The Rigid Core Max flooring from today’s video is simply-surfaces.com in European Grey Oak. I was an early product tester of Simply Surfaces LVP flooring (before they came up with their brand name). Since I installed it last year they have decided to launch a 9 inch plank version which is more consistent with the demand they see from customers. I am really happy with the final result, it's a Jeff approved product. Find it at simply-surfaces.com and watch the full install tutorial 👉🏼ruclips.net/video/waCiOUOaR_A/видео.html Cheers!
Trick for everyone! I find those love tap tools sometimes cause damage. Just use an off cut and set it in the joint and then tap that. Spread that energy across the entire joint without damaging the tongue and groove. And it works for both vinyl and laminate! 😊
You can also shave off one edge of a 2x4, so that it has a sharp, clean edge, and use that to tap the boards into place. I did that for my laminate flooring, and it worked great.
As a flooring installer for most my life I’m 59 today, installing pretty much everything over the course of my life even did hard floor sending,stain and varnish. I got to say those vinyl products to me are much better than laminate products because of moisture issues. But as you said they are not miraculous. Your video is very well explained and shows an important difference is the lasting of the product. Well done keep doing good work !!
@@amadolasala200 my understanding is that the 4 side locking system have more chance on holding together with some imperfections on the subfloor. As said in the video those products change a lot in time by the manufacturers, You need to go and see what they have at this time in store’s. Be wise try to make the best choice but there is always a gamble good luck!
You posted this with absolutely perfect timing. I’m redoing my mom’s basement with the Vinyl flooring and I specifically asked her to get tongue and groove flooring because I’ve had so many issues with the snap lock flooring in other basements. We live in Pennsylvania and a lot of floors are uneven so the snap lock tends to come apart. I’m only 21 so she doesn’t completely trust my judgement so this video will help back up my case! Thank you for posting these videos, they’re life savers!
I just refloored a room with LVP after watching one of your older videos ... Cheap, easy upgrade that made the room look 2000% better. Grateful as hell for your vids Jeff.
The demo was good but the pep-talk at the end is what I needed to hear; "If you're a DIY'er everything you do makes money". I was gonna go with vinyl flooring but now I'm sold on tile.
Thanks for the shout out, Jeff! Great explanation here of the different types of locking systems and awesome example of how they react to gaps. Really underscores the need for floor prep with drop lock.
I love the value of videos like this. So specific. I'm embarrassed to say I put vinyl flooring into a basement reno where there was too much slope in part of the basement near the entrance. The contractor totally recommended against it. I decided to do it anyway and got what I asked for. It's now starting to separate and look terrible at the place with the uneven surface after just 2 years. No one to blame but myself. Lesson learned.
I enjoy most of these videos. They’ve helped me with a few projects around the house that I had no experience with. But as a professional flooring installer, this video was hard to watch. The message was great. I always try and talk the homeowner out of drop lock. “Angle lock” is a much better product. But you never use a pull bar to secure planks in the field. It’s meant for places a tapping block can’t reach (around walls) you will definitely damage most locking mechanisms by doing it that way. Theres actually a much easier way to install the angle lock.. try starting with the butt joint first. There is a reason it’s called “angle lock”. It’s set in on an angle. but it takes a little time getting comfortable doing it that way.
Yeah he's doing it totally wrong. And whenever I use a pull bar close to a wall on a factory edge I still put a small scrap piece on the edge so it doesn't get damaged
Had LifeProof installed in our house about 3 years ago. 90% of the house is slab-on-grade, the other 10% is old pier and beam with standard lumber. Just recently had to have the floor in the 10% fixed because a gap appeared. The rest of the house looks great but after watching this and realizing what the real problem is, I'll likely look at replacing that 10% with the mohawk material. I'm going to keep an eye on it, but if you're right about it coming undone easier the second time, that floor will end up having a 3 year life, not 20. Live and learn, thanks for the video. Before seeing this, I figured it was just a bad joint initially and I should just put down more LifeProof to fix it. You probably saved me some time, money and frustration!
I wish I had the information in the video three years ago. I had a vinyl floor installed three years ago. (my wife insisted that we have it professionally installed) They are now showing spots where they appear to be cupping, I think it is just the joint is expanding and failing. As you mentioned in the video, the issue is with the current floor. I am near Cleveland, Ohio. My house was built in 1954. The subfloor is 1x6 planking covered by tongue and grove hardwood flooring. The kitchen has two layers of tile flooring. We had the vinyl installed throughout the living room, hall and kitchen. It is the drop lock type floor. The installer used leveler on the transition between the rooms and two surfaces. We have had the flooring company out and they have filed a claim with the manufacturer. I did some research on the product, and per the manufacturing, it can be installed floating or glued. If I had known I would have requested the tongue and groove or insisted that it be glued
Speaking from experience. I currently have LVP. I would only recommend this for basement or if you have a really flat surface. Can you imagine placing these thin boards over your sub floor. The product work great if your floor is concrete.
Oh, thank goodness! I picked the right flooring. I'm going to be honest I had no idea about what you're pointing out in this video. We almost got the lifeproof, but we decided at the last minute to get the ridged core. Mainly because of the look and style of the ridged core. It actually had texture and looked more like real wood, in our opinion. Now I will say installing the ridged core wasn't fun at all! It was difficult and I cussed the whole time. However, it's been almost 3 years, and we haven't had any gap issues that I've seen others have. I was relieved to find out now that we made the better choice! Thanks 😊 this was a good video!
@@HomeRenoVisionDIY All fun and games until you're alone at the job site and the lenght is like 6 meters per row all at once, what a nightmare that was.
@@luilocolombia "tiles for less" carries it. If you don't have a local store than just Google "ridged core max 22" and you should have a local distributor. 😀
Great video. I bought about 1000sqft of Lifeproof on recommendation of a friend how has installed it in his newer home. Long story short, I hired a reputable flooring company to come install it and they said they would not in good conscience install it in my older home which has multiple subflooring types done over decades of remodels and additions. Even with a 1/4in plywood overlayment, they said it would fail from uneven surfaces and floor movement of the raised foundation. Wish I had seen your video sooner but at least I have the receipt to Home Depot for the material.
😅Do read the warrenty on vinal floring , after a year and a half mine started to come apart. . called the manafacture and found out if you have a hospital bed, a wheelchair or a office rolling chair it voids the warrenty. And we have all three
So good to know. I couldn't believe how uneven my floors are. Between that and the fact that nothing seems to be actually square, doing the floor has been harder than I thought. But I'm doing it MYSELF! Yay, me!
I’m trying and it’s not working out for me. Actually, I’m trying to relay the pieces that my landlord laid and they’re not snapped in and there’s gaps everywhere. It’s driving me nuts and I can’t stand it. We have lots of new boxes of the flooring and I’m honestly debating just redoing it, but I’m afraid of the mess I might make :/
I put down LV plank in the basement. It was originally cheap vinyl tile 9x9s. Put down LV plank right over it. It has the padding under so it doesn’t feel like you’re walking on concrete. So far so good.
We've installed the Costco mohawk flooring in our rentals. Was a steep learning curve but your videos helped build confidence and tricks to handle tricky cuts (I still hate doing door jambs). Its a 1900s house and while we had the floors raised/leveled from underneath there was still some uneveness. We're using the steico underlayment and it's working great. The floors feel really good under your feet with it with the bonus of providing a little insulation from the crawlspace.
What's your views on loose lay vinyl flooring with no glue no tape just loose lay for an uneven plywood floor. Wavy from the floor Joyce but unable to fill to level.
