Laminate and linoleum flooring question

[CompassionAk]

Adam and I are still planning to get a house this coming year and I don't want any carpet however I am thinking money might be a little tight the first few years and so a real hardwood floor will have to wait.

I am curious about laminate and linoleum flooring and the glue used to hold it down,I am wondering if it's like carpet and will off gas for a while or not?What is the minimum length of time you would need to keep the birds out of a freshly laminated house?

[linda040899]

I put down laminate after I removed all my carpeting and I used the click together kind. No glue/adhesive = no smell/no offgasing, no need to remove birds. I just moved cages so I could put the flooring down and put the cages right back where they were once I was done.

[CompassionAk]

Did you put the flooring down yourself or hire someone?I am curious if it's something I'd need someone else to do or if I could do it myself?

[linda040899]

I did it myself, with the help of a couple of friends. It can be time consuming and if I had had a bit of extra cash, it would have been worth my while to have it done professionally. It's not hard to do but my knees and back paid for my effort for quite some time........

[Birkah]

I had laminate in our last house, and I have to say that I hated it. It scratched easily, and warped in humid environments, or areas that needed constant cleaning (like in the bathroom or kitchen areas). But then again, we have three kids, so we're CONSTANTLY cleaning floors here!

Real linoleum (not the vinyl stuff) can be installed with a low-VOC adhesive, and is available in tiles for easy installation. Have you thought about engineered cork flooring? It's really nice to walk on, since it has a bit of "give".