpeting. Selecting the correct underlayment type; installing it the right way is equally critical. There are numerous options available in the market, which allow you to buy underlayment of the best quality and the right thickness. It helps make a difference in the comfort of the carpet and sound dampening.
Bear in mind that you may also need a vapor barrier. However, that is not usually necessary as it would have been deemed as an option beneath the laminate flooring.
Step Four: Start placing the carpet.
Once you’ve installed the tack strip and the underlayment, it’s time to trim the carpet to the size of your room. Start the installation process from one side of the room, using the tack strip to hold it together.
You can also stretch the carpeting within the kicker, all the way to the opposite end of the room, to ensure that it’s as tight as possible. Remember to master this process because you may have to repeat this in the future. Laminate floorboards are slick and can result in a carpeted stretch as time progresses.
Step Five: Complete the installation
After you’ve secured both sides of the room with the help of a tack strip, you need to do a final check to see that it is tightly in place. Use this time to make any final adjustments, including cutting down the size of the carpet even further. Next, put the baseboard back to where you removed it from.
While the process of installing carpet is not a difficult one, it does take up time. If you want to ensure that it’s done properly, feel free to put in as much time and effort as possible and prevent future issues. Check out this video below for further clarity on the installation process.
How Do You Transition From Carpet to Laminate?
If you are considering transitioning from carpeting to laminate floorboards, you need a transition strip. It’s also referred to as a threshold and serves two purposes.
The first purpose of a transition strip is to protect the edges of the flooring. Secondly, it’s used to bring about an aesthetic appeal as the flooring transitions from one kind of material to another.
There are two primary pieces of trim. One is the transition strip, while the other is a locking strip. The latter is in the shape of a U and is made out of metal or plastic. You will usually see it installed right between the edges of the flooring. On the other hand, the transition strip is locked tightly in this channel.
What Are the Better Alternatives of Putting Carpet Over Laminate Flooring?
If you don’t want to install carpeting over your laminate floorboards, you can always opt for stained linoleum or vinyl. Both these choices can be placed over your laminate floor.
However, it would be best if you made sure that whichever material you decide to go with has ample space around its ends so that it does not peel off after you have installed it.
You can also choose to install flooring that does not require adhesive application between the planks. This includes linoleum, vinyl flooring, as well as cork.
FAQs
Is It ok To Put Laminate Flooring on Top of the Carpet?
Yes, it’s ok to install laminate flooring over carpeting. Some homeowners prefer doing this primarily due to stability. Laminate has been designed to be used alongside a thin underlayment, which provides little cushioning. Consequently, carpeting is the ideal partner solution for a stable underlayment.
Is It Better to Have Carpets or Laminate Floors?
If you aim for ease of cleaning and durability, you need to install laminate planks. However, carpeting is ideal if your priorities lie with comfort and cushioning. If you have pets and kids, then it’s recommended that you choose laminate flooring over carpeting because it’s a hard-wearing material and can easily be cleaned up after accidents.
Which Is Cheaper to Install Carpet or Laminate Flooring?
Installing carpet is relatively cheaper when compared with laminate flooring. However, the latter grants numerous advantages, such as those being durable, easier to maintain, and less likely to be damaged due to a change in weather. How to Put Carpet Over Laminate Flooring? [Ultimate Guide]