“It’s Saturday hunny, gonna go fix the floor” 🤣 I just about pissed myself cause it’s so F N true Love your channel brotha Always educational, great humor and packed full of tips. #1 big dog thank you 🙏
GIANT CAVEAT ABOUT T&G!! We moved into a patio home (slab-on-grade) 3 years ago. We had the carpeted floors replaced with T&G vinyl planks. It looked good. BUT, here comes the caveat.. I use a wheelchair and it’s two small wheels on the front are wider, softer, and spread the load out better. Had a problem with it, so i had to use a backup wheelchair that has the standard, thinner, harder wheels in front. In just about a months time of using that wheelchair, the places that i occupied the most throughout the day, the flooring started seperating and bowing up at the ends. It got so bad in the kitchen, we just pulled up severL of the planks. The change in loading by using the second chair caused an increase in the point load made by the two small front wheels. This caused the tongues to fracture and break. We had to have the ENTIRE floor replaced with NON -T&G glue-down vinyl planks at a cost of around $8000.. So anyone moving into similar circumstances, check to make sure you don’t have T&G flooring, or may be replacing your floors within a few months of wheelchair use…
I've been installing these laminate floors since they came out. On the tongue and groove it's easier to install the short side first, then click in the length side
Just finishing with a product called Aqua Guard Premium over concrete. The floor was previously ground flat for laminate that was 3.5 mm thick which got destroyed by my gf’s unhousetrained dogs. The underlayment is 6 mil plastic moisture barrier + rubber backing on the planks. Finally figured out that I had to slightly lift the previous plank and get the ends lined and partially clicked in place, and there is a little notch in one corner of the drop locks. The planks are very stiff and 12 mm thick which are on the same plane as existing porcelain tile transition. I doubt they could be snapped, I put a 6.5 inch wood blade in a wet tile saw I had from glass backsplash install and ran it dry. I didn’t want to rent a table/miter saw cuz I’m very slow and would cost more than the material. Could have bought a saw and then sell it, I suppose. Got the planks on closeout for $1.98 sf, I don’t think it is sold anymore, just the 10 mm thick version now. Ripping the last row of planks on the tile saw was an adventure, I messed it up and had to use one short piece of scrap cut wider to patch up the wall gap that kept growing to 1” at the end. Getting the end joints to close was a bear, I used a tapping block and pro length puller hitting them hard with a 4 pound sledge. The puller I engaged over the plank lip, not on the locking ledge. Chipped the wear layer off on the end of one row, but next to wall so it won’t show. And I learned that 1/8 inch gap, the width of the locking ledge, is plenty next to the wall in my small house.
I installed the Noble Oak vinyl plank flooring from the Home Decorators Collection in a older house bathroom with a new sub floor and it curled up like bacon with a week. It had too much give side to side and after i trying to level off the floor perfectly i gave up and installed linoleum instead.
I could really use a video on how to bring vinyl flooring through doorways without removing the casing. Showing how to lay it each way to continue into another room
There are more options. My Mannington plank floor is glued to the subfloor. The adhesive is a special type that allows you to peel up a plank and stick a new one in it's place with no additional adhesive. I chose this over a floating install for several reasons, but this is the one I like the most. I've got a spare box of planks in the basement, and if a plank gets damaged I can easily replace it.
I've been installing floors for 5 decades and the only vinyl plank I would ever install, it is so much easier, faster, to install than click floor. The adhesive is called pressure sensitive, great stuff
Jeff, as a manufacturer who owns a factory that makes spc flooring, I would like to point out something. You can NOT hammer the short side on these drop lock systems. To learn about drop lock installation, I suggest people check out I4F, who is lincensor of drop lock technology. If the plank has not locked properly, hammering it from the other side will only damage that joint. "love tap" should only be done on the long sides. Uniclic locking system is the only locking system that can be "love tapped" on both sides short and long sides because all 4 sides of this locking system is angle type, not drop-down type. However in this video, you have not brought any to showcase. Also, the very top of spc flooring is coated with UV later. This is the layer that provides critical scratch and stain protection to your floor. There are many different types of UV oil, some have much better performance than others. This video's purpose was to show two different locking systems, but the two products you are comparing have the same drop lock system. Doesn't give your viewers much confidence if you can't tell which locking systems you are working with.
I don't know what you're looking at but those are definitely two different locking systems on the short joint, he just mistakenly calls the second one a drop lock when he starts to put it down. However, the way he does it is not how I do it. I start by angling in the end joint and then do the long joint. And I would never use that pull bar on a factory edge, get or make a proper tapping block.
I installed some super cheap vinal plank flooring over an uneven basement floor. Bought some super inexpensive flooring and a super cheap pad/moisture barrior. It wasn't perfect and places where I had problems because of the floor slopes like he showes I used expanding sprayfoam to fill in the voids and glue the floor in place. Over each problem spot I injected the foam and then just put a heavy weight to hold the planks down so it would dry flat with the joints locked. I doubt it held up but it gave the basement a clean enough look for my family to sell the place quickly. I dont recomend the inexpensive stuff, and deffinatly if you do use it you have to have a dead flat floor. The glue with some "Great Stuff" did work but I bet after a little while that stuff broke down and made the floor have crunchies underfoot. I woulden't have left it if it wasent just quick cosmetic refresh on a basement utility room. It was for sure lipstick on a pig but better looking than painting the floor or the peel and stick tiles you can get which would have been the only other as cheap/ quick options.
If you're skimping like I did on a project like this skimp all the way. The trash products that get returned a bunch by the big box stores are always getting rotated out of inventory. Get the clearance they practically give out the items they are discontinuing.
If you have a slab on grade concrete subfloor in the basement, but the concrete is not perfectly flat, would you recommend going tongue and groove over snap lock? We're talking about maybe half an inch change over several feet, but you can see the hump standing back.
I LOVED your video!!!!!!! I have a 53 year old 2-story farm house (we live on a 15 acre farm) we are rough on floors! We currently have travertine 18X18 square tiles and I HATE THEM. They are COLD, they are HARD, they hurt my feet and the grout is always dirty. I really want to put new floors in...being that we are soooo rough on floors-kids, animals, even goats and alpacas sometimes in the house and that we are on a raised foundation, we have variance in the grade and level-can we put the tongue and groove vinyl plank over the tile? Do we have to remove the tile? should we put hardwood-thoughts ideas, suggestions are most WELCOME
@@HomeRenoVisionDIY In my last flooring attempt I tried to get explicit, written information on what the warranty covers and not as it was general conditions and lack of clarity about what a repair would be (whole carpet, part, etc). In this case it was medium-high end carpet but they wouldn't give me anything beyond the generic info from the manufacturer and suggested I go elsewhere if I didn't like it. My take away is that any flooring warranty is mostly a joke unless you are willing to take legal action (which will probably cost you more than just replacing the flooring yourself).
This was excellent I needed that information. We don't want to spend 15,000 on hard wood floors. I'm looking for the second best thing for our home. Definitely need the tongue and groove style. Thanks I'm a new fan of the channel.
We have SPC flooring tnat was installed a few weeks before we bought our home. The previous owners had a toilet leak and ripped out the entire floor thatvwas engineered hard wood and replaced with SPC planks. Unfortunately the SPC only lasted 6 months before all of the locking mechanisms failed, planks coming up and cutting feet, chipping, separating, etc. Called the company who installed it and of course they were off the hook because the warranty did not transfer to new ownership. They admitted that they had needed to raise the floor off the concrete slab to make up for the height of fhe thick engineered wood. So they laid 3/4 inch plywood underneath a vapor lock barrier right on top of the slab. The floor is a hazard to walk on and it needs to be replaced but we are unsure of what type of floor to replace it with because the plywood underlay seems to be extremely uneven and warping in our clhot Arizona climate. I am considering just the glue down type floor but have a feeling everything needs to be ripped out and we need to start from scratch which we cant afftat the moment. Our planks are being ductaped down to prevent further injuries, it's awful. Does anyone have any suggestions? We will have to avoid any flooring that has any kind of locking mechanism due to how uneven the floor is. Or do we just try to nail it all down and peel n' stick vinyl over top of it?
I'm build a full bathroom in my basement, I'm planing on putting in vinyl plank for the flooring. Does the flooring go around or under the toilet flange?
There should be an EP on whether to choose wpc (wood polymer/plastic composite) or spc (stone plastic composite). I notice SPC is cheaper but cold on concrete
I was so confused when you said a 20 mil wear layer! In Australia we call millimetres "mils" and 20 millimetres is just over 3/4in! After a quick google, 20 mil is approx 0.51 millimetres. Love from Australia 🦘
Hmm 2nd floor kitchen, townhouse built 1989. 2 layers of sheer vinyl. The 2nd sheet vinyl they used some self leveler but they could not get it perfectly level, it more a long distance in non level not a whole bunch ups and downs. Looking at LVP overtop of existing sheet vinyl.
