Laminate plank warp/bow from box?

[awalters]

About to start my first install with laminate. Is it normal for the planks to have some degree of warp or bow? Do they lay down eventlly or is this lot of flooring defective? I have looked at other brands and they all seem to have some degree of irregularity if you sight down the planks.

 

[Ernesto]

Who is the manufacturer and where did you buy it? All laminates can have some bow to them, Depends on allot of factors, temp, acclimation, relative humidity, MDF vs HDF, thickness etc etc.

 

[awalters]

Eco Forest 12mm laminate from Floor and Decor

 

[Ernesto]

Eco Forest 12mm laminate from Floor and Decor

Sounds generic foreign made to me. Is it made in China?

 

[awalters]

yes....made in china

 

[Ernesto]

I'm not a fan of the 12mm, I think bows more than 8mm and will not flatten out or lay with slight undulations in the floor. I'd send it back and buy something else made in the US and not 12 mm unless you need the height.

 

[Nick]

Hows the 8 mm to work with E , I have to install 600' for a friend .
Quickstep uniclick.

 

[highup]

How long are the planks and how wide?
How much bow are you talking about?
If you lay a board on the floor, can you slide a pencil under the the arch?
...a AA battery?
... or an I-pad?
The staggering of the joints will pull the bow down flat in most cases. I always start the first two rows with the second row centered on the first one.

Next question.......... how flat is your floor? That's even more important. Instructions will tell you how flat the floor must be over a given span.
If your floor has dips and high spots, the flooring will bounce when suspended over the low areas, and high spots will cause the flat area surrounding it to flex too.
I don't think most manufacturers or retailers emphasize this enough. It is extremely important.

 

[Ernesto]

Nick, it's the best system out there IMO. I have done 3G and 5G systems and I just don't like'm. Uniclick goes backwards forwards with no problems unlike some others that are rotating lock.

 

[Isola96]

We're the boxes sat to acclimate in the room your installing? If they came straight from the boat God only know what conditions they have been through.....

 

[Nick]

Nick, it's the best system out there IMO. I have done 3G and 5G systems and I just don't like'm. Uniclick goes backwards forwards with no problems unlike some others that are rotating lock.

Thanks Ernesto