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Property/DIY

Vinyl flooring buying tips

9 replies

PoorPatrol · 19/08/2016 22:48

We're going to 'refresh' our bathroom. We can't afford to do it properly yet but simply have, have, have to get rid of the carpet the previous owners of our house put down.

We've decided that vinyl's the best option for us. I've seen Amtico and Karndean in the shops. I can see how lovely they are - nice textures and realistic wood look - but don't want to spend that kind of money for a temporary 1-3 year solution. I've also seen a brand called Forest Felt which seemed nicely padded and had the right kind of look we're after. I just wondered if anyone could recommend a particular brand to look at/shop to buy from or had any tips about a good thickness to look at, whether texture are a good or bad thing (cleaning???) and whether padding it necessary or not. Thanks.

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PoorPatrol · 20/08/2016 12:10

Anyone? I know it's boring but I'd be grateful for some help!

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LadyNellCardross · 20/08/2016 14:41

Hi OP, I've just had sheet vinyl put down on the floor of our downstairs toilet. It's a brand called Rhinofloor and is a surprisingly realistic dark wood. It seems quite thick and good quality. It was laid on top of plywood. I looked at Karndean, Amtico and Polyflor but this was by far the cheapest option. I used a local independent flooring shop who let me borrow a sample book to look at at home. I think if you're only looking for a temporary solution then sheet vinyl is the way to go as the fitting costs are substantially less. Hope this helps.

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Sprig1 · 20/08/2016 15:49

I second going to your local independent flooring shop and seeing what they have. You may find that they have a bathroom sized off-cut of something you really like.

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PoorPatrol · 21/08/2016 13:28

Thanks for your replies. We're having other work being done in the house so the builders can put down the vinyl. I'd like to buy online if possible (young DC making it hard to go shopping) so I'm more looking for advice about the vinyl itself - thickness, padding, texture, etc.

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GiddyOnZackHunt · 21/08/2016 21:12

Rhinofloor is great for bathrooms. The thicker the better. You can get textured wooden patterns that are non slippy.
Loads of the online places will do samples that they send to you.

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JeffreySadsacIsUnwell · 21/08/2016 21:47

We've just moved house. We are going to be doing a lot of work in about 12-18 months' time, but not sure yet what will change. However, the manky carpets in the bathrooms had to go immediately (bare floorboards were preferable).

We bought £9/sqm vinyl flooring from Carpetright, off the roll. I'd never been into Carpetright before but we needed a national retailer so that I could look at the stuff near our old house and order it to the new house. I'm a bit Blush to say that actually I was really impressed with the service (both London and SE-but-not-London) and the flooring looks surprisingly good - our new neighbours were very complimentary and old friends, who knew our lovely house we'd left, have all been impressed too and very surprised to hear it was Carpetright budget range. We did have ply sheeting installed underneath to ensure a level surface.

I think I may have just revised the future flooring budget downwards! We've just done 3 bathrooms and 3 of the bedrooms for less than the cost of our old bathroom floor Shock. I did put some thought into it - eg same design but slightly different colour depending on aspect/light levels - and did choose quite carefully because some of them looked really cheap and naff. Make sure that you look at the flooring in natural light and flat on the floor - not vertical under fluorescent lights at the back of the shop. Def not necessary to spend a fortune though, and I could almost certainly have bought more cheaply if we'd been moving locally and I could have used an independent retailer, or been in less of a hurry (moved in on a