What's the best vinyl flooring for uneven plywood floors I would think loose lay because nothing snaps together to break it's very new I believe started in Canada what's your views please.
Every box of flooring will have instructions which tells you what the tolerance of the subfloor must be. If the subfloor is within the tolerance set by the manufacturer, then droplock shouldnt be coming apart - if they do, then it would almost certainly be manufacturing defect and will likely eventually occur to many of the joins from that particular batch. As for the melting or heat damage aspect, it should also be stated on the instructions whether that product is suitable for use with underfloor heating. From what I've seen, warping damage from sunlight seems to be most prevalent with the thinner products of 4mm and 4.5mm. Ive also noticed that its frequently in homes that allow for prolonged sunlight exposure, or where the climate isnt well maintained, such as holiday homes. Personally, I haven't seen it as a problem that would make it only susceptible to vinyl and hybrid products, given that timber and laminate are also prone to expansion problems in these conditions.
We had 5 mm vinyl flooring installed and the planks warp on the long end. They were installed with a professional contractor. The flooring company we purchased the material said it was our fault for not using plastic under the vinyl. We have seen the same vinyl installed on concrete without plastic and it is not warping.
yes for sure. in an old basement you want a more malleable core because of the slopes. . in a new basement rigid core is always the best, for joint locking durability. minimum of 5mm thick with a 20 mil wear layer. Cheers!
All I know is I've been in homes with vinyl flooring that look similar to the eye. In one home though I remember the sound of the floor slapping when i walked on it. Like I was walking on sheets of masonite. I assume it may have been warped but it didn't look like it. Other homes almost looked like wood engineered flooring. I think there may be a lot to the quality of vinyl flooring and choosing a good product over what just meets the eye.
Yes, when I'm trying to find out I have a floor that has laminate flooring on it and I want to know what would be the best thing to put on the floor that's already got laminate on it but the floor is not level it has dips he has parts in it, where it squeaks and is the living room as dip and is not level it seem like peel and stick would be the best.
I just installed laminate in my house last year, and thought I'd share a few more tips: - Score boards with a knife, and then snap them instead of using a saw, whenever possible. It's quick, and saves a ton of cleanup. - Use a 2x4 as a tapping block, to distribute the load across your boards, so you don't damage them when tapping them into place. - Vary your patterns because it's obvious when you see the exact same printed "knot" seven times in a row. - Don't buy laminate, and just get hardwood floors. Sure, it's cheaper and easier to install, but it scratches just as easily as wood, but you can't hide the scratches with a stain pen. Furniture legs also dent the PVC surface much easier than you'd expect.
Disagree. I have laminate from Pergo (outlast) and i TRY to scratch it and it doesnt AT ALL. The same engineered wood (4mm wear, wide plank, european/white oak) will be 3x the cost once installed. Wood/engineered wood doesn't work as well in homes with constant humidity level changes either
@@J_Money1I suppose some brands and types of laminate are better than others, so that's awesome that you got a good floor. The handful of people I know with laminate had bad luck with them. I installed bamboo floors in my last house, and they were terrific.
ohh, I was expecting to see loose-lay vinyl to be compared with the locking planks. Would be nice to see a follow-up with a 5mm vinyl plank that is most commonly glued down in commercial applications!
There are two locking systems which you did clarify for both. One is the click and lock, and the other is drop and lock. You did cover 4iF technology drop and locking system which does not needs love taps and comes apart easily w/o damage.
Give me the minutes and seconds in your video, so that, I do not have to hunt for where you are talking about. All of 4iF will have this on the end of their cartons.@@luilocolombia
Haha my mother bought a trailer house and the floor is like waves in the ocean. The previous owner installed some kind of vinyl flooring and it's all coming apart😂 This floor needs a lot of prep before we can get it to look any good
I used Stain master luxury Vinyl planks years ago and regret using it ,was expensive and scratched so easy.Even with thresholds it separated at some points.I learned my lesson,so doing it on the stairs I used nail gun to secure planks and caps. I definitely recommend if you're flipping house looks good and it's easy to install.
Not surprised it scratched easy, Stainmaster LVP has an abysmal 12mil wear layer. Jeff says don't consider anything lower than 20mil, personally, I'd up that to 30mil
Thank you Professor Jeff.❤..One hundred plus house St Louis Missouri. I’ve been a member for two and a half years. You’ve been helping me ( post Covid with long hauler’s syndrome) systemic issues. I’m slowly getting better and more things done on my house working alone. I love your videos. Older homes are very difficult. You’re a life saver ❤.
I've installed a lot of LifeProof floors and as long as it's installed properly and as Jeff says your floors aren't all wanky it'll hold up.. love the channel..
Excellent video! Thumbs up! Does anyone have any good recommendations for flooring that would look nice and get a good return for the money for a 2 story home with wood stairs that are currently carpeted going up to the second floor. The main floor is a concrete slab and the second floor is a newer home with wood joists and a plywood floor. Currently it is mostly carpeted except for the washrooms and kitchen.
Renovating a basement room and want to install Vinyl floor planking of some kind for this small room we are turning into a kitchenette so the waterproof quality sounds appealing. It is an old house in San Francisco with old hardwood floors. Some areas I can tell from looking it is not level. Mainly in the corners and at the threshold. Thank you for this informative demonstration as I was going to purchase the click lock vinyl tomorrow. I will hold off now as I wonder would it be beneficial to lay for example a 1/4 layer of plywood over the old floor to give it a more sturdy platform for the flooring? Any help you can suggest would be much appreciated.
I have watched many of your videos and appreciate all the info you provide. In this video you talk about the ends coming undone and I get that BUT once you put the next plank on it locks the joint between the two boards making it secure and will not come apart very easily. Isn't that correct?
I have Coretec LVP floors. That actually cost more than many hardwood planks. I have dropped stuff a bazillion times doing interior DIY projects (with no visible damage) that would have scratched or dented the hell out of a hardwood plank.
I learn a lot from your videos. However, IMO wood floors are like old cars. They were a status symbols and points of pride. Owners hand waxed and buffed their cars several times a year to preserve the paint from being damaged by bugs, tree sap, and bird droppings. They fixed paint chips so they didn't immediately turn into a rust spot. They periodically polished them with fine rubbing compound to remove the top layer of UV oxidized paint. They had beautiful chrome grilles and bumpers that bent far, far easily than today. For older homes, the only options were linoleum for kitchen and both, with asbestos glue to hold it down, and hardwood floors for the rest. Undetected pet urine on an area rug costs hundreds to fix because the only cure is to cut out the area. Dents from furniture are not fixed until the next refinishing. Carpet was the interim fix for hardwood floors but had several disadvantages such as staying nice looking over time in high-traffic areas and never really clean inside after cleaning up pee and spills. Just as I would no longer want even a brand-new old-technology car as my daily driver, I would not build with real wood floors. Neither are lifeproof. Today, car owners get their waxing done at the car wash to help keep it cleaner longer. Nobody can tell if it is new or 5 years old. Housewives clean floors with a Swiffer mop on floors that resemble wood and always look good, not only after refinishing, are actually clean, and require none of the maintenance. Why? Because people now can. You can replace the entire LVP floor for the cost of a sand to wood and refinish, do it less often, less move out time, and update the look and technology at the same time. If today LVP installed was the same as hardwood, they would still sell more LVP. Wood floors are for old people without pets or kids. For other than that, I see mission impossible. Compared to natural wood, LVP IS miracle flooring. PS: I grew up in a show home with even a slate entry way, walking around in socks, with no pets allowed from family or friends.
We own an apartment condo in Florida with 12x12 inch tiles on the floor which is concrete. The floor is primarily flat but certainly not perfect. I strongly suspect there is no movement in the floor so I’m wondering if the tongue and groove vinyl flooring will be a successful floor project. I would like to avoid pouring levelling compound if it isn’t necessary especially as the new floor will be next to carpeting.
