wood floors

[addie]

I'm going to be installing laminate wood floors in my living room and kitchen.

Is there a rule of thumb on which way the boards should run?

[havasu]

Normally, if the flooring is going to end at a carpeted floor, the laminate should run parallel with the carpeting. If not, just consider the flow, the amount of cuts, and the aesthetics in order to make a short room look longer, or a wide room look narrower. A better solution might be to run the flooring at a 45 degree angle. There are more cuts, but it works great to break up sharp lines and makes the house flow better.

[BLS33]

Did my dining room and kitchen horizontally:

[JLCinLA]

Originally wood floors ran the length of the room or at a 45 degree angle based on the fact that they were the only thing that connected the floor joist that run the width of the room.
Then they came up with 1x6 floor sheathing to accomplish this structural task. At this point the hard wood flooring material would then cross the sheathing at a perpendicular angle and be parallel to the joist.
Now most houses have plywood sheathing therefor the floor material can be installed in whatever way that is aesthetically pleasing.
Here is a rule of thumb breakdown;
1:Wide boards run the length of the room to replicate Old World Construction.
2:Narrow Hardwood boards run the width of the room to replicate Turn of the Century to mid 1900's Construction.
3:Any variation is acceptable as long as it is aesthetically pleasing.

[addie]

Thanks for the advise.

I guess I will run them lengthwise so when you walk into the room you walk across the boards rather than with them.

My house is a late sixties ranch style, but I'm not sure if that has any bearing on the decision.

Can't wait to get rid of the poop brown carpet. God only knows what kinds of germs it has been harboring for the past 40 years.

[Orlando]

If you read the directions in your wood flooring iit will tell you to run it the direction on the longest wall. To me it doesnt look right rnning the other direction. With a nail down floor it must be run across joists (which is the long way) unless you floor underneath is 1 inch thick or thicker (which most are not)