Installing Laminate Flooring at 45 or 90 Degree Angles

Q: I am considering installing a border of dark walnut around the main light planking of my kitchen DIY project. Some of the border planks will have to be at 90 degrees to the main direction of the planks and one will have to be at 45 degrees to the main direction. I think this can be done by routing grooves in the edges of adjacent planks and installing a spline using adhesive. What spline material and what adhesive do you recommend or suggest? I’m considering Wilsonart Estate Plus.
Donald L.
Greenville, SC
A: An excellent idea which has been done with great success using hardwood floors. There is some trick to it with laminate, but the 90 degree angle can definitely be done. I took a quick jaunt over to the sample department to mess with the planks hands-on for the Estate Plus and you can get the planks to engage well at a 90 degree angle, but make sure you use a tapping block as it takes a little nudge to full engage the lock. The only hitch here will be some very careful planning to ensure you have the planks locks meeting up.
For the 45 degree angle, you would be forced to router out a groove and use a spline, but I will caution that doing this basically ensures a voided warranty on any laminate floor. Now as long as you are ok with this and have good faith in your skills with a router, it should be the best route. As far as adhesive is concerned, just use any standard tongue and groove adhesive and for spline material you will want to find a spline meant for a thinner floor, like a 5/16″ hardwood. The estate plus is a thin product compared to something like a 3/4″ solid hardwood, so it will take some precise and careful work on your behalf to make it right. As far as material is concerned, wood splines or a plastic composite spline would work, but the T&G glues are better suited to wood, so try to go that route.
Typically for jobs like this you will want to go with an actual hardwood, but if your subfloor does not allow for a 3/4″ solid or your goal is laminate’s durability then this will be a tricky, but possible path.