What product someone chooses to install (vinyl, timber, laminate) should be determined by the circumstances in which its most suitable to them. Yes, an engineered timber floor would add monetary value to the property from a valuation perspective, say with insurance or banks/mortgage companies, but in the long term, that sale value would be negligible after paying for its maintenance and refinishings, especially if there's children or pets involved, where sanding + polishing simply wont fix it.
Soo you're not a not a believer in loose lay or glue down vinyl planks? I just put loose lay vinyl in one of my apartments and have fallen in love with it. Interested to hear your thoughts
Hi Jeff, I'm a fan of your informative videos. I am a subscriber and shop at your Amazon store to support. I have engineered wood glued on slab. It has developed gaps that are 1/8th of an inch and larger. Could you please let me know how to fix it? Lots of videos are about just moving the pieces but that is not an option because my home floor is glued to the slab. Thanks for your help.❤
that all depends on the age of the house. in many cases I recommend a subfloor. for support during your reno consider joining our membership. I can consult and you can send pics. Cheers!
An interesting thing that I figured out regarding lifeproof, some (not sure how much) is re-branded MSI. What I tracked down for sure is on the engineered hardwood version. This is useful as MSI has more matching transitions, stair noses, stair treads etc than what HD sells. Seems the best way to tell is that HD uses the same image on their site as MSI does (as in the exact same picture down to the knots in the wood etc).
@@HomeRenoVisionDIY While I'm sure it is coming out of the same factories as half the other similar products, Home Depot's questions section on the page actually had really old comments from MSI answering questions and also linking to the MSI products on the HD website (this is how I got started tracking down the MSI version).
Hello, I am fixing up an old house from the 50's. I was wondering should i use laminate or Vinyl flooring. I was leaning towards laminate flooring. Do you have any suggestions. Also what thickness should I use on the laminate? I was thinking around 10mm. This will be a rental unit. Great vids, really helpful.
Would you recommend one over the other for wear and tear? Is one system better at keeping water (mop and pet messes) from destroying the floors? I am looking into re doing floors that have a lot of wear and tear from dogs and washing multiple times a day.
What do you recommend for a poured basement with radiant heat? We rebuilt after a house fire and decided on a 9’ poured basement and put in radiant before pouring the slab. It’s 28x58 so it’s a big project after putting in the energy walls. We are in Northern Wisconsin so we opted for heated slab. Thanks!
Also make sure you clean the floor... our house's kitchen has some sort of vinyl flooring and it seems like 2 or 3 small pebbles were left under it and the joints are cracking apart on those spots. I think it's tongue and groove style like you mentioned. :( Not sure how to repair it. They also didn't do any underlayment, I think it's installed right on the concrete because it makes snap crackle noises all around when walking on it.
The locking systems you describe here are the '2G' (aka "droplock") and the 'quad lock' systems, respectively. However, there is another locking system known as '5G', which is essentially a '2G' system with a plastic clip incorporated into the tounge allowing it to lock, rather than only being seated - basically gives you the best of both worlds. With your 'quad lock', instead of putting the length tounge in first and holding down with your knee while giving it a love tap, i find its easier to put the end tounge in first, then sit the opposite end of that board into the previous row on the angle, then tap the length side in. Although, personally, I dont work with my knees on the already installed boards until im up to the last few rows and not longer can - this is because it makes installing this quad lock system easier by eliminating the need to use any tools because I can simply do the love tap with my left palm while maintaining the locking angle with my right hand. The only time i ever lock the length side in first is when im doing the last row where the board is going under a door jamb, where manipulating the board to get it on the angle cannot be met.
I have a slab on grade... that was poured in the 60s... and is so uneven that before I used some leveler there were gaps approaching an inch over 8 foot spans. At one point along the wall I noticed a crack.. so I figured.. open the crack up a bit with a chisel to get a good surface to bond with and apply some patch, right? Apparently there was some sort of underlayment that they poured the concrete over.. probably a moisture barrier of some sort... and at that point where the crack had occurred it had bunched up really high so the concrete at that point was less than 1/2 inch thick... no wonder it cracked... sheesh. I literally don't know how they poured that slab so poorly, unless they were actively trying to. It certainly has made my vinyl floor journey... interesting.
Does anyone have any thoughts on putting sheet vinyl in a kitchen and/or bathrooms? I was actually thinking about doing an entire rental in sheet vinyl? Any thoughts? Thanks in advance?
8:10 that does not happen, it is locked into place by the tongue and groove of the planks either side. i have it and did not level a part of the floor and it flexes but does not split like that. (one day i will lift it all up and do it properly)
Now I wish I would’ve got the 20 mil wear layer instead of the 12 for my house 😂but it’s only 1k sq ft and just me with no pets, so I think it will hold up well. Thanks for the vid Jeff! You’re truly a Jack of all trades.
Hey jeff i have learned a lot from your videos i have a question i own a mobile home and i want to install a good product that is relatively easy to install. What would be best for good water resistance and scratch resistance? I saw a video of a stone based vinyl
I have been watching this channel for quite some time now and enjoyed it tremendously. We are building a two story home and need to install the floors. Upstairs are a easy decision, they will be hard or engineered wood. Downstairs are more complicated. It has a open kitchen which transits to the big open family room area without any boundaries in between. We are very concerned about possible water damage from the kitchen and have a hard time to decide the floor material, wood, vinyl or tile, etc. Any opinion will be highly appreciated.
The Rigid Core Max flooring from today’s video is simply-surfaces.com in European Grey Oak. I was an early product tester of Simply Surfaces LVP flooring (before they came up with their brand name). Since I installed it last year they have decided to launch a 9 inch plank version which is more consistent with the demand they see from customers. I am really happy with the final result, it's a Jeff approved product. Find it at simply-surfaces.com and watch the full install tutorial 👉🏼ruclips.net/video/waCiOUOaR_A/видео.html Cheers!
What is the name of the tool you apply the love tap with?
Trick for everyone! I find those love tap tools sometimes cause damage. Just use an off cut and set it in the joint and then tap that. Spread that energy across the entire joint without damaging the tongue and groove. And it works for both vinyl and laminate! 😊
Great tip!
ABSOLUTELY...a must!
If you don’t have a tapping block, 💯
You can also shave off one edge of a 2x4, so that it has a sharp, clean edge, and use that to tap the boards into place. I did that for my laminate flooring, and it worked great.
I was gnna say exactly this good on you fam
As a flooring installer for most my life I’m 59 today, installing pretty much everything over the course of my life even did hard floor sending,stain and varnish.
I got to say those vinyl products to me are much better than laminate products because of moisture issues.
But as you said they are not miraculous.
Your video is very well explained and shows an important difference is the lasting of the product.
Well done keep doing good work !!
And you approve of using a pull bar on a factory edge? Speaking of pull bars he needs to lose that mamby pamby thing and get a real one.
Which one is better
Hi Sir, so which one is MUCH better for my Basement which is Uneven surface/Floor. It’s an old house.
Thanks
@@amadolasala200 my understanding is that the 4 side locking system have more chance on holding together with some imperfections on the subfloor.
As said in the video those products change a lot in time by the manufacturers,
You need to go and see what they have at this time in store’s.
Be wise try to make the best choice but there is always a gamble good luck!
You posted this with absolutely perfect timing. I’m redoing my mom’s basement with the Vinyl flooring and I specifically asked her to get tongue and groove flooring because I’ve had so many issues with the snap lock flooring in other basements. We live in Pennsylvania and a lot of floors are uneven so the snap lock tends to come apart. I’m only 21 so she doesn’t completely trust my judgement so this video will help back up my case! Thank you for posting these videos, they’re life savers!
Add roof shingles underneath to level gaps
Torly’s is the best luxury vinyl flooring on the market, period.
I just refloored a room with LVP after watching one of your older videos ... Cheap, easy upgrade that made the room look 2000% better. Grateful as hell for your vids Jeff.
That is awesome!
The demo was good but the pep-talk at the end is what I needed to hear; "If you're a DIY'er everything you do makes money". I was gonna go with vinyl flooring but now I'm sold on tile.
