Linoleum is a floor covering that has been popular for many years. This is due not only to the acceptable cost of the material, but also to its excellent performance and easy installation. Laying linoleum is quite simple. Everyone can handle this. In addition, you will save a family budget without the help of specialists.
And of course, you will need to familiarize yourself with the styling technology. Otherwise, you can make gross mistakes that you can no longer correct. So, how to lay and how much linoleum should be laid down?
Types of linoleum
There are several types of this flooring. Depending on the scope of application, it is divided as follows:
- domestic;
- specialized;
- commercial;
- semi-commercial.
Household linoleum is the most common. It can be on a foamed, fabric, non-woven, polyester base. Quickly loses its appearance at high loads.
Specialized types are made for rooms with special requirements for operation. Here it is divided into acoustic, anti-slip and material with bactericidal properties.
In semi-commercial linoleum, the protective layer is thicker. It is used in offices, educational and administrative institutions. A commercial linoleum is characterized by a maximum protective layer and resistance to mechanical stress.
Working conditions
Before proceeding with the manipulation of the material and find out how much linoleum should be laid down, it is necessary to prepare the room for installation. The main thing is to create the necessary working conditions that would meet the technological requirements:
- The surface of the floor must be checked for bumps, cracks. It is desirable that it be as even as possible. Do not forget to clean it from debris and dust.
- There should not be a draft in the room. Before working for 24 hours, you can not turn on air conditioning, heaters and other devices that create an artificial microclimate.
- For 48 hours, the temperature should be kept in the room from 15 to 30 ° . The humidity level in the room should be within 60%.
- Before installation, linoleum must be brought into the room and straightened. The flooring should become ambient temperature. It is hard to say how much linoleum should lie down. After all, it all depends on the type of material. It can be either 12 or 48 hours. For example, experts believe that for artificial linoleum without a substrate, 20 hours is enough, and natural coating needs 48 hours.
Materials and Tools
Before proceeding with the installation, it is necessary to choose the appropriate method of fixing the floor covering. Specialists use double-sided tape and adhesive mastic.
Before installation, you must carefully study the manufacturer's recommendations. It often indicates the type of adhesive that can be used. In addition, the recommendations indicate the thickness of the adhesive layer. Consider this indicator when choosing a spatula for applying glue - this will greatly simplify the work.
Double-sided tape is mainly used for attaching PVC linoleum to a substrate or wooden base. When laying on a concrete base or on a felt surface, adhesive tape will not be able to reliably hold it.
Natural or artificial material with a fabric base is often laid on a special adhesive mastic. It is applied to the base with a special notched trowel.
If the concrete base is covered with a special moisture-resistant primer, it is necessary to put mastic on top of it and allow time for it to dry. After it is applied to the surface of linoleum and stack it. At the same time, it is necessary to roll the coating from the center to the sides in order to “expel” air bubbles.
But how much linoleum should be laid down after laying depends on the method of its fastening.
Room measurements
Before you go to the store for flooring, you must correctly and accurately take the dimensions of the room. In this case, possible joints should be avoided. If the room has many structural protrusions or it has a non-standard geometric shape, then measurements must be taken over the widest sections of the room. After all, it is always better to trim an extra piece of canvas than to glue the missing one later.
Having measured the room, it is necessary to make tolerances of 10 cm on each side. In this case, the material can be laid with a slight overlap on the wall.
If it is not possible to avoid joints, and a geometric pattern is applied to the material, it is necessary to think additionally about the possibility of shifting the rolls to select a pattern.
Many are interested not only in how many days linoleum should be laid after laying, but also how to put the material with the joint correctly? Remember that the joint should be perpendicular to the window. After all, a parallel joint will be very noticeable.
Styling method
You already know how much linoleum should be laid before laying. Having bought a floor covering, it is left in the room for at least 12 hours. But the method of laying the material depends not only on its features, but also on the area of the room. It could be:
- laying without fixing;
- the use of adhesive;
- laying on double-sided tape.
Laying linoleum without fixation is allowed in a room with a small area - up to 20 m². In this case, one-piece web is necessarily used.
Linoleum made from natural or artificial components on an insulated base is laid on the adhesive. In this case, the base should be wooden or concrete. The area of such a room may exceed 25 m².
The use of double-sided tape is permissible in rooms up to 25 m². In this case, seams are allowed if the floor base is wood, rubber or cork. It should also be borne in mind that it is not possible to lay linoleum with a texture base in this way. It has a fleecy structure, so it will not be able to give the necessary adhesion to the surface.
Features of the preparation of the material
The most important process before installing flooring is its preparation. Failure to follow this rule can lead to various troubles. Before spreading the canvas, linoleum must be in the non-expanded state for several days. Immediately after the acquisition, the purchase can be put in the room where it will lie. So the material will gain its own moisture, temperature. And how long should linoleum lie down before laying in the folded state?
Experts recommend putting the roll on the end in the corner of the room for 48 hours. If the ceiling height does not allow this, the material can be laid on the floor. But at the same time, it must be turned over every 12 hours. Remember that the surface of the floor must be covered with thick paper.
If the canvas is immediately spread out, it will dry out unevenly, as a result, waves form.
After the canvas is deployed and left for 12-48 hours to align. How many days linoleum must lie in order to lie down depends on many factors. First of all - from the material itself. So, linoleum with a PVC base will straighten faster if the room temperature is above +20 ° C, and with a fabric, on the contrary, longer.
Remember to use heavy objects to straighten corners or fix them is strictly prohibited.
After straightening the canvas, it is cut to a certain size, laid and fixed on the substrate, if necessary. After the canvas is again laid on the floor.
Flat joint
When laying linoleum for the first time, many make mistakes when making joints. First of all, you need to make an even joint of the canvas, fix it, and after that only do the trimming of the material around the perimeter. The sequence is as follows:
- Leave the necessary overlaps for the wall, lay the first roll.
- Lay the second roll, leaving a 10 cm overlap on the first.
- Unscrew the second roll 0.5 m from the junction and fix it to the floor with glue or double-sided tape. So the blade will not move during cutting.
- Repeat the procedure with the first roll.
- Using a sharp knife and a ruler, make a straight through cut at the place of the roll inlet.
Laying linoleum on the adhesive
When fixing linoleum, it is necessary to take into account some of the nuances of work.
So, with material on a natural basis, you need to be extremely careful. First of all, you need to familiarize yourself with the manufacturer's recommendations. Glue is applied in one direction on the entire surface of the canvas with a notched trowel. The seams of natural linoleum are joined together by a welding method 48 hours after the glue dries.
After an average of 48 hours, you can proceed with the installation of skirting boards and furniture.
Output
Often in modern apartments, linoleum is used as flooring. This material has been very popular for a long time. But, like any other, it must be correctly laid. Therefore, it is very important to know how to do it correctly and how much linoleum should lie down before and after laying.