Laminate Floor - 101st Penny Pinching Party

While Mr. ThriftyHome was out of town I made a decision on the floor and bought it. I ended up getting a Shaw laminate that looks a lot like real wood. I emailed Shaw some questions about their engineered wood floors and laminate floors and they emailed me back saying that the laminate would be stronger. Since the laminate was also a lot cheaper, it wasn't hard for me to decide to go with a laminate over the engineered wood.

The prep work, as with most projects, took the most time. After removing the tile, we discovered that the top layer of subfloor was missing since there had been tile and the backer-board took the place of the top layer. Some of the subfloor was also uneven due to rotting and had to be replaced. The prep work is probably the most important part of the job and the least fun.

We discovered 2 dead mice under the floor. They looked like they got trapped in there during the construction of the house 27 years ago. It made me wonder how many other dead mice were inside the walls and floors of our house.

I didn't put a close-up photo because it was not pretty looking. I can't stop thinking about all of the dead mice that we didn't find. Where are they? Is there one in the ceiling above my bed? How many are there?     Will I ever be able to get their images out of my head?

Here is the floor partially laid down. My 4 year old thought it would be a good idea to draw with permanent marker on it. After a quick google search I discovered that non-acetone nail polish remover would clean it. Try using nail polish remover on real wood. I am already happy with my decision to use laminate.

I bought my laminate at RC Willey for $1.99 sq. ft. with free padding. I even found a coupon for $200 off! The name of the laminate is Left Bank by Shaw. I bought both the 3" and 5" boards to create a custom look. 

What projects have you been up to?