Fortunately, the days have passed when, when making repairs, I had to look for acquaintances in construction stores in order to acquire at least some linoleum by the great blat. This detail in the house was considered a huge pride and the peak of excellence in the interior. Years passed, but linoleum has not lost its leadership position, but has become even better, better, more solid and more beautiful thanks to modern technology.
Is linoleum popular today?
Such a coating is very convenient not only in residential buildings, but also in offices, at industrial enterprises - it is used with pleasure as the most reliable coating, which is not afraid of dirt, many external influences, and it is easy to clean such a coating without any special problems.
What kind of species now you will not meet in the store. Therefore, it is necessary for the owners of homebuilding, and businessmen for their own enterprises, and directors of industrial production, if they decide to ennoble their establishments, to understand the quality and field of use of this magnificent coating. One of the most important properties of this flooring is its durability. This parameter characterizes the ability to withstand various kinds of loads. The wear resistance class of linoleum is selected depending on the room in which it will be laid.
Household flooring
There is a huge demand in construction stores. A floor covering having a wear resistance class of linoleum 21-23, household, is used in residential premises. In order for the material to maintain its positive properties for a long time, it must have:
- thickness up to 3 mm;
- weight - up to 2.25 kg per square meter;
- elasticity;
- heat and sound insulation;
- shrinkage, which would be up to 0.2 mm per meter.
For installation in rooms where the load is very small, for example, bedrooms, linoleum wear class 21 is suitable for children, living rooms and kitchens, it is best to choose 22, and in hallways, corridors and common areas, where there is a large flow of people - 23 rooms.
Which linoleum flooring is best for home?
In the production of this flooring, a wide variety of materials are used, but many prefer natural materials.
Wood or lime flour, resin obtained from various conifers, flax oil, dyes, but only natural - all these components are actively used in the production of this type of linoleum. And its base is made of jute fabric. It has about 30 percent of the binder materials, and polymerization is accomplished during production through the process of adding oxygen to drying oils.
This type of coating has earned its popularity for good reason. Although natural linoleum and at the price is the most expensive, but, along with wear resistance, it is also durable. It can serve faithfully and with good faith for 40 years, is not afraid of sunlight, preserving color and pattern, performs bactericidal functions thanks to linseed oil.
But we must admit that there are also small flaws in it. It does not have elasticity, and therefore it can not be bent strongly so as not to break. Also, such a floor will give a slight shrinkage over time. Even after several years, it retains a specific natural smell, and it is not worth laying it in rooms where constant humidity is harmful to the coating. The color scheme of such material cannot be called rich. You should not buy very cheap linoleum, this will largely affect its quality. But absolutely inflated prices are also best avoided so as not to overpay for the brand’s popularity.
Linoleum for school, kindergarten, office space
There is a semi-commercial type, the wear resistance class of linoleum is 31-34. If you compare, then in terms of quality - the average between household and commercial. Its service life is up to about 20 years, it absorbs sounds well, with shrinkage not exceeding 0.1 mm per meter.
What linoleum to buy for the office?
According to statistics, the most willingly sold out is polyvinyl chloride flooring. This is a relatively cheap linoleum, and there are many types of it. You can purchase:
- with and without foundation;
- with many layers and single layer, and the base can be foamed, fabric, non-woven with thermal insulation;
- the most various colors, patterns, shades.
During laying, it easily lays on the base, because it is elastic and does not contain toxic substances.
If you pay attention to the shortcomings, you can identify the following:
- after it has only been laid on the floor, there will be an unpleasant smell in the room for some time, but soon there will be no trace of it;
- when the room is constantly elevated temperature, it shrinks, but this does not apply to those species that contain fiberglass, and foamed.
In the production of polyvinyl chloride multilayer linoleum, certain raw materials for the substrate layer are usually used: fabric, jute, PVC foamed.
There is always a fiberglass layer in the composition: it is impregnated with polyvinyl chloride glue. The main one - the surface face layer with a printed pattern of polyvinyl chloride - is dense, there is always a very thin transparent PVC layer on top.
Linoleum commercial
Slightly different parameters should contain those types of linoleum that are intended for production shops and other public uses. Commercial linoleum - class 41-43 - is under heavy load, because the layer-film is made in such a way that it greatly increases strength - up to 500 MPa.
They are used in public places also because of the rather low price, simplicity during repair work and a large selection of designs.
But there are other types of commercial linoleum .
Medical - it resists chemical reagents and has antiseptic properties.
Sports - has softness and is in excellent contact with sports shoes.
What is used in production facilities?
For the sale of linoleum types such as glyphthalic and alkyd, resins containing fillers, both organic and inorganic, various pigments, are used. This is necessary so that the material is more reliable and high quality.
They are made on the basis of fabric materials, drawings can be plain or with a pattern.
Such floor coverings attract such qualities:
- long serve, have wonderful wear resistance;
- low abrasion of linoleum;
- easy to tidy;
- have high sound insulation, keep heat indoors.
The negative qualities include some difficulties in laying and the lack of resistance at constant low temperatures - it is too gentle for this.
For the production of rubber linoleum, crushed rubber is taken, bitumen is added - this is the first layer, and in the upper one there is rubber produced synthetically and a filler containing pigment. It is strong, durable and elastic, it is not afraid of water, but because of its composition, which is capable of releasing harmful substances toxic to people, it is not used in residential premises - only for industrial purposes.
The composition of ecologically clean nitrocellulose linoleum is interesting: colloxylin, gypsum, minium, etc. Colors as a result are plain or reminiscent of marble. This look is distinguished by elasticity and high wear resistance, durable and looks elegant on the floor.
Conclusion
Usually, the wear resistance of the coating can be determined from the top layer of PVC, as well as by checking the thickness of the protective layer. If it is 0.15 m, then it is ideal for sleeping rooms, linoleum with a layer of 0.20 mm is desirable to be laid in children's rooms, and in other residential premises, such as a kitchen, a corridor is 0.25 mm.
For offices in enterprises it is advisable to choose a thickness of 0.30 mm, and in public places with a high traffic flow, the best option is 0.50 mm.