For many owners, the question of the advisability of installing linoleum on a wooden floor remains relevant, because such a rough coating, although it has many advantages, can hardly interrupt the material mentioned. If the room has long lost its appearance, then you can update it yourself by eliminating defects. However, before starting work, you should familiarize yourself with what wooden floors are. This is a construction of several layers, where there is not only flooring, but also logs, hydro and thermal insulation.
A floor with such a coating creates its own microclimate with a small temperature variation and constant humidity. If moisture gets into such an environment, it dries quickly, since a good wooden floor has a high-quality vapor barrier layer. If you carry out linoleum flooring from above, this can lead to unpleasant consequences: for example, to a change in thermal conductivity, high humidity and deformation of the base material. To reduce the risk of such processes, the underground should be well ventilated.
Even ifthe work on laying the finish coating has been completed, it is not too late to create air ducts. They can be combined with the interior, which will help decorative grilles. As a result, you will be able to eliminate the decay of wood, the reproduction of pests and the formation of fungus.
Preparation for installation work
Before you start laying linoleum, you must carry out preparatory work. To do this, the base must be made strong and even. If there are kinks and drops on it, then this can cause the formation of cracks and bursting areas. Linoleum is not repairable, which means it will have to be replaced. This will incur additional costs.
Linoleum flooring can be started only after you have made sure that the wooden floors do not creak, there are no gaps and cracks between their elements, and the boards are of good quality. It is also important to make sure that the material does not have fungus and mold. The above defects should be removed, but if there are enough of them, then the coating will have to be replaced.
Before laying linoleum in an old house, you should consider replacing the flooring. If there are creaking and loose boards, they are changed. Leaky and rotten are also subject to replacement. Cracks and crevices should be sealed with a special mixture for working with wood. Alignment is carried out by scraping. These steps may not allow you to get a perfectly flat subfloor. In this case, additional measures will have to be taken.
Special materials are used for this. This is aboutmoisture resistant fibreboard or plywood. For a floor with a significant amount of rotten boards, it is better to use gypsum fiber sheets or particle boards. These materials are fixed on the base with self-tapping screws or an adhesive mixture. If you combine these techniques, you can create a durable support.
If sheet material is laid on a wooden deck, then the screws are screwed below the surface level. The hats should be slightly recessed so that during sanding they do not damage the equipment and do not tear the linoleum elements when laying it. Installation of decorative material is carried out in a run. This increases the stability of the base and allows you to distribute the load over the entire area of \u200b\u200bthe room.
Choice of linoleum
Linoleum flooring begins with its choice. In this matter, it is important to determine the type of room. Semi-commercial material is excellent for corridors, kitchens and hallways. For bedrooms and rooms with a small number of visitors, you should purchase a household option. The width of the sheets is also important. To determine the final value of this parameter, it is necessary to measure the room. The thickness of the linoleum must exceed 3 mm.
Where to start styling?
Before you start laying linoleum on a wooden floor, you must bring the material into the room and unfold it on the floor, leaving it for a couple of days. So the canvases will be able to find their proportions and will correspond to humidity, as well as temperature.modes.
The next step is to measure and cut the material using a well-sharpened knife. In this case, a centimeter gap should be left between the linoleum and the walls. It is necessary to compensate for thermal expansion. The gaps will be decorated with skirting boards.
Work technology
Linoleum flooring on a wooden floor is carried out according to a certain algorithm. At its first stage, the canvases are folded in half and stacked on one half of the room. An unoccupied area of the floor must be treated with glue using a brush or roller. The glue will harden slightly after 15 minutes. At this time, the upper edge of the sheet is slightly bent, which will allow you to fix it on the treated area of the floor.
With a clean roller, any unevenness on the surface can be leveled. The second part of the sheet is turned over onto the laid half of the floor; excess glue must be removed with a sponge or rag. The composition should not get on the coating from the outside, as this will contribute to the formation of stains. For the second sheet, the algorithm of actions remains the same. At the final stage, the floor is left until it dries, which will take a day. Skirting boards are then fixed along the perimeter, which will give the room a finished look.
Double-strip installation
Do-it-yourself linoleum flooring can be done in two lanes. To do this, the material is overlapped, and then the top layer is trimmed. When working, a knife and a long rail are used. canvaseslaid on the floor without gluing. On the bottom sheet in length, a rule is set parallel to the wall. The top layer is cut off, but some masters use a technique in which two sheets are cut at once. This allows you to get a smooth joint between the layers.
The resulting canvases are stacked by analogy with the previous section. An additional measure for fixing the material can be the use of an adhesive composition, which is poured into the joint. Linoleum flooring on the floor may be accompanied by the use of more complex technology, which involves the use of a welding machine and a polymer cord. The latter is poured into the seam between the sheets. If you are new to the field of construction and repair, then it is better to refuse such technology.
Not so popular technology and using double-sided self-adhesive tape, which is located around the perimeter of the room. This installation option cannot be called the most reliable. In addition, there is a risk that the tape is of poor quality. This indicates that the linoleum will be ready to peel off within a few weeks after being put into service.
