pergo without the underlayment?

[Jayne]

Picked up a tool shed that has a bare plywood floor and thought I would put something over it before starting to load it up with crap. Yea, yea, I should have built it myself but we're running out of time before winter and I have other crap on the list to do.

Anyway, HD had some random leftover pergo that was cheaper per sq. ft. than roll vinyl, but it said it needed underlayment. I figure that's for noise control or having some 'give' in the floor... so could I skip that and just glue it right to the plywood in my toolshed application? What's the risk here?

 

[Mike V]

It also acts as a vapor barrier.

 

[Jayne]

It also acts as a vapor barrier.

Ah, so the pergo will rot? or mold I guess?

 

[Shady Grady]

...

 

[Mike V]

Ah, so the pergo will rot? or mold I guess?

I believe they make some rated for moisture, but not all of it is. If it gets wet, it delaminates.

 

[Jp8819]

Ah, so the pergo will rot? or mold I guess?

Helps preventing it from warping up would be my guess but I am not a flooring guy just know some of the lamanite type products are sensitive to mositure.

 

[Button Pusher]

Laminate flooring should not be glued down, it needs to float as it expands and contracts.
1/4" gap at the perimeter of the room allows for this.

You could use vinyl planks, just like the Pergo and clones. $2 sq ft and up.
Outdoor deck stain, oil based would also work well, clear poly on top coat.

 

[J R Green]

Ollies is the place for cheap underlayment.

But you don't glue down laminate either.

 

[Wahoo95]

The outside moisture and temp swings will have an effect on laminate, but it's just a tool shed so it shouldn't matter. The underlayment will help with moisture control

What size is the shed, I'm sure I have some leftover roll vinyl I can get you.

Sent from my SM-N910V using Tapatalk

 

[fishgutzy]

Our shed I just put down 4 coats of outdoor rated floor and porch paint. It is holding up well to a 48" deck mower going in and out.

 

[HMP]

dont glue down and def put a moisture barrier under it
It's so dang cheap that it's not worth risking the pergo by not installing it
Dont forget to leave a small (1/4") gap around the perimeter

 

[ronn47]

Put down 2 layers of tar paper and do not glue down as others have noted.

 

[noway2]

Pergo is what is called a floating floor. It doesn’t get rigidly adhered. Wife used to sell flooring back in the day. Heard about this and people doing it wrong all the time.

 

[HMP]

Look, I realize this is just a storage shed, but no point it doing it wrong and ruining the floor
Good luck, let us know if you have any questions (or need any help, If youre close Im willing to assist, it's easy stuff and doesnt take long at all, even better with a second hand to do cutting etc)

 

[Jayne]

Look, I realize this is just a storage shed, but no point it doing it wrong and ruining the floor

agreed. some things are totally over-built (aka the chicken palace) but I do now try to do things right without going overboard.

I grabbed a correctly sized remnant from a local shop and put this down today. The edges are sorta wavy, I snapped chalk lines as guides to cut but then had trouble controlling the knife. I left a 1/4" gap around the edges, not sure if I should get some sort of edging strip to finish it or leave it open so it can expand/contract? Same with the front, I left a 'tab' that I could tuck under that sill guard, but currently it's just sitting there.

 

[J R Green]

agreed. some things are totally over-built (aka the chicken palace) but I do now try to do things right without going overboard.

I grabbed a correctly sized remnant from a local shop and put this down today. The edges are sorta wavy, I snapped chalk lines as guides to cut but then had trouble controlling the knife. I left a 1/4" gap around the edges, not sure if I should get some sort of edging strip to finish it or leave it open so it can expand/contract? Same with the front, I left a 'tab' that I could tuck under that sill guard, but currently it's just sitting there.

View attachment 86389

The purpose of quarter round and baseboard moldings is to cover the expansion gap from the edge of the flooring to the wall. The molding should not be nailed to the floor for this reason.

 

[HMP]

JR nailed it - you put 1/4 down to hide that gap, but shoot it into the wall/frame, not the floor

Looks good, though, I hope it works exactly how you hope and expect.

 

[Jayne]

The purpose of quarter round and baseboard moldings is to cover the expansion gap from the edge of the flooring to the wall. The molding should not be nailed to the floor for this reason.

That makes sense. I've got a 12' 2x4 left from another project, I'm thinking I could use the table saw to rip it into molding strips (that would be taller than usual but also easier for me to install without splitting because I don't have any finishing nails). It would also blend into the unfinished 2x4 theme of the inside of the shed.

 

[J R Green]

That makes sense. I've got a 12' 2x4 left from another project, I'm thinking I could use the table saw to rip it into molding strips (that would be taller than usual but also easier for me to install without splitting because I don't have any finishing nails). It would also blend into the unfinished 2x4 theme of the inside of the shed.

That'll work.