Tile is great but it is hard on your feet and cold in the winter
Man this guy is a little intense but I can tell he has a lot to say about all his years of knowledge and he’s speaking truth! Great informative video!
cheers!
Thanks for the shout out, Jeff! Great explanation here of the different types of locking systems and awesome example of how they react to gaps. Really underscores the need for floor prep with drop lock.
Looking forward to the live show tomorrow, thanks for coming on. Cheers
I love the value of videos like this. So specific. I'm embarrassed to say I put vinyl flooring into a basement reno where there was too much slope in part of the basement near the entrance. The contractor totally recommended against it. I decided to do it anyway and got what I asked for. It's now starting to separate and look terrible at the place with the uneven surface after just 2 years. No one to blame but myself. Lesson learned.
I enjoy most of these videos. They’ve helped me with a few projects around the house that I had no experience with. But as a professional flooring installer, this video was hard to watch. The message was great. I always try and talk the homeowner out of drop lock. “Angle lock” is a much better product. But you never use a pull bar to secure planks in the field. It’s meant for places a tapping block can’t reach (around walls) you will definitely damage most locking mechanisms by doing it that way. Theres actually a much easier way to install the angle lock.. try starting with the butt joint first. There is a reason it’s called “angle lock”. It’s set in on an angle. but it takes a little time getting comfortable doing it that way.
Exactly. With butt joint engaged the side long joint usually can be engaged by lifting and pulling together.
Yeah he's doing it totally wrong. And whenever I use a pull bar close to a wall on a factory edge I still put a small scrap piece on the edge so it doesn't get damaged
Had LifeProof installed in our house about 3 years ago. 90% of the house is slab-on-grade, the other 10% is old pier and beam with standard lumber. Just recently had to have the floor in the 10% fixed because a gap appeared. The rest of the house looks great but after watching this and realizing what the real problem is, I'll likely look at replacing that 10% with the mohawk material. I'm going to keep an eye on it, but if you're right about it coming undone easier the second time, that floor will end up having a 3 year life, not 20. Live and learn, thanks for the video. Before seeing this, I figured it was just a bad joint initially and I should just put down more LifeProof to fix it. You probably saved me some time, money and frustration!
I wish I had the information in the video three years ago. I had a vinyl floor installed three years ago. (my wife insisted that we have it professionally installed) They are now showing spots where they appear to be cupping, I think it is just the joint is expanding and failing. As you mentioned in the video, the issue is with the current floor. I am near Cleveland, Ohio. My house was built in 1954. The subfloor is 1x6 planking covered by tongue and grove hardwood flooring. The kitchen has two layers of tile flooring. We had the vinyl installed throughout the living room, hall and kitchen. It is the drop lock type floor. The installer used leveler on the transition between the rooms and two surfaces. We have had the flooring company out and they have filed a claim with the manufacturer. I did some research on the product, and per the manufacturing, it can be installed floating or glued. If I had known I would have requested the tongue and groove or insisted that it be glued
Excellent explanation. Many new homes by me are installing Vinyl even expensive houses.
Speaking from experience. I currently have LVP. I would only recommend this for basement or if you have a really flat surface. Can you imagine placing these thin boards over your sub floor. The product work great if your floor is concrete.
Oh, thank goodness! I picked the right flooring. I'm going to be honest I had no idea about what you're pointing out in this video. We almost got the lifeproof, but we decided at the last minute to get the ridged core. Mainly because of the look and style of the ridged core. It actually had texture and looked more like real wood, in our opinion. Now I will say installing the ridged core wasn't fun at all! It was difficult and I cussed the whole time. However, it's been almost 3 years, and we haven't had any gap issues that I've seen others have. I was relieved to find out now that we made the better choice! Thanks 😊 this was a good video!
the secret is to connect the whole length before slipping it into the groove. Cheers! video coming soon!
@@HomeRenoVisionDIY All fun and games until you're alone at the job site and the lenght is like 6 meters per row all at once, what a nightmare that was.
on this job i was doing a 50' run. Cheers!
Where were you able to buy the rigid core floor? I'm looking but I can't find it.
@@luilocolombia "tiles for less" carries it. If you don't have a local store than just Google "ridged core max 22" and you should have a local distributor. 😀
Great video. I bought about 1000sqft of Lifeproof on recommendation of a friend how has installed it in his newer home. Long story short, I hired a reputable flooring company to come install it and they said they would not in good conscience install it in my older home which has multiple subflooring types done over decades of remodels and additions. Even with a 1/4in plywood overlayment, they said it would fail from uneven surfaces and floor movement of the raised foundation. Wish I had seen your video sooner but at least I have the receipt to Home Depot for the material.
😅Do read the warrenty on vinal floring , after a year and a half mine started to come apart. . called the manafacture and found out if you have a hospital bed, a wheelchair or a office rolling chair it voids the warrenty. And we have all three
Thanks for posting this video clip! I’m glad I bought LifeProof with rigid core 7mm layer thickness and 22 mils wear tear layer.
So good to know. I couldn't believe how uneven my floors are. Between that and the fact that nothing seems to be actually square, doing the floor has been harder than I thought. But I'm doing it MYSELF! Yay, me!
You rock Rayna!
How did it turn out?
I’m trying and it’s not working out for me. Actually, I’m trying to relay the pieces that my landlord laid and they’re not snapped in and there’s gaps everywhere. It’s driving me nuts and I can’t stand it. We have lots of new boxes of the flooring and I’m honestly debating just redoing it, but I’m afraid of the mess I might make :/
I put down LV plank in the basement. It was originally cheap vinyl tile 9x9s. Put down LV plank right over it. It has the padding under so it doesn’t feel like you’re walking on concrete. So far so good.
Great job Bill. no worries with that! Cheers!
We've installed the Costco mohawk flooring in our rentals. Was a steep learning curve but your videos helped build confidence and tricks to handle tricky cuts (I still hate doing door jambs).
Its a 1900s house and while we had the floors raised/leveled from underneath there was still some uneveness. We're using the steico underlayment and it's working great. The floors feel really good under your feet with it with the bonus of providing a little insulation from the crawlspace.
The Mohawk flooring from Costco doesn’t come with underpayment?
how is your flooring holding up?
@@Weirdkid71 2 years in and hasn't been destroyed yet.
What's your views on loose lay vinyl flooring with no glue no tape just loose lay for an uneven plywood floor. Wavy from the floor Joyce but unable to fill to level.
I love your honesty. And thank you for explaining the differences.
Glad it was helpful!
“It’s Saturday hunny, gonna go fix the floor” 🤣
I just about pissed myself cause it’s so F N true
Love your channel brotha
Always educational, great humor and packed full of tips. #1 big dog thank you 🙏
GIANT CAVEAT ABOUT T&G!! We moved into a patio home (slab-on-grade) 3 years ago. We had the carpeted floors replaced with T&G vinyl planks. It looked good. BUT, here comes the caveat.. I use a wheelchair and it’s two small wheels on the front are wider, softer, and spread the load out better. Had a problem with it, so i had to use a backup wheelchair that has the standard, thinner, harder wheels in front. In just about a months time of using that wheelchair, the places that i occupied the most throughout the day, the flooring started seperating and bowing up at the ends. It got so bad in the kitchen, we just pulled up severL of the planks. The change in loading by using the second chair caused an increase in the point load made by the two small front wheels. This caused the tongues to fracture and break. We had to have the ENTIRE floor replaced with NON -T&G glue-down vinyl planks at a cost of around $8000.. So anyone moving into similar circumstances, check to make sure you don’t have T&G flooring, or may be replacing your floors within a few months of wheelchair use…
@Jeff what’s the best flooring for a concrete slab? And underlayment? Thank you!!
I've been installing these laminate floors since they came out. On the tongue and groove it's easier to install the short side first, then click in the length side
very true!
@@HomeRenoVisionDIYthen why didn't you do that?
