Luxury Vinyl Tiles (LVT) is renowned as the go-to-flooring for commercial designers and industrial fit-outs. As a robust yet versatile alternative to tiled and hardwood, LVT's ability to replicate their designs to an intricate detail is much admired. Displaying the character, look and grain of wood flooring or the texture and feel of Italian slate tiles, LVT offers an affordable alternative. As the fastest growing market segment in the flooring industry, homeowners are vastly clicking on to it.
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So we&#;ve covered the basics of LVT but why is it suddenly taking over our homes?
Benefits of LVT Flooring:
As already mentioned Luxury Vinyl Tiles is an affordable alternative to its other flooring products. Bringing luxury designs to your home for significantly lower prices. Thicker LVT tends to be at the higher end of the pricing range to represent the undeniable quality. A 5mm tile consists of an impressive 0.55mm wear layer to protect the design and increase the longevity of the tile.
Manufactured from extremely robust materials LVT is built to withstand the pressures of a commercial environment. Excessive traffic, flame resistance and exposure to moisture; there&#;s not much this flooring cannot endure. With many designs made from 100% vinyl, Luxury Vinyl Tiles meet the green building standards for commercial applications. You can rest assured, when laying this flooring in your home you&#;re using a high quality product that&#;s built to last.
Hard wearing, waterproof and providing excellent grip & slip resistance; LVT is perfect for those high risk areas where practicality overrules design such kitchens and bathrooms. The stunning aesthetics make it an ideal solution for dining and living rooms too. There&#;s nowhere in your home we wouldn&#;t recommend using LVT - it even looks great on the stairs.
Unlike tile and wood flooring, LVT provides a warmth underfoot whilst the thickness of the tile adds a cushioned feel. Compatible with underfloor heating, the level of heat conducted through the flooring is impressive.
At an average of 2mm thick LVT is significantly quieter to walk on compared to tiles, wood and laminate. As the thickness of the vinyl increases the sound becomes subdued. High traffic areas would require a thicker tile to guarantee sound and wear prevention.
When cleaning LVT you can afford to be a little rougher compared to other flooring types as the protective layer provides fantastic scratch, scuff, stain, chip, crack and dent resistance. We&#;re not saying to get a scouring brush and go all out but tough marks are easily removed. As a hygienic flooring, a simple cleaning regime with a damp mop is suffice. If you require a deep clean, the flooring is resilient to chemical cleaners.
Unless under the expert eye, it&#;s extremely difficult to differentiate LVT from hardwood and tiled flooring. The design, texture and finish are an impeccable standard. Bevelled edges add realism whilst additional feature strips enhance the detail of the design and eliminate the need for grouting.
There&#;s a huge range of unique vinyl designs to choose from. Mosaic and checked patterns are particularly popular with contemporary stylists. Although modernists with a creative flare prefer striking colours and bold configurations. Stand out from the crowd and create your own unique flooring. Mixing multiple tile shapes and colours can result in some wonderful statement pieces, guaranteed to earn admiration from your peers!
Available in click or stick down options, installation is much quicker compared to wood, ceramic or stone flooring. A lower profile makes working with static furnishings, door openings and transitions a lot easier. LVT can be installed over existing plywood or concrete subfloors as long as the surface is flat, smooth and structurally sound; making DIY projects much easier.
Click LVT operates with the same click lock installation method as laminate flooring, with each tile simply clicking together. Moreover, stick down does exactly what it says on the tin, sticks down using a vinyl adhesive. Which method you use is down to personal preference and the ability to add feature strips; compatible only with stick down LVT.
Grouting can be a messy job, feature strips eliminate the process. As a grouting other, the strips are much more efficient to install whilst replicating the look.
We all know accidents happen, if a piece of LVT suffers damage it&#;s much easier to replace. Sold in individual tiled packs as opposed to a vinyl roll, damage to a centre tile is no longer a nightmare. You can simply replace the tile instead of trying to patch up or replace the whole flooring.
Depending on traffic levels, location and maintenance, LVT flooring will uphold its high performance throughout an average 25-30 year lifespan. As a result, we&#;re so confident in the manufacturing process and longevity, each flooring comes with an extensive warranty.
For more information on Luxury Vinyl Tiles, or to speak to our flooring experts, simply leave a comment at the end of this article or contact us directly on 201 933.
Selecting an LVT product to include in your next interior design project is as much about installation and application as it is about style and design aesthetics. After all, if the installation method you choose is not ideal for its intended application or environment &#; the look and feel of the flooring suffers and the beautiful vinyl floors you thought would last a long time could end up breaking down.
The good news is that, depending on the flooring you choose, you essentially have two choices on how to install your luxury vinyl flooring: glue down vs. floating. Driving your decision is the fact that each method features its own set of benefits that may make more sense depending upon your industry, the setting, and your overall approach to your interior design project.
