Concrete subfloors are difficult to work with and it’s important to navigate around them with a high level of care.
If you don’t do this, the subflooring is going to create instability, which is not good for any type of flooring that is put on top of it. This includes laminate flooring if that is the direction you choose to go in.
When doing this, you will want to find out what works best to put laminate flooring on concrete. This includes asking, is gluing laminate flooring to concrete?
Gluing laminate flooring to concrete is not recommended. The locking system is going to ensure the laminate floor planks remain stable and set in place once they are installed. Do not use any type of adhesive to hold the laminate flooring together.
Most property owners assume installing laminate flooring on a concrete subfloor requires additional materials.
This is untrue and you are not going to need construction-grade glue for this installation process.
This guide will explain some of the reasons why you don’t need to start gluing laminate flooring to concrete.
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Reasons To Not Start Gluing Laminate Flooring To Concrete
1. Comes With Locking Mechanism
Installing laminate flooring on concrete does not require an adhesive.
You might assume the subfloor is going to be slippery or difficult to install on. This is untrue because of how laminate flooring works.
The planks have a pre-designed locking mechanism.
This mechanism ensures each plank “locks” into place as soon as you lay them on the subfloor. This works on all types of flooring as long as it’s even.
This is why the idea of using glue for laminate flooring is not ideal. It won’t work as well as you think nor will it be useful when the locking mechanism is already effective.
Take advantage of the locking mechanism and get the type of result you are after for the floor moving forward.
It will be right in line with what you want.
2. Creates Unevenness
For the most part, laminate flooring is going to be even as long as the concrete subfloor is.
However, when you start applying a construction-grade adhesive to laminate flooring, you are creating a natural imbalance.
This is due to the amount of glue being different for each plank. As you can imagine, this will create natural spots throughout the laminate floor that are uneven.
This is not worth it.
You are better off going with the locking mechanism and taking advantage of how it works. The glue is not going to be ideal for your situation even if it is on a concrete subfloor.
3. Not Ideal For Expanding Planks
One of the key details to think about is the expansion of the laminate planks.
This is why you have an expansion gap with laminate flooring when it is installed. This means it expands when the humidity and/or temperature changes in the environment where the flooring is.
This causes the material to expand too.
If you have glue underneath the planks, this will create a scenario where they expand and become imbalanced.
This is not safe for the flooring and is going to ruin its build.
You will also start to notice gaps, which are not ideal when it comes to the integrity of the installation.
4. Not Useful For Holding Laminate Flooring In Place
It is not going to do its job.
What does this mean?
Let’s assume you are thinking about applying glue to laminate flooring on concrete. This might seem like a wonderful idea as it will provide extra hold on a slippery surface.
Yes, it will provide hold but it is also going to reduce how effective the locking mechanism is. This is due to a slight gap forming between the planks due to how the glue is applied.
It is going to be uneven and is just not worth it.
Experts state it is best to stick to the locking mechanism because it will work well and it is how the planks are supposed to be installed on a subfloor.
Final Thoughts
Is gluing laminate flooring to concrete safe?
Gluing laminate flooring to concrete is not recommended and it is the last thing you should be doing. Laminate floors come with a pre-designed locking mechanism, which locks the planks together once installed.
It’s best to use that installation mechanism to put the laminate flooring in place on concrete.
Any other option is not going to be valuable and will come along with a list of drawbacks. This includes gluing laminate flooring to concrete.
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