I am installing a laminate hardwood floor. When I hung my drywall I left a half inch gap off the concrete to allow my flooring room to go under the drywall to cover. My question is, how do I allow for the appropriate gap between my laminate and the wall when it will be under the drywall. I won't be able to get a spacer in the crack? Do I need to leave a gap? Can I try to just let the flooring slide under the drywall with no spacer and try to keep it slightly off the wall? I'm just not sure how to get the appropriate space.
Laminate Hardwood floor installation
installationlaminate
Related Solutions
Drywall should definitely not touch concrete as moisture will wick (ie flow up the surface as in a candle/lamp wick) into the drywall and encourage mold growth.
3/8" should be sufficient - your prop up plan is not only appropriate, but a common technique used by drywallers.
While this will not directly answer your question, I'd like to offer an alternative solution.
Modify Existing Molding
If it were me. I'd get some transition molding, with a profile like this.
I'd then set up my table saw to rip the piece, to remove the angle profile on the back edge.
Which would give me a profile like this.
Once I had my molding ripped to size, I'd create a border around the hearth using 45° butt joints.
When installing the flooring, I'd stop short of the hearth to compensate for my expansion gap and the thickness of the moldings leg (the piece that hangs down). Once the flooring was installed, I'd install my molding.
The molding allows the floor to expand and contract, while also providing an attractive transition between wood and brick.
Note: If you match the molding color to the flooring color, the transition will be less noticeable.
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Best Answer
It is typical that the flooring gap needs to be about 3/8 inch from the wall. Drywall on walls is very often 1/2 inch thick. You could this simply elect to just run the flooring right up to the edge of the drywall without sticking it underneath there.