Just finishing with a product called Aqua Guard Premium over concrete. The floor was previously ground flat for laminate that was 3.5 mm thick which got destroyed by my gf’s unhousetrained dogs. The underlayment is 6 mil plastic moisture barrier + rubber backing on the planks. Finally figured out that I had to slightly lift the previous plank and get the ends lined and partially clicked in place, and there is a little notch in one corner of the drop locks. The planks are very stiff and 12 mm thick which are on the same plane as existing porcelain tile transition. I doubt they could be snapped, I put a 6.5 inch wood blade in a wet tile saw I had from glass backsplash install and ran it dry. I didn’t want to rent a table/miter saw cuz I’m very slow and would cost more than the material. Could have bought a saw and then sell it, I suppose. Got the planks on closeout for $1.98 sf, I don’t think it is sold anymore, just the 10 mm thick version now. Ripping the last row of planks on the tile saw was an adventure, I messed it up and had to use one short piece of scrap cut wider to patch up the wall gap that kept growing to 1” at the end. Getting the end joints to close was a bear, I used a tapping block and pro length puller hitting them hard with a 4 pound sledge. The puller I engaged over the plank lip, not on the locking ledge. Chipped the wear layer off on the end of one row, but next to wall so it won’t show. And I learned that 1/8 inch gap, the width of the locking ledge, is plenty next to the wall in my small house.
I installed the Noble Oak vinyl plank flooring from the Home Decorators Collection in a older house bathroom with a new sub floor and it curled up like bacon with a week. It had too much give side to side and after i trying to level off the floor perfectly i gave up and installed linoleum instead.
I could really use a video on how to bring vinyl flooring through doorways without removing the casing. Showing how to lay it each way to continue into another room
working on that right now!
There are more options. My Mannington plank floor is glued to the subfloor. The adhesive is a special type that allows you to peel up a plank and stick a new one in it's place with no additional adhesive. I chose this over a floating install for several reasons, but this is the one I like the most. I've got a spare box of planks in the basement, and if a plank gets damaged I can easily replace it.
I've been installing floors for 5 decades and the only vinyl plank I would ever install, it is so much easier, faster, to install than click floor. The adhesive is called pressure sensitive, great stuff
Jeff, as a manufacturer who owns a factory that makes spc flooring, I would like to point out something. You can NOT hammer the short side on these drop lock systems. To learn about drop lock installation, I suggest people check out I4F, who is lincensor of drop lock technology. If the plank has not locked properly, hammering it from the other side will only damage that joint. "love tap" should only be done on the long sides. Uniclic locking system is the only locking system that can be "love tapped" on both sides short and long sides because all 4 sides of this locking system is angle type, not drop-down type. However in this video, you have not brought any to showcase.
Also, the very top of spc flooring is coated with UV later. This is the layer that provides critical scratch and stain protection to your floor. There are many different types of UV oil, some have much better performance than others.
This video's purpose was to show two different locking systems, but the two products you are comparing have the same drop lock system. Doesn't give your viewers much confidence if you can't tell which locking systems you are working with.
I don't know what you're looking at but those are definitely two different locking systems on the short joint, he just mistakenly calls the second one a drop lock when he starts to put it down. However, the way he does it is not how I do it. I start by angling in the end joint and then do the long joint. And I would never use that pull bar on a factory edge, get or make a proper tapping block.
I installed some super cheap vinal plank flooring over an uneven basement floor. Bought some super inexpensive flooring and a super cheap pad/moisture barrior. It wasn't perfect and places where I had problems because of the floor slopes like he showes I used expanding sprayfoam to fill in the voids and glue the floor in place. Over each problem spot I injected the foam and then just put a heavy weight to hold the planks down so it would dry flat with the joints locked. I doubt it held up but it gave the basement a clean enough look for my family to sell the place quickly. I dont recomend the inexpensive stuff, and deffinatly if you do use it you have to have a dead flat floor. The glue with some "Great Stuff" did work but I bet after a little while that stuff broke down and made the floor have crunchies underfoot. I woulden't have left it if it wasent just quick cosmetic refresh on a basement utility room. It was for sure lipstick on a pig but better looking than painting the floor or the peel and stick tiles you can get which would have been the only other as cheap/ quick options.
If you're skimping like I did on a project like this skimp all the way. The trash products that get returned a bunch by the big box stores are always getting rotated out of inventory. Get the clearance they practically give out the items they are discontinuing.
Is it ok to install a vinyl floor on existing linoleum or ceramic tiles?
If you have a slab on grade concrete subfloor in the basement, but the concrete is not perfectly flat, would you recommend going tongue and groove over snap lock? We're talking about maybe half an inch change over several feet, but you can see the hump standing back.
I LOVED your video!!!!!!! I have a 53 year old 2-story farm house (we live on a 15 acre farm) we are rough on floors! We currently have travertine 18X18 square tiles and I HATE THEM. They are COLD, they are HARD, they hurt my feet and the grout is always dirty. I really want to put new floors in...being that we are soooo rough on floors-kids, animals, even goats and alpacas sometimes in the house and that we are on a raised foundation, we have variance in the grade and level-can we put the tongue and groove vinyl plank over the tile? Do we have to remove the tile? should we put hardwood-thoughts ideas, suggestions are most WELCOME
This was an amazing video. Thank you very much. I learned so much.
Thanx SO GLAD I took the time to watch your video before it was too late. Was informative thanx a lot.
I use the 'love tap' to lock but I do it from a standing position so that I can stand on the other piece to keep it from moving.
Great video. With the drop lock, doesn’t the next plank help to stabilise the smaller joint though? So it doesn’t lift on uneven sub-floor.
What's the definition of "older house" ? Is a 1995/1996 home likely to have dimensional floor joists? How can I spot a dimensional vs. engineered?
"Now, no one really intends to give you a warranty..."
Wise words
right. warranty is fancy talk for the run around
@@HomeRenoVisionDIY In my last flooring attempt I tried to get explicit, written information on what the warranty covers and not as it was general conditions and lack of clarity about what a repair would be (whole carpet, part, etc). In this case it was medium-high end carpet but they wouldn't give me anything beyond the generic info from the manufacturer and suggested I go elsewhere if I didn't like it. My take away is that any flooring warranty is mostly a joke unless you are willing to take legal action (which will probably cost you more than just replacing the flooring yourself).
This was excellent I needed that information. We don't want to spend 15,000 on hard wood floors. I'm looking for the second best thing for our home. Definitely need the tongue and groove style. Thanks I'm a new fan of the channel.
We have SPC flooring tnat was installed a few weeks before we bought our home. The previous owners had a toilet leak and ripped out the entire floor thatvwas engineered hard wood and replaced with SPC planks.
Unfortunately the SPC only lasted 6 months before all of the locking mechanisms failed, planks coming up and cutting feet, chipping, separating, etc. Called the company who installed it and of course they were off the hook because the warranty did not transfer to new ownership. They admitted that they had needed to raise the floor off the concrete slab to make up for the height of fhe thick engineered wood. So they laid 3/4 inch plywood underneath a vapor lock barrier right on top of the slab. The floor is a hazard to walk on and it needs to be replaced but we are unsure of what type of floor to replace it with because the plywood underlay seems to be extremely uneven and warping in our clhot Arizona climate. I am considering just the glue down type floor but have a feeling everything needs to be ripped out and we need to start from scratch which we cant afftat the moment. Our planks are being ductaped down to prevent further injuries, it's awful.
Does anyone have any suggestions? We will have to avoid any flooring that has any kind of locking mechanism due to how uneven the floor is. Or do we just try to nail it all down and peel n' stick vinyl over top of it?
I'm build a full bathroom in my basement, I'm planing on putting in vinyl plank for the flooring. Does the flooring go around or under the toilet flange?
around. Cheers!
There should be an EP on whether to choose wpc (wood polymer/plastic composite) or spc (stone plastic composite). I notice SPC is cheaper but cold on concrete
I was so confused when you said a 20 mil wear layer! In Australia we call millimetres "mils" and 20 millimetres is just over 3/4in! After a quick google, 20 mil is approx 0.51 millimetres. Love from Australia 🦘
Hmm 2nd floor kitchen, townhouse built 1989. 2 layers of sheer vinyl. The 2nd sheet vinyl they used some self leveler but they could not get it perfectly level, it more a long distance in non level not a whole bunch ups and downs.
