Help! My Laminate Won’t Lock!

Help! My Laminate Won’t Lock!

Modern laminates now have a ‘click & lock’ design that gives flooring contractors an indicator that laminate pieces are locked in together and that no problems were encountered during the installation.

But what if you do not hear any clicking or snapping sound in the process? What if your laminate won’t lock? What will happen if laminates are not properly installed? You may encounter laminate pieces that won’t lock together. Or you might be reading this now because you’re planning to install or replace laminate flooring, and you’re aiming to know what lies ahead.

Now, what are the possible reasons why a laminate won’t lock?

1. A Piece of Debris – A piece of debris trapped in a groove can prevent the laminates from locking together. Check for the debris on the groove and remove it, along with any dirt that could potentially block the locking section. 

2. Warped Piece of Laminate – The most common reason why laminate pieces won’t lock together. A warped or distorted laminate, especially in the groove and tongue area, prevents them from locking into each other. As a remedy, examine both sides to see the location of the flaw. A simple trimming or sanding of the warped area could fix the problem. Just make sure not to overdo trimming and sanding, as these might loosen connecting sections. This may result in replacing the entire piece of laminate.

3. Defective Laminates – It’s seldom that a laminate is unusable because of factory defects. But if this happens, examine the laminate piece and check for possible remedies. If found to be really defective, replace it, keep the defective one aside as it may still be useful in the future.

4. Nails and Screw heads – Protruding nails and screw heads could also prevent the laminates from sticking together. Make sure not to have any protruding nails, screw heads, or anything alike. Specifically on parts of the laminate where connections with other pieces happen and underneath the flooring.

5. Uneven Subflooring – Flooring installation and replacement are never easy tasks. It requires a skillful hand to finish an impeccable flooring job. Uneven subflooring usually happens because of miscalculation and lack of experience. We highly recommend hiring a reliable flooring contractor to install or replace laminate flooring. It is also impossible to install good laminate flooring in an inconsistent underlay. So make sure that everything is proper underneath.