Hybrid flooring can be laid on both wooden floors and concrete floors and some floor preparation maybe required.
Thick loose lay vinyl planks usually can be laid mainly on concrete floors which may not require much floor preparation. It can be laid on wooden floors but will require extra floor preparation at an extra cost, like cement sheeting fitted correctly and screeding over the cement sheeting, especially the joins.
Hybrid flooring needs to be laid by a floating floor method which requires undercutting of door frames to allow for expansion, expansion gaps against walls, and in some cases expansion trims are required over certain distances as specified by the manufacturers ( usually 10 or 15metres). A skirting or scotia would need to be fitted over the expansion gaps near the wall.
In comparison, vinyl planks can be laid flush to the walls and doorframes and this may eliminate a need for skirtings and if flooring is suitable eliminates a need for expansion trims.(expansion trims cover an expansion gap).
In the case of maintenance or replacing a damaged board of hybrid flooring, the skirting, scotia and trims may need to be removed first then the flooring will need to be lifted from the most suitable wall right back to the damaged board. The board can then be replaced and the flooring refitted together if undamaged, the skirtings and trims refitted and maybe if walls are damaged some repainting may be required. Note also some hybrid joining systems may not allow to be unclicked and therefore such a repair may not be possible unless replacing some or all boards .
For thick loose lay vinyl plank (which are usually all glued to the floor) for maintenance and repairs, if a PS glue is used, can be a simple process of pulling up the individual damaged board, finding the glue still sticky and replacing the board back into place with a new board. If the glue is a hard set glue or the PS is stuck a little better, the same procedure can be used but may be a little harder and require a scraping of the floor. In this case after the floor is clean and ready, purchase some more hard set glue, spread according to the specifications and finally insert a board.
Both hybrid flooring and vinyl planks are available in several qualities with wear layers usually from budget 0.3mm to extreme 0.7mm with the most popular being 0.5 to 0.55mm for most installations.
We will continue this topic in our forthcoming blog.
At AJRFloors we work with our customers in here and now, ensuring sustainable solutions. We carry a large range of planks, possibly more than any of our competitors. Have a look at our ranges by following this links www.ajrfloors.com.au/vinyl or call 0413 777 299. We are located at 2/734 Marshall Road, Malaga WA 6090.
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