How to Repair Laminate Flooring That Is Coming Up at the Side Joints

Examine the baseboards that run along the wall/floor joint in the room where the flooring is bowing or “peaking.” Determine where in the floor or what particular laminate panels are peaking the worst. Trace an imaginary line that runs perpendicularly from the peaked panels to the baseboards on either side of the room. In other words, if the floor panels are laid out in a north-south direction, look at the sideboards that are off to the east and west.

Pry the baseboards gently away from the walls using a small pry bar or the claw end of a claw hammer. To prevent possibly damaging or scuffing the wall above the boards, place a folded cloth against the wall, just above the baseboard, which will cushion that wall surface against abrasion from the hammer. Pry each section away gently until both corresponding baseboards are removed from the walls. This creates space for the laminate panels to expand, which they’re prone to do since they’re made of porous wood.

Spread a bath towel over the section of the floor that has the highest peaks, then place a flat even weight over the towel. Weightlifting weight plates of 25 pounds work best, but anything that can distribute weight evenly over the area will suffice. Allow ample time for the weight to press down on the panels. Depending on the severity of the peaking, this may take several days to a few weeks.

Move the weight over to other peaked areas once the worst area has been evened out. Once all peaked areas are flat, reinstall the baseboards, this time hammering them into the wall slightly above the floor. Generally, a gap space that measures roughly the height of one laminate panel should do the trick. This allows room for the panels to expand and shrink but doesn’t make the gap overly noticeable to guests.

Draw a rectangle in the center of a peaked plank that has a 1 1/2-inch border inside the perimeter if the above method doesn't work. Lay strips of painter's tape over the plank's borders and cut only to the depth of the peaked plank with a power saw. Extract the cut piece and remove the outlying border. Cut the tongues off with a jigsaw and lay the plank back into the floor. By removing "excess wood," the panel will lay better in the slot. Glue the backside if the panel fits snugly to finish the job.