How Much Extra Laminate Flooring Should You Buy For Your Home?

Laminate floors are the practical, appealing, and popular flooring choice for many homeowners. It’s the affordable flooring alternative to hardwood flooring, as this type of flooring is virtually resistant to the natural wear and tear of flooring and, when carefully maintained, can last a long time in your household. 

So how much extra laminate flooring should you buy for your home? A conservative rule of thumb to follow would be buying extra laminate flooring that covers around 5% to 15% of the room’s floor area. People seem to have trouble with estimating the coverage of their laminate flooring, especially the extra flooring: how much extra laminate flooring is just right, and how much is too much? Given the square feet of the room you want to decorate and the average carton of laminate flooring, you’re likely to end up with extra laminate flooring, and that’s alright.

How Much Extra Laminate Should I Buy?

As a general rule of thumb, you should buy extra laminate flooring that covers around 5% to 15% of the room’s floor area. So, if you’re installing laminate flooring on a room measuring 10 square feet, you should buy at least 10.5 to 11.5 square feet worth of flooring. A box of laminate flooring can cover around 20 square meters, so one box of flooring may be enough. 

If your room is a square with no corners or features you have to work around, it’s OK to stay around 5 percent. But if your room has multiple corners and curves that require you to cut the laminate flooring into special shapes, it’s better to err on the side of caution and buy 15% extra flooring which is more than what you actually need. 

It’s generally a good idea to buy more flooring than you need. One of the main reasons for doing this is to account for waste. 

Why You Should Account for Waste

Laminate flooring installation isn’t as simple as measuring the size of the room, buying exactly enough flooring for it, and installing it onto your floors. During the installation, you’ll need to cut off parts of your flooring to make everything fit. 

Let’s say you’re installing flooring in a room and purchase the exact square footage of the room. If there’s a part in your room that requires you to cut a piece of laminate flooring a certain way to fit, the excess trimming may not be suitable to use elsewhere on the floor. As a result, you don’t have enough flooring for the rest of the room. 

Aside from waste from cutting, you also have to consider damage. Even if you’re working on a square room with no corners, there’s a risk of damaging laminate flooring during the installation process, making it unusable for your room. Having allowance for waste can ensure you have enough despite the unforeseen incidents that could render flooring unusable. 

Why Order Extra Flooring Materials?

When it comes to buying boxes of laminate flooring, it’s much better to buy more than you need. If you’re working on a larger room or multiple rooms in your home, it’s more practical to buy all plus extra flooring at once rather than going back and forth to your local hardware store or showroom. Buying what you need plus extra affords you the following advantages. 

1. Consistency of Color and Appearance

Laminate flooring is made in batches. While reliable manufacturers and sellers provide flooring that meet high quality standards, there’s a chance that the color and appearance of laminate flooring can have a slight but sometimes noticeable difference.

If you’re buying boxes of flooring at the same time, there’s a chance that these are all made in the same batch, providing a uniform appearance. Otherwise, there’s a chance you might end up with laminate flooring made in separate batches. This could leave you with a room with similar laminate flooring on one side, and a slightly different color and appearance on the other side.  

2. Prevent Delays 

Whether you’re DIY-ing laminate flooring installation or having a professional installer install your laminate floors, buying more than enough flooring can prevent delays. If you’re doing the flooring project on your own, it can be impractical to have to keep buying laminate flooring as necessary, which can take the better part of the day to acquire. 

And if you’re having a contractor perform professional installation, it can mean wasted time you have to pay while waiting for more flooring to come in. Some contractors even go on to other projects and push yours back if there’s a delay in the materials. You could end up paying for their time during this delay, adding to your laminate flooring costs. 

3. Extra Materials for Future Repairs

When maintained properly, laminate flooring can last a long time. However, prolonged water exposure, improper application, and scuffing from furniture can result in cracked flooring or damaged flooring that’s lost its shine. In case a few pieces of laminate flooring are in need of repair, it can be more practical to have a few pieces of additional planks on-hand rather than replacing the flooring entirely. 

Get Your High Quality Laminate Floors at Zonthex Flooring

Laminate flooring is one of the cheapest flooring options that has long-term advantages, making it a desirable flooring material for many households. When buying laminate flooring, it’s much better to buy extras than running out in the middle of your installation. Buying up to 15% more of the required square feet of flooring is a safe bet for those who want to avoid buying too much flooring. And even if you do end up with a few extra pieces, these can be used in the future to maintain your floor’s shiny and uniform appearance. 

For properties in Sacramento in need of high quality laminate flooring, Zothex Flooring is your go-to business for all your flooring needs. We have a wide selection of flooring options to suit your home design and your personal taste. Visit one of our showrooms today, or give us a call to browse and order your options through email, phone, or video call.