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Pergo question

This project is in the planning stages and I've been told by two different medical professionals (one being an RN in 2006 and an MD last week) to lose the carpeting in the bedroom due to dust mites and allergies. Not to mention I'm up to three different medications. And carpet is notorious for trapping dust mites.

I've been shopping for a new floor and I've discussed it with the landlord and she is ok with me ripping out the carpet in the bedroom. She is thinking of letting me deduct the cost from the rent but I have to do the work myself, if she doesn't pay for it I'll eat the cost myself as my allergies are outright miserable. And fall is just around the corner. I should probably keep the feline and the malamute out of the bedroom as well.

I am looking at this Pergo flooring and the cheapest underlayment money can buy

I could be mistaken, but I don't think that saw will cross-cut 7-5/8" wide planks. How about a jig saw or hand saw?

I did my basement a couple of years ago. A jig saw, a zero clearance saw (wen or the like) the spacer kit and a ruler are all that you really need.

Are you sure your up to this job?

I mean you don't even have a circular saw.

No matter how you do this there are some precision cuts.

Before you rip out the carpet you need to keep the pets out of the room first, the carpet is doing more to capture the allergens than anything, the pets are the issue!

I'm sure LazMan is not going to like this (as he doesn't like me doing electrical work) but I have a ton of electrical/telecom/CATV tools. I just don't work with wood that often to have an arsenal of woodworking tools.

But I work with wood quite well. I took wood shop class back in the Glory Days of high school and won some awards and got an A in the class. I also helped my grandmother's husband (before dementia set in) build a wheelchair ramp for one of his friends back in 2004.
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I've experienced ImOn (when they were McLeod USA), Mediacom, Comcast, and Time Warner and I currently have DirecTV. They are much better than broadcast TV.

I have not and will not cut the cord.

Currently - asthma is severe allergic reaction. My youngest has a severe dog allergy and asthma. Fixing the dog allergy prevents the asthma attacks. Cold air can still cause some asthma issues so it is not a 100% preventative but many asthma issues are allergy related.
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Brian

"It drops into your stomach like a Abrams's tank.... driven by Rosanne Barr..." A. Bourdain

We pergo'd our whole house (5 cats) and I gotta say that I found much more success with a jig saw using fine blades than a chop saw. In fact I would say do not use a table/chop saw to cut pergo. The reason is there is no such thing as a straight line in a house so you can't cut with a tool that only does straight lines.

here is photo gallery I took 9 years ago:
»dennisjudd.com/gallery/pergo

We used pergo with the underlayment already attached....they used to call it pergo prodigy.
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My Blog. Because I desperately need the acknowledgement of others.

The Judd Family site!

Carpet should never be in 3 rooms - bathroom, kitchen and dining room. Though dining room is the least objectionable. Carpet in the other areas is stupid. Unfortunately - I still need to change out the carpet in one bathroom still from when we bought the house.
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Brian

"It drops into your stomach like a Abrams's tank.... driven by Rosanne Barr..." A. Bourdain

A decent jigsaw and good quality blade laminate flooring like a bosch blade even in a cheapie saw will be much more useful than a circular saw. You'll likely have to cut around the door frame, closet door, heat register or radiator piping, all of those will be easiest with a jigsaw. Unless there are any complex miter cuts the jig saw plus a straight edge will do just as well in the unlikely event you have a straight wall in the room. Depending on how you want to transition at the threshold you may also need a flush cut pull saw, these are inexpensive.

If you do want a chop saw unless you're going with the thin plank flooring you'll need a bigger one. For a 7"+ plank you'll likely need a 12" saw and again the blade is important. It will come with a construction blade that will just tear up laminate, so factor in the cost of a proper blade too.

Don't be afraid to take a look at the other brands of laminate there are others that are just as good if not better than pergo unless the one pictured is the one you like best.

Also don't skimp on the underlayment. You probably don't need the expensive stuff but the nice mid-range product. The floor will feel hard and sound hollow with the cheap underlayment. If people are living below you there will likely be a lot of sound transfer as well. If you're installing on concrete make sure to use an underlayment rated for that.

Sorry for your allergies. I'm a life long suffer who would love to be more outdoorsy, so I feel your pain.

