Resilient Flooring

Removal

Getting the old floor, adhesive, and fasteners out without damaging the substrate.

• Cutback Adhesive & Asbestos ID

  Black cutback adhesive and old resilient tile can contain asbestos, and you can't tell by looking. What OSHA and EPA presume, how to get it tested, and what ...

• Removing Rubber Flooring and Rubber Base

  Scraping off rubber tile, sheet and base: blade choice, scoring widths, old adhesive, and the asbestos rules that apply to older resilient floors.

• Removing Glue-Down LVT and Sheet Vinyl

  Scraping up glue-down LVT and sheet vinyl: when to presume asbestos, which blade to run, and how clean the substrate needs to be.

• Removing VCT and Its Adhesive

  Getting VCT and its adhesive off concrete or wood: testing first, machine and blade setup, heat for small areas, and cleaning up the residue.

• Scraper Blade Selection: Width, Angle and Material

  Blade width, bevel direction, angle and blade type for each flooring material, plus how to keep blades sharp enough to matter.

• Walk-Behind vs Ride-On Scrapers: Choosing by Job Size

  How to choose between a walk-behind and a ride-on floor scraper by job size, access, material and power source, with the models that fit each case.

Grinding

Diamond grinding to profile, level, or remove residue.

• Grinding Off Thinset, Mastic and Glue Residue

  Getting thinset, mastic and glue residue off concrete: testing first, choosing between PCD, metal bonds and floor-machine attachments, and handling the dust.

• ICRI Concrete Surface Profiles (CSP 1-10) Explained

  What ICRI concrete surface profiles (CSP 1 to 10) are, which prep methods reach which profile, and how to check yours against the chips.

Surface Prep

Patching, leveling, and testing so the new floor has something to bond to.

• Concrete pH and Alkalinity Testing

  How the ASTM F710 surface pH test works, why the limit comes from your adhesive, and why you test after surface prep, not before.

• Underlayment for Floating Floors

  When a floating floor needs separate underlayment, when it doesn't, the 6-mil poly question over concrete, and thickness limits, by manufacturer.

• Patching and Skim-Coating Under Resilient

  Choosing and using cement-based patch and skim coat under resilient flooring: primers, thickness limits, wood subfloors, and wait times.

• Self-Leveling Underlayment: When and How

  Profile, primer, water, depth and cure time for self-leveling underlayment, including metal lath over wood subfloors.

• Subfloor Flatness Standards (ASTM F710)

  Flatness tolerances for resilient, tile and wood, how to check them with a straightedge, and how to fix highs and lows before you install.

• Subfloor Moisture Testing: Calcium Chloride vs RH Probes

  In-situ RH probes (ASTM F2170) vs calcium chloride (ASTM F1869): what each measures, how to run them, and why you can't convert one to the other.

Repair

Cracks, joints, and spalls fixed before anything goes down.

• Crack and Joint Repair Before Flooring

  Moving vs dormant cracks, which joints must carry through the flooring, rout-and-fill basics, and why no fill guarantees against telegraphing.

Installation

Layout, cutting, adhesives, seaming, and the install itself.

• Floating Floor Layout and Expansion Gaps

  Expansion gaps, run lengths, stagger rules, first-row planning and cabinet guidance for floating laminate and rigid core floors.

• Cutting LVP: Score-and-Snap, Shear or Saw

  Score-and-snap, shears and saws for LVP and rigid core: what the flooring makers say, which side faces up, and where each tool fits.

• Grooving Seams: Hand Groover vs Power Groover

  How deep and wide to groove vinyl and linoleum seams for heat welding, and when to use a power groover versus a hand groover.

• Heat Weld Nozzles and Rod: Which Tip for Which Job

  Speed nozzles, tacking nozzles and weld rod: which tip goes with which rod and floor, and the temperature ranges manufacturers publish.

• Heat Welding Sheet Vinyl, Step by Step

  Heat welding sheet vinyl seams: when to weld, grooving depth for homogeneous vs heterogeneous sheet, gun setup, welding speed and two-stage trimming.

• Knee Protection for Floor Installers

  Why floor layers' knees take more damage than almost any other trade, and how to choose hard-cap, soft-cap and no-cap knee pads for the surface you're on.

• Rolling Resilient Floors: Roller Weight and Timing

  Roller weight, rolling direction and timing for glue-down resilient and rubber flooring, and why the adhesive sets the schedule.

• Tapping Blocks, Pull Bars and Spacers

  How to use tapping blocks, pull bars, spacers and mallets on click and tongue-and-groove floors without breaking the locking profile.

• Toe-Kick Saws: Cutting Flooring Out Under Cabinets

  Using a toe-kick saw to cut flooring out under cabinets: depth settings, guard and kickback rules from Crain's manual, and finishing corners.

• VCT Layout and Installation

  Squaring the room, setting border widths, spreading VCT adhesive to dry-to-touch, and rolling, with the numbers from AHF, Mannington and Tarkett.

• Undercutting Door Jambs and Casings

  Undercutting door jambs and casings so new flooring slides underneath: setting blade height, choosing a jamb saw, and avoiding the cuts that show.

• Trowel Notch Selection for Resilient Adhesives

  How to pick the right trowel notch for resilient flooring adhesive, why porous and non-porous substrates differ, and how to check coverage.

Finishing

Transitions, wall base, stairs, and edge details.

• Choosing a Rubber Reducer Profile

  Choosing a rubber or vinyl reducer by height difference and floor pair, with the ADA's 1/4 and 1/2 inch rules and CRI's carpet edge rule.

• Transition Strips & Thresholds by Height Difference

  How to pick a transition by the height difference between floors, what the ADA allows on accessible routes, and the mistakes that cause trip edges and failed...

• Installing Wood and LVP Stair Nosing

  Installing wood and LVP on stairs: full-adhesion rules from Shaw and Mohawk, nosing types, and checking riser heights against code.

• Installing Vinyl Stair Treads and Risers

  Conditioning, scribing, adhesive choices, nose filler and rolling for vinyl and rubber stair treads and risers, based on Roppe's instructions.

• Installing Vinyl and Rubber Wall Base

  Acclimating, gluing, forming corners and rolling vinyl and rubber wall base, with Roppe and Johnsonite specs side by side.

Maintenance

Keeping machines and tools running between jobs.

• Heat Weld Gun Care: Elements, Filters and Nozzles

  Cooling down, cleaning air filters, changing heating elements and cleaning nozzles on Leister-type heat weld guns, and what to leave to a service center.

• Ride-On Scraper Daily and Weekly Maintenance

  Daily, monthly and hour-based maintenance for battery ride-on scrapers: charging, hydraulics, blades, wheels, storage and transport, based on National's serv...

• Eddy Floor Scraper: Blades, Brushes and Wear Parts

  Which Eddy Floor Scraper parts wear, how to change blades, and how to read Eddy's parts list when ordering

Troubleshooting

• Peaking, Gapping and Bounce in Floating Floors

  Diagnosing peaking, gapping and bounce in floating floors, traced back to the expansion, pinning, flatness and environment rules in the makers' instructions.

• Adhesive Bleed, Bubbles and Telegraphing

  What causes adhesive bleed, bubbles and telegraphing under resilient flooring, and what the manufacturers say about preventing and fixing each one.

Shop the tools

• Floor Scraping Machines
• Heat Weld Guns & Kits
• Groovers and Scribers
• Wall Base & VCT Tools
• Trowels
• Adhesives
• LVP & Laminate Cutters