My Home Depot

Should I keep extra laminate flooring after renovations?

I just did some minor renovations and installed about 1000 sq feet of laminate flooring. there were a couple of boxes left over, and it's not a cheap variety... would I ever have a need to use the leftovers, or should I sell them and get a tiny bit of $ back?

Public Comments

1. I'd keep them in case you need to replace any pieces in the future. They can get dented or scraped, it will be good to have pieces from the same lot to use.
2. Absolutely! I'm doing the same thing - and my contractor told me to keep the extra. If I ever need to replace a piece of it - due to damage or whatever, then I'll have the exact same color, shade, style, etc.. He also recommended putting them on top of a cabinet - or somewhere in the light, but out of the way - so that it will 'wear' similarly to what is on the floor!
3. Its better safe than sorry. I would keep the extras in the event that in the near future something happens to one of the planks and it needs to be replaced. I would however, get rid of the extras after a year or 2. Constant wear and tear on the floor will discolor the woods and the finishes. There will be scratches in some areas. If you replace an older wore plank with one of the "still new looking" planks, it will make the floor look really tacky.
4. Keep them. Every now & then you may have a chip, gash or other imperfection come about. It's best to have some of the original flooring around to replace the ones that are damaged instead of trying to color match later on.
5. I would keep a small amount on hand if you can do a good patch job. My brother and my boyfriend were installing a plate for a vent in the basementand my brother screwed right through the floor and popped a big wedge shaped tear in my floor! Fortunately I had some leftovers, although mine was tile.