Causes of cracks in the laminate
Slabs for laying laminate appear for several reasons. The main ones are:
- Humidity. Such a problem arises as a result of seasonal changes in humidity, when materials containing wood expands and dries (wet in the summer and there is no heating, but there are rains, and in winter it is dry, but the heating season begins);
- Leakage of water. It can be very different: both flooding and regular flow from flower pots, for example. Both of these leads first to the local, and soon to a complete change in the geometry of individual boards and the entire floor cloth;
- Locks. In most cases, locks are not pressed during the installation process. Because of bad connection, they start to diverge.
- Deformation gaps, more precisely, their absence. In the process of mounting the slats it is necessary to leave a deformation gap from all points of stop and obstacles. Otherwise, due to expansion, the floor deforms, extending across the board, waves will appear through the expansion along the board.
What to smudge the cracks in the laminate?
Repair paste. This is a special repair warehouse that can be freely purchased at any construction store in the laminate flooring department. Read the instructions before you place the contents. The standard rule is to clean the treated area from garbage. Apply patch around the damage. After applying a paste, the color of which coincides with the color of the boards, and level the surface using a spatula. After complete drying, remove the scoop and wipe the residue with a dense cloth.
Spackling Paste. This option works the same way as the previous one. But, be especially careful if the defects are located in the zone of frequent, mass walking. These are places of especially frequent vibrations that occur when walking on the floor. In such cases, sparkling will not serve as a reliable means, and immediately after drying it will begin to fall off.
Special trowels. They are produced as a sealant of the cracks in the laminate. Blankets are made on the basis of sealant, silicone and other substances that make high quality seams. As a rule, such materials cost more than other available means, but the fact that there is no water through them, which is important for laminate coating. Such grouting is required for regular joints, but only after some time. An additional plus: it masks not only cracks, but also a number of other damage, enhancing the properties of flooring.
Sawdust and gypsum. Mix gypsum with ordinary sawdust in a 1: 1 ratio with a little water. The resulting composition of the correct consistency resembles a toothpaste. Then take a prepared lining-a piece of crack size and insert it, and then drain it all with a solution!
Picture Credit: Counselling