Expansion Gap For Luxery Vinyl

Vinyl looks like hardwood but is much cheaper to purchase and can be installed for as little as 5 per square foot.

Expansion gap for luxery vinyl.

Tongue and groove vinyl the kind that snaps together like laminate is a different story. With these you need that expansion gap just like you do on other types of floating floors. Vinyl flooring naturally expands and contracts in the heat and cold. A floating floor usually needs 5 10mm the loose planks will absorb heat and expand like any flooring material some more than others so you run the risk of it buckling.

Thermal expansion of luxury vinyl tile and plank flooring posted on july 13 2017 by flooring professionals administrator i am getting more and more complaints of lvt lvp epc and wpc products used in rooms with glass doors skylights or big window areas that are growing expanding and then gapping especially at the end joints. Just enough to absorb the smaller amount of expansion a bonded vinyl floor moves. This helps keep the floor from buckling and working itself apart as it expands and contracts with temperature changes. If the floor is installed flush with the wall there is no room for growth in the hot months and the loose lay floor can easily buckle.

Lay the first row of vinyl plank flooring along the wall leaving the manufacturer recommended amount of expansion space between the plank s edge and the wall usually about 1 4 inch. Stop the floor between a quarter inch and a half inch shy of the wall to allow for this natural expansion. If the planks are cut make sure the cut edge is facing the wall. The installation is also incredibly easy and fast.

When installing floating vinyl floors it is necessary to allow for this expansion by leaving a gap around the perimeter of the floor or anywhere it meets another floor or vertical surface. Leave an expansion gap along the walls. These gaps allow the flooring to expand freely with temperature changes. Here are some tips for leaving an expansion gap easily.

Insert shims to create about a 1 4 inch to 3 8 inch gap between the flooring and the walls. Leave a gap of about inch between the floor and the wall on all sides. When not installed on a level surface a luxury vinyl plank floor can shorten in length when it rides over high and low areas and it can also lift on edges or ends where a substrate irregularity.