Looking at LVP overtop of existing sheet vinyl.
sounds fine to me. Cheers!
What's the best vinyl flooring for uneven plywood floors I would think loose lay because nothing snaps together to break it's very new I believe started in Canada what's your views please.
Use feather finish and self leveling cement
Every box of flooring will have instructions which tells you what the tolerance of the subfloor must be. If the subfloor is within the tolerance set by the manufacturer, then droplock shouldnt be coming apart - if they do, then it would almost certainly be manufacturing defect and will likely eventually occur to many of the joins from that particular batch.
As for the melting or heat damage aspect, it should also be stated on the instructions whether that product is suitable for use with underfloor heating.
From what I've seen, warping damage from sunlight seems to be most prevalent with the thinner products of 4mm and 4.5mm. Ive also noticed that its frequently in homes that allow for prolonged sunlight exposure, or where the climate isnt well maintained, such as holiday homes.
Personally, I haven't seen it as a problem that would make it only susceptible to vinyl and hybrid products, given that timber and laminate are also prone to expansion problems in these conditions.
Hello, wanted to know if it’s best to put down a vapor barrier before installing LVP flooring if the foundation is concrete?
Thank you! I was thinking about vinyl but changing direction hardwood
We had 5 mm vinyl flooring installed and the planks warp on the long end. They were installed with a professional contractor. The flooring company we purchased the material said it was our fault for not using plastic under the vinyl. We have seen the same vinyl installed on concrete without plastic and it is not warping.
Jeff, Can you recommend the best vinyl plank for stairs. Thanks.
Thanks for the information, this helps a lot & glad I used the ridged core style locking system for our flooring unknowingly. :)
Would you recommend vinyl plank flooring in a basement?
and whats the essential things to look for when purchasing the vinyl flooring?
yes for sure. in an old basement you want a more malleable core because of the slopes. . in a new basement rigid core is always the best, for joint locking durability. minimum of 5mm thick with a 20 mil wear layer. Cheers!
@HomeRenoVisionDIY thanks!
All I know is I've been in homes with vinyl flooring that look similar to the eye. In one home though I remember the sound of the floor slapping when i walked on it. Like I was walking on sheets of masonite. I assume it may have been warped but it didn't look like it. Other homes almost looked like wood engineered flooring. I think there may be a lot to the quality of vinyl flooring and choosing a good product over what just meets the eye.
Yes, when I'm trying to find out I have a floor that has laminate flooring on it and I want to know what would be the best thing to put on the floor that's already got laminate on it but the floor is not level it has dips he has parts in it, where it squeaks and is the living room as dip and is not level it seem like peel and stick would be the best.
I have installed a lot of lifeproof floors and find them to be pretty good overall
only in certain situations
I just installed laminate in my house last year, and thought I'd share a few more tips:
- Score boards with a knife, and then snap them instead of using a saw, whenever possible. It's quick, and saves a ton of cleanup.
- Use a 2x4 as a tapping block, to distribute the load across your boards, so you don't damage them when tapping them into place.
- Vary your patterns because it's obvious when you see the exact same printed "knot" seven times in a row.
- Don't buy laminate, and just get hardwood floors. Sure, it's cheaper and easier to install, but it scratches just as easily as wood, but you can't hide the scratches with a stain pen. Furniture legs also dent the PVC surface much easier than you'd expect.
Disagree. I have laminate from Pergo (outlast) and i TRY to scratch it and it doesnt AT ALL. The same engineered wood (4mm wear, wide plank, european/white oak) will be 3x the cost once installed. Wood/engineered wood doesn't work as well in homes with constant humidity level changes either
@@J_Money1I suppose some brands and types of laminate are better than others, so that's awesome that you got a good floor. The handful of people I know with laminate had bad luck with them. I installed bamboo floors in my last house, and they were terrific.
@@GeoffCostanzaLaminate does not contain PVC. You have confused Laminate Flooring with Luxury Vinyl Plank, which is what this video is about.
ohh, I was expecting to see loose-lay vinyl to be compared with the locking planks. Would be nice to see a follow-up with a 5mm vinyl plank that is most commonly glued down in commercial applications!
Jeff. You didn’t go through vinyl sheet flooring. Wondering if this is an option that can be done throughout the whole house. Thanks.
Torly's all the way, love their double locking system
Do you have a video on waterproof laminate
There are two locking systems which you did clarify for both. One is the click and lock, and the other is drop and lock. You did cover 4iF technology drop and locking system which does not needs love taps and comes apart easily w/o damage.
Which one was the second floor that we showed? Click and lock or drop and lock?
Give me the minutes and seconds in your video, so that, I do not have to hunt for where you are talking about. All of 4iF will have this on the end of their cartons.@@luilocolombia
@@dreid4760 the one he is open at 4:45
Haha my mother bought a trailer house and the floor is like waves in the ocean. The previous owner installed some kind of vinyl flooring and it's all coming apart😂 This floor needs a lot of prep before we can get it to look any good
I uploaded a video a couple weeks ago about how I solved the soft floor issue. it was actually quite easy to do. Cheers!
I used Stain master luxury Vinyl planks years ago and regret using it ,was expensive and scratched so easy.Even with thresholds it separated at some points.I learned my lesson,so doing it on the stairs I used nail gun to secure planks and caps. I definitely recommend if you're flipping house looks good and it's easy to install.
Not surprised it scratched easy, Stainmaster LVP has an abysmal 12mil wear layer. Jeff says don't consider anything lower than 20mil, personally, I'd up that to 30mil
Would you recommend the second product for a garage conversion floor? Thank you.
Thank you Professor Jeff.❤..One hundred plus house St Louis Missouri. I’ve been a member for two and a half years. You’ve been helping me ( post Covid with long hauler’s syndrome) systemic issues. I’m slowly getting better and more things done on my house working alone. I love your videos. Older homes are very difficult. You’re a life saver ❤.
Happy to help Gerge!
I've installed a lot of LifeProof floors and as long as it's installed properly and as Jeff says your floors aren't all wanky it'll hold up..
love the channel..
Excellent video! Thumbs up! Does anyone have any good recommendations for flooring that would look nice and get a good return for the money for a 2 story home with wood stairs that are currently carpeted going up to the second floor. The main floor is a concrete slab and the second floor is a newer home with wood joists and a plywood floor. Currently it is mostly carpeted except for the washrooms and kitchen.
Renovating a basement room and want to install Vinyl floor planking of some kind for this small room we are turning into a kitchenette so the waterproof quality sounds appealing. It is an old house in San Francisco with old hardwood floors. Some areas I can tell from looking it is not level. Mainly in the corners and at the threshold. Thank you for this informative demonstration as I was going to purchase the click lock vinyl tomorrow. I will hold off now as I wonder would it be beneficial to lay for example a 1/4 layer of plywood over the old floor to give it a more sturdy platform for the flooring? Any help you can suggest would be much appreciated.
I have watched many of your videos and appreciate all the info you provide. In this video you talk about the ends coming undone and I get that BUT once you put the next plank on it locks the joint between the two boards making it secure and will not come apart very easily. Isn't that correct?
I have Coretec LVP floors. That actually cost more than many hardwood planks. I have dropped stuff a bazillion times doing interior DIY projects (with no visible damage) that would have scratched or dented the hell out of a hardwood plank.
Ok
Cortec SPC is tough. Got it in my basement home gym. It does resist dents.
Great video and what type of vinyl or stratified would you install on cement based radiant floor? Thanks in advance.