Unfortunately, I think you are ignoring the elephant in your (bed) room. Your pets.

I assume that you are like most good people who have pets, so discarding them - even to a good home - is simply unthinkable.

I have a few suggestions for you:

1. When your beloved furry friends eventually expire (hopefully of natural causes and after a long and wonderful life) do not get more pets. This includes birds and reptiles which are also allergen generators.

2. Buy some high quality and high air volume hepa air cleaners. If you can only afford one, get one for your bedroom. Buy and use the highest quality HVAC filter from any big box store for your HVAC system. Stay away from ionic air cleaners.

3. Use the newer fourth(?) generation over the counter allergy meds. I take generic Loratadine (brand name Claritin) and generic Cetirizine (brand name Zyrtec) every day, year round. If you buy the huge bottle (300 or more one a day tablets) on sale (try Amazon) they are very affordable.

These newer meds don't cause the groggy side effects that earlier generations do. Also, they don't reach full effect for a few days after you first start taking them, so give them a chance to work. They are safe for continuous use, provided that you use according to label instructions, have no other underlying health conditions, and you are not a frequent or heavy drinker of alcohol.

Even though my allergies are rather severe, I get not quite perfect but very good control of my symptoms.

I take three medications for allergies; Allegra (I get the brand name cheap at Costco), the generic to Singulair and Veramyst Nasal Spray (both are prescription so I get those at CVS at fixed cost with insurance). I also have hydroxyzine on hand for when things get real bad.

I've had allergy testing a few years ago and pollen and dust mites were big time offenders along with mold. And carpet tends to harbor dust mites. The nurse that did the allergy testing back in 2006 said to lose the carpet in the bedroom or even better yet, the whole house. But considering I rent, I'm not sinking more money than I have to so I'm only going to do the bedroom.

The landlord is ok with it but even then it would be covered by the ADA like someone with a physical impairment puting a ramp on the front of a house at the renter's expense.
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I've experienced ImOn (when they were McLeod USA), Mediacom, Comcast, and Time Warner and I currently have DirecTV. They are much better than broadcast TV.

I have not and will not cut the cord.

quote:

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I take generic Loratadine (brand name Claritin)

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I am sure you can find better priced laminate flooring planks. I live in Canada, where everything is more expensive for absolutely no reason. I bought much nicer laminate flooring than that for less than 1$ a square foot. It was on sale + I used their credit card promotion where you get 10% off any 450$+ purchase.

So, keep shopping because I see that cheap 8mm multi-fake-plank-per-piece laminate flooring for less than 1$ sqft.

Off Topic Comment 2:I'm with IowaCowboy that removing carpets will help with allergies.
Hardwood floors just require frequent vacuuming/mopping, but they are easy to clean.
Vacuuming a carpet won't clean it completely and it will always trap stuff that gets released back into the air the moment there is a bit of activity on it.

Back on topic
If you don't need a vapor barrier for your underlayment, then all you will want is a simple foam pad.

Ya the roll is too big, I'm sure you can find something in 200sqft rolls.

If you want to be cheap on tools, you'll only need a cheap 100$ Ryobi table saw that can have a blade tilt of 45 degree.

You can even make odd cuts with a table saw like if you need to go through a doorway or into a closet. Just TRY to wear long sleeves and DO wear gloves and a face mask (with goggles). Laminate plank shards will be flying on you and they pinch a little bit.

Just so you know, the quality of the cuts (chipping, precision, etc) isn't that important for laminate floors. You can only make cuts for the extremities, where the last plank meets the wall. So in the end, the cut will be covered by the baseboard.

So why did I say you needed a blade tilt? Because then you can cut your baseboards at an angle for the corners... that is unless you wish to reuse the old baseboards.

This is what I think I'll buy when I carry out this project. I already have the Craftsman C3 System.

wtf is a pergo knock off? There is no such thing as "knock offs" for laminate flooring.

As for the smell, well, does Pergo state that their laminate smells less?

It's wood flooring so all of it will have an odor of wood for a while after its' installed.
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"Trust Me I'm The Doctor!" -Doctor Who

Actually really really well....only three damage spots and all from human issues (dropped scissors, etc). Cats and our dog (50lb black lab) don't damage it at all.