Laying laminate flooring. Do I need a table saw?

danger_mouse_tm

I'm thinking of having a go at laying a laminate floor in my hallway and bedroom.
I have read on a few sites that a lot of people recommend getting table saw. Are they hard to use? I'm thinking if I bought one it would offset the cost of getting someone in to lay the floor and I could always sell it on afterwards.

sohappy

te="danger_mouse_tm;92573876"]I'm thinking of having a go at laying a laminate floor in my hallway and bedroom.
I have read on a few sites that a lot of people recommend getting table saw. Are they hard to use? I'm thinking if I bought one it would offset the cost of getting someone in to lay the floor and I could always sell it on afterwards.[/quote]

A good handsaw is all you really need, a compound saw would be quicker , available to hire or buy,
.

uck51js9zml2yt

I normally use a jig saw. It was a life saver after trying to cut through laminate

slimjimmc

Handsaw is all you need, get one with a high tpi ( "tooth per inch" ) as that will give a smoother cut. Any cuts you'll make will be along walls, under doors and around obstacles such as build-in units. You'll need to leave an expansion gap all around which will be covered by a beading strip or the skirting boards so you don't need perfect straight cuts.

If you've got radiator pipes coming up from the floor then you'll also need a drill and a spade drill bit (about 25mm-30mm) to make holes in the laminate.

Supercell

hand saw should be fine, I did one of the kids bedrooms myself with no previous experience and it was pretty easy, though my knees killed me for a week afterwards - make sure you have something soft to kneel on!

whizbang

You need a really good work surface to hold the boards when cutting. Because they have such a hard surface, they will slide very easily.
Best thing to do is use a set of clamps to hold them down.

Also: Hand saw- cut right side up: Jigsaw- cut face down!

dodzy

A jigsaw will get you out. Ideally, a compound sliding saw aswell would be the ticket. Both can be picked up cheaply now days.

150€ should nearly do ya - b&q

slimjimmc

dodzy wrote: »

A jigsaw will get you out. Ideally, a compound sliding saw aswell would be the ticket. Both can be picked up cheaply now days.

150€ should nearly do ya - b&q

A compound sliding saw is handy if you have one or have plenty of future use, but other than saving a bit of elbow effort a compound sliding saw is an unnecessary expense for laying laminate. You don't need perfect neat cuts as they'll be hidden anyway. If one were to buy a power tool for a one-off flooring project a jig saw would be more useful.

dodzy

slimjimmc wrote: »

A compound sliding saw is handy if you have one or have plenty of future use, but other than saving a bit of elbow effort a compound sliding saw is an unnecessary expense for laying laminate. You don't need perfect neat cuts as they'll be hidden anyway. If one were to buy a power tool for a one-off flooring project a jig saw would be more useful.

If the OP is anyway handy, then this will most likely lead to further work, and if thats the case, the compound is a great purchase. Only he/she can decide;)

homer911

Supercell wrote: »

make sure you have something soft to kneel on!

+1

Get one of those foam garden kneelers

Carpenter

If I was you and this is your first time trying anything like this use a handsaw you might need all your fingers for the next job .

danger_mouse_tm

I could be sorted then. I already have a black and decker work bench with clamps and a fairly good ryobi jigsaw. There's a hand saw down there to that has the piece that runs across the top for keeping the blade straight.

slimjimmc

danger_mouse_tm wrote: »

I could be sorted then. I already have a black and decker work bench with clamps and a fairly good ryobi jigsaw. There's a hand saw down there to that has the piece that runs across the top for keeping the blade straight.

One of these? http://www.screwfix.com/p/irwin-jack-tenon-saw-12tpi-10-254mm/10812
If so it'll likely be painfully slow and the rib at the back will interfere and annoy you as you get further through the cut, especially if you have to cut along the length of the board.

Get one like this in any builder providers/DIY place, but make sure you let them know it's for cutting laminate so they don't give you a course tooth one.
http://www.screwfix.com/p/stanley-fatmax-fine-cut-saw-11-tpi-20/97361

dodzy

Oh, and get one of these too....