I learn a lot from your videos. However, IMO wood floors are like old cars. They were a status symbols and points of pride. Owners hand waxed and buffed their cars several times a year to preserve the paint from being damaged by bugs, tree sap, and bird droppings. They fixed paint chips so they didn't immediately turn into a rust spot. They periodically polished them with fine rubbing compound to remove the top layer of UV oxidized paint. They had beautiful chrome grilles and bumpers that bent far, far easily than today. For older homes, the only options were linoleum for kitchen and both, with asbestos glue to hold it down, and hardwood floors for the rest. Undetected pet urine on an area rug costs hundreds to fix because the only cure is to cut out the area. Dents from furniture are not fixed until the next refinishing. Carpet was the interim fix for hardwood floors but had several disadvantages such as staying nice looking over time in high-traffic areas and never really clean inside after cleaning up pee and spills. Just as I would no longer want even a brand-new old-technology car as my daily driver, I would not build with real wood floors. Neither are lifeproof. Today, car owners get their waxing done at the car wash to help keep it cleaner longer. Nobody can tell if it is new or 5 years old. Housewives clean floors with a Swiffer mop on floors that resemble wood and always look good, not only after refinishing, are actually clean, and require none of the maintenance. Why? Because people now can. You can replace the entire LVP floor for the cost of a sand to wood and refinish, do it less often, less move out time, and update the look and technology at the same time. If today LVP installed was the same as hardwood, they would still sell more LVP. Wood floors are for old people without pets or kids. For other than that, I see mission impossible. Compared to natural wood, LVP IS miracle flooring.
PS: I grew up in a show home with even a slate entry way, walking around in socks, with no pets allowed from family or friends.
Hi I had vinyl planks in kitchen and hallways and they all came apart 😢. I'm confused what is the best for an old house that has some uneven floors.
We own an apartment condo in Florida with 12x12 inch tiles on the floor which is concrete. The floor is primarily flat but certainly not perfect. I strongly suspect there is no movement in the floor so I’m wondering if the tongue and groove vinyl flooring will be a successful floor project. I would like to avoid pouring levelling compound if it isn’t necessary especially as the new floor will be next to carpeting.
Which vinyl is better postioned next to sunny full length window?
What product someone chooses to install (vinyl, timber, laminate) should be determined by the circumstances in which its most suitable to them. Yes, an engineered timber floor would add monetary value to the property from a valuation perspective, say with insurance or banks/mortgage companies, but in the long term, that sale value would be negligible after paying for its maintenance and refinishings, especially if there's children or pets involved, where sanding + polishing simply wont fix it.
Glad you explained things truthfully. I'm going to stick with the hardwood floor.
Watch How to Install Vinyl 👉🏼ruclips.net/video/OJqk2iS_jyQ/видео.html
Watch Brad's @fixthisbuildthat vinyl tutorial mentioned 👉🏼ruclips.net/video/6KEthELQfro/видео.html
Soo you're not a not a believer in loose lay or glue down vinyl planks? I just put loose lay vinyl in one of my apartments and have fallen in love with it. Interested to hear your thoughts
I love your honesty.
Hi Jeff, I'm a fan of your informative videos. I am a subscriber and shop at your Amazon store to support. I have engineered wood glued on slab. It has developed gaps that are 1/8th of an inch and larger. Could you please let me know how to fix it? Lots of videos are about just moving the pieces but that is not an option because my home floor is glued to the slab. Thanks for your help.❤
Hi. Looking to replace carpet on my second floor .. not sure what is the best option. So confused with all the options.
What would you recommend I use on concrete basement? Laminate or vinyl? I’ve hear laminate may have water issues from concrete.
that all depends on the age of the house. in many cases I recommend a subfloor. for support during your reno consider joining our membership. I can consult and you can send pics. Cheers!
An interesting thing that I figured out regarding lifeproof, some (not sure how much) is re-branded MSI. What I tracked down for sure is on the engineered hardwood version. This is useful as MSI has more matching transitions, stair noses, stair treads etc than what HD sells. Seems the best way to tell is that HD uses the same image on their site as MSI does (as in the exact same picture down to the knots in the wood etc).
LOL. they are both buying the vinyl from the same chinese supplier!
@@HomeRenoVisionDIY While I'm sure it is coming out of the same factories as half the other similar products, Home Depot's questions section on the page actually had really old comments from MSI answering questions and also linking to the MSI products on the HD website (this is how I got started tracking down the MSI version).
@@daviddeflyer8671home depot is listed as a supplier on the msi site
thank you, if i have to choose between vinyl or tile, which one i should choose? regarding sunny room?
Hello, I am fixing up an old house from the 50's. I was wondering should i use laminate or Vinyl flooring. I was leaning towards laminate flooring. Do you have any suggestions. Also what thickness should I use on the laminate? I was thinking around 10mm. This will be a rental unit. Great vids, really helpful.
Would you recommend one over the other for wear and tear? Is one system better at keeping water (mop and pet messes) from destroying the floors? I am looking into re doing floors that have a lot of wear and tear from dogs and washing multiple times a day.
What's the best vinyl plank flooring to be installed over another floor in a seasonal mobile home?
I just installed spc flooring and love it!
Good to hear!
What do you recommend for a poured basement with radiant heat? We rebuilt after a house fire and decided on a 9’ poured basement and put in radiant before pouring the slab. It’s 28x58 so it’s a big project after putting in the energy walls. We are in Northern Wisconsin so we opted for heated slab. Thanks!
Also make sure you clean the floor... our house's kitchen has some sort of vinyl flooring and it seems like 2 or 3 small pebbles were left under it and the joints are cracking apart on those spots. I think it's tongue and groove style like you mentioned. :( Not sure how to repair it. They also didn't do any underlayment, I think it's installed right on the concrete because it makes snap crackle noises all around when walking on it.
I cannot find the second floor you are showing in the video, it the brand rigid core? Where can I buy it?
The locking systems you describe here are the '2G' (aka "droplock") and the 'quad lock' systems, respectively. However, there is another locking system known as '5G', which is essentially a '2G' system with a plastic clip incorporated into the tounge allowing it to lock, rather than only being seated - basically gives you the best of both worlds.
With your 'quad lock', instead of putting the length tounge in first and holding down with your knee while giving it a love tap, i find its easier to put the end tounge in first, then sit the opposite end of that board into the previous row on the angle, then tap the length side in.
Although, personally, I dont work with my knees on the already installed boards until im up to the last few rows and not longer can - this is because it makes installing this quad lock system easier by eliminating the need to use any tools because I can simply do the love tap with my left palm while maintaining the locking angle with my right hand.
The only time i ever lock the length side in first is when im doing the last row where the board is going under a door jamb, where manipulating the board to get it on the angle cannot be met.
I have a slab on grade... that was poured in the 60s... and is so uneven that before I used some leveler there were gaps approaching an inch over 8 foot spans. At one point along the wall I noticed a crack.. so I figured.. open the crack up a bit with a chisel to get a good surface to bond with and apply some patch, right? Apparently there was some sort of underlayment that they poured the concrete over.. probably a moisture barrier of some sort... and at that point where the crack had occurred it had bunched up really high so the concrete at that point was less than 1/2 inch thick... no wonder it cracked... sheesh. I literally don't know how they poured that slab so poorly, unless they were actively trying to. It certainly has made my vinyl floor journey... interesting.
Does anyone have any thoughts on putting sheet vinyl in a kitchen and/or bathrooms? I was actually thinking about doing an entire rental in sheet vinyl? Any thoughts? Thanks in advance?
8:10 that does not happen, it is locked into place by the tongue and groove of the planks either side. i have it and did not level a part of the floor and it flexes but does not split like that. (one day i will lift it all up and do it properly)
Now I wish I would’ve got the 20 mil wear layer instead of the 12 for my house 😂but it’s only 1k sq ft and just me with no pets, so I think it will hold up well. Thanks for the vid Jeff! You’re truly a Jack of all trades.
Hey jeff i have learned a lot from your videos i have a question i own a mobile home and i want to install a good product that is relatively easy to install. What would be best for good water resistance and scratch resistance? I saw a video of a stone based vinyl
I have been watching this channel for quite some time now and enjoyed it tremendously. We are building a two story home and need to install the floors. Upstairs are a easy decision, they will be hard or engineered wood. Downstairs are more complicated. It has a open kitchen which transits to the big open family room area without any boundaries in between. We are very concerned about possible water damage from the kitchen and have a hard time to decide the floor material, wood, vinyl or tile, etc. Any opinion will be highly appreciated.