Laminate Floor Trim – Which one Should I Use?

There are a number of different laminate floor trim available, designed for specific situations. The information below will help you choose an appropriate one that looks smart and meets your needs:

First, consider the following…

So, you have a laminate floor, which can sometimes also be referred to as a floating wood tile floor. There are also engineered wood floors and natural wood floors. For the purposes of deciding what type of flooring trim you need for any of these types of flooring, you first need to decide on the type of flooring to be joined to e.g. carpet, another laminate floor, vinyl etc.

You also need to know the levels of the two floors you are joining? Are they level with each other or is there a slight step or difference in height between the two? This fact is important when deciding on the style of floor trim.

Joining to a carpet – level floors

If your carpet and laminate floor are level with each other then you can use a Z bar. On the one side you have a base strip featuring prongs to grip the carpet and pull it under tension, whilst on the other there is nothing. A Z floor trim neatly sits over the edge of the laminate floor. As you can see from this diagram, your two floors need to be level, otherwise the visible laminate floor trim will not lay flat.

Z Floor Trim to join laminateAlternatively, you can use a Square edge floor profile which works by butting up against the edge of your laminate.

We offer a wide choice of Z Bars and square edge, available in a a number of different finishes: Premier Z Bar, Premier SQ, the luxury versions of Feline 1 and Feline Edge or the polished and satin steel look of the AL/10 and AL/CapIt.

Joining to a carpet at a different level to your laminate floor

If your laminate floor is at a different height to the carpeted floor you can consider raising the carpet up to the laminate floor so that you can use the floor trims as described above. Easyshims are excellent – they create a wedge support under the carpet, raising it up to the required level.

You could consider using a universal cover plate which simply sits over the top of your laminate and carpet edge and can be fitted at the relevant angle. The Premier Cover , Posh and Joints are all options.

Or you could use a Compression Ramp, with or without Easyshims, which cater for a height difference of up to 30mm  there is a useful video featured which explains how these work. Compression Ramps are great as they are self-adhesive and you therefore do not need any screws.

Joining to another hard floor – level to your laminate floor

If you are joining a laminate floor to another hard floor, such as tiles, wood or another laminate, then you have the option of using a non screw/stick-down floor trim such as the Euro Cover Plate or Floating Euro. The latter sticks to one  floorcovering only so that there is rooms for the floor to float i.e. expand and contract without buckling.

Alternatively, you could use a universal Cover Plate as explained above.

Joining laminate to another hard floor at a different level

It is quite common for the installation of underfloor heating in a bathroom to result in the tiled bathroom floor to end up a few millimetres higher than the adjoining laminate landing or hall floor. There are some neat laminate floor trim options available. The Premier 2 Way Ramps (2mm-9mm) and the Premier Door Ramps (10-20mm) suit most scenarios. They are self-adhesive, so no screws to drill in, and simply create a small ramp to transition from one level to another.

Alternatively, you could use a universal Cover Plate as explained above.

Our laminate floor trims are high quality and robust. They are available in a great selection of finishes, including polished, antique or satin brass, antique bronze, pewter, black satin or polished nickel, chrome or brushed chrome, satin or polished steel and nisheen. Most are offered in a choice of three lengths and can all be cut to size with a sharp hack-saw.