To best illustrate the comparable characteristics of glue down vs. floating installation, let&#;s first explain how each method works:
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The glue down installation method involves the use of an adhesive to adhere your dryback luxury vinyl flooring to its base. Using an adhesive creates dimensional stability that ensures the flooring maintains its natural characteristics. The glue down method involves two distinct types of adhesives: hard set and pressure sensitive.
Both the hard set and pressure sensitive adhesive approach involve similar installation techniques related to spread rate, which can usually be found in a flooring product&#;s adhesive or installation manual.
Derived from the laminate flooring business, the floating flooring category encompasses two different products with different installation options: loose lay vinyl and click vinyl flooring. Floating flooring was once the go-to installation strategy, roughly 10-15 years ago in the residential marketplace. This &#;floating&#; installation method remains a very popular choice today &#; especially for vinyl flooring.
Depending on the type of floating product, floating installations involve little to no adhesive that can either be installed directly over the subfloor, or using a cushion or vapor barrier system.
and click options, is a versatile plank and tile flooring option. To install click flooring, simply snap planks or tiles into place using the click-locking system integrated into the flooring product.
The reason floating vinyl flooring has regained popularity in recent years is due to advancements in how vinyl flooring is made and its ability to handle moisture. The floating approach is used in many scenarios where the flooring is being installed over an old adhesive left behind from an earlier flooring product &#; or anything involving residual asbestos.
Today, floating flooring has found a place within the commercial industry &#; most notably in multi-family housing developments.
The appeal of any luxury vinyl product is the vast number of design choices at your disposal. LVT has been crafted to mirror the look of wood, stone, tile, concrete, and more, giving you beautiful design options with the durability of vinyl flooring.
Each installation method has many design choices to choose from, and the type of flooring you choose will likely impact your style options. Some notable color and style options from Parterre that are popular for each install method include:
When deciding whether to use the glue down installation method or a floating floor for your next project, it&#;s important to consider how much foot traffic the area typically gets.
Generally, commercial spaces &#; like office spaces, restaurants or retail stores &#; experience heavier than normal foot traffic and therefore can benefit from vinyl flooring that is glued down (since the glue provides extra support in keeping the flooring in place). As mentioned earlier, healthcare is another industry that could benefit from the glue down method due to the heavy rolling traffic from wheelchairs or gurneys.
The option of installing floating floors, either loose lay vinyl or click vinyl flooring, is still practical for some commercial settings where foot traffic is not as heavy, as well as some residential settings.
In most cases, glue down flooring is covered by a commercial warranty, while floating flooring may be limited to only a light commercial and/or residential warranty. Whether working with glue down or floating flooring, it is recommended to consult with your manufacturer to confirm the product&#;s warranty.
One benefit of using the glue down approach with luxury vinyl plank and tile flooring is that it involves a seamless replacement &#; which again makes it an ideal method for the ever-changing retail or hospitality industry. With minimal effort, tiles or planks can be replaced one by one, if needed.
For floating installations, we find that loose lay flooring is also relatively easy to replace if needed. The same premise as glue down applies, as individual planks and tiles can be replaced relatively easily. For click flooring, however, replacement is a bit more involved because of its click locking system. The locking system involves installing the click vinyl flooring in a systematic manner &#; meaning you must essentially remove each row of flooring located before the section in need of replacement.
Glue Down Floating Worn or damaged tiles can be removed and replaced individually, saving time and money. Same as glue down, except click flooring, which requires removal of multiple planks or tiles for repairs.Both flooring installation methods involve similar cleaning and maintenance approaches that are simple and easy to follow. For most vinyl products, click, loose lay, or adhesive, a traditional two-bucket system and regular sweeping has proven to be an effective way to clean the flooring. However, it is always recommended to refer to the manufacturer&#;s maintenance manual and instructions for best practices.
The subfloor of your installation is an important consideration when choosing a type of flooring and an installation method. When it comes to types of subfloor, glue down, loose lay, click, or floating flooring, each was created equal. Not one flooring format type works best for one type of subfloor.
However, all flooring types typically work well with concrete subfloors, though there are various factors that need to be taken into consideration. Always consider the moisture levels of the subfloor and the exposure your new flooring will have to moisture. Also make note if this is a renovation or new build project, as that will impact flooring choices.
Acoustical value should play at least a small part in your vinyl flooring installation decision. This is because the sound your flooring gives off has a lot to do with the way it is fastened to the subfloor. It is also important to keep in mind that the acoustics within a space are not solely based on the flooring you choose; they are also dependent on the subfloor preparations and furnishings selected for the space.
First, luxury vinyl flooring, whether glue down or floating, is generally quieter underfoot than most hard surfaces. With a floating flooring installation, the product is not actually attached to the subfloor, meaning it may give off a hollower sound compared to that of the glue down method&#;though the thicker a product, the quieter it tends to be. And with certain floating floor options, especially rigid core click, some manufacturers offer added acoustic backings to help with sound reduction.
Contact us today to learn more about ideas on how to best install your vinyl flooring product.
Note: Prior to performing any of the techniques listed above, refer to your flooring manufacturer&#;s technical manual.
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