How to Install Laminate Floors Under a Cast Iron Tub

Remove the cast iron tub from the room in which you want to install the laminate flooring. If it is too heavy to maneuver out of the room, move the tub to the side of the room away from where you want to begin the laminate installation.

Look for low spots in the flooring surface by placing a straightedge in a corner of the floor and moving the straightedge over the floor a few inches at a time. Mark any spot where the floor dips under the straightedge with chalk.

Fill the marked dips with leveling compound, using a putty knife to spread the compound. Let the compound dry for four to five hours, then sand the compound level with medium-grit sandpaper. Check the floor surface with the straightedge again to make sure no dips remain in the floor.

Clean the floor with a wet mop, adding a degreasing soap if the floor has any excessively dirty spots or grease spots. Lay a plastic waterproof membrane over the floor surface, cutting the membrane into long strips that reach across the floor’s surface and securing the strips to the walls and to one another with plastic tape.

Install the laminate floor planks according to the directions provided by the manufacturer. In general though, put a row of laminate flooring planks against one wall of the room, cut down a plank by 6 to 8 inches to begin the next row and connect the rows of planks together using the tongue-and-groove pieces on the side of each plank. Cut the first plank for the third row down by 12 to 16 inches and lay another row of planks, and then continue this pattern across the room.

Measure the distance between the feet on the cast iron tub. Place rubber tub coasters on the newly installed laminate flooring where you want the feet of the tub to sit. With help, move the cast iron tub into its location and place the feet into the tub coasters.