Using concrete as a rough surface: preparation
The concrete surface may also need leveling. For this, acrylic water-dispersion primers are usually used, which do not have a strong odor and are safe for he alth. This sets them apart from epoxy and polyurethane formulations.
The primed surface will have good adhesive adhesion andwill allow you to fix the coating as securely as possible. Acrylic primer is applied with a roller or brush in several layers. In a day, such a surface will be ready for finishing work. With the help of a primer, you can simplify the leveling of the floor, as the material will fill in microcracks and small irregularities.
Before you start laying linoleum on a concrete floor, you can use leveling compounds that have plasticizers among the ingredients that increase fluidity. Such mixtures penetrate into all pores and form a smooth surface. The resulting base is treated with an antiseptic, as porous materials create suitable conditions for the occurrence of mold.
Selecting the styling method
Before you start work, you must choose how to carry it out. To do this, you need to estimate the area of \u200b\u200bthe room. If it is small and does not exceed 20 m2, you can use the glueless method, in which the material is fixed with a plinth. A distance of 0.5 cm must be maintained to the wall.
Linoleum flooring on a concrete floor can be done using double-sided adhesive tape, located around the perimeter of the room and along the intended joints. Experts recommend using laying on glue or special mastic. In this case, the service life of the coating can be extended. The material does not form folds and waves, will not deform when rearranging furniture and increased loads.
Using glue
Among the main types of glue for linoleum, reaction anddispersion, they are combined with a certain type of primer. Dispersion contains water, therefore it is not toxic and does not emit harmful substances. You can use it for linoleum flooring on the following types of bases:
- felt;
- jute;
- foamed PVC.
Dispersion adhesive contains antiseptic components that prevent the formation of mold. The reaction composition contains epoxy and polyurethane ingredients that interact with linoleum and enter into an irreversible reaction. To date, many types of universal glue can be found on sale.
If the flooring of linoleum on a concrete floor will be carried out according to the described technology, then the cut sheets must be placed on the floor. In the next step, you will need to apply glue or mastic. In this case, the folding cloth algorithm described above is used.
The distribution of the mixture can be done with a roller or notched trowel, then the linoleum is laid on the surface and leveled. The last procedure must be carried out, moving from the center to the edges. In order to achieve an even joint when connecting the strips, they should be laid with an overlap, and then cut along the ruler. You must cut through two layers with a sharp knife. In the place where the linoleum is connected, a special compound called cold welding is used for fixing. In order for it not to damage the decorative layer, it is necessary to stick a masking tape along the joint, which is cut through. With the help of a needle nozzle, the adhesive compositionmust be applied between adjacent strips.
Using plywood
Linoleum flooring on plywood allows you to achieve a perfectly flat surface. If a wooden floor is used as a wall covering, it can creak, and installing plywood avoids this. Boards can be strengthened with long self-tapping screws. The latter must be of such length as to ensure the fit of each element. The step between the concrete and the screws should be 10 cm or more.
Fill gaps with mounting foam or wooden wedges. Linoleum flooring technology at the next stage involves the installation of plywood. If it will be located on top of a concrete screed, then it is preliminarily waterproofed with plastic wrap. Plywood is located on the logs, but their use can be abandoned. Large sheets are more convenient to cut into 4 parts. Gaps are left between the canvases to compensate for thermal expansion. A gap of 1.5 cm should be left between the plywood and the wall. The plywood is fixed in a checkerboard pattern, after which the floor is treated with a primer or primer.
Working on the flooring
Before proceeding with the linoleum flooring, it is recommended to consider the photo. They will help you understand which color and texture is better to give preference to. At the next stage, you can choose the installation technology. It may be glueless. Once the plywood base has been prepared, the process of laying the decorative coating follows. If the area of the room does not reach 15 m2, then thismethod is the best. If there is increased traffic in the room, then you should use the second method, which involves the use of glue.
In the first case, the roll is rolled around the room. Next, you can start cutting. As soon as the canvases are on the floor, they should be leveled, moving from the center to the edges. Using a knife, you need to cut off the excess, stepping back from the wall 1 cm. For fastening, use a plinth, while a steel rail is installed on the threshold.
Laying and flooring of linoleum is also carried out using the adhesive method. The first two steps remain the same. But on the third half of the material is bent and lubricated with a special compound. To apply it, you can use a grater or a notched trowel. Then you must wait as long as indicated in the instructions. It is important to ensure that there are no air bubbles. As soon as the first half is laid and strengthened, you can proceed to the second.
Using linoleum as a rough finish
Many are wondering if linoleum can be used as a rough base. The answer is yes. But first, the surface must be prepared. Wide cracks and seams are filled with sealant, followed by leveling the surface. The old layer should not be severely damaged, in which case it is advisable to cut out individual sections with defects and replace them with patches of suitable thickness.
Old dirt is well washed and dried. Linoleum flooring onold linoleum is carried out using double-sided tape or glue. If air bubbles form during the work, they are forced out. Skirting boards can be installed after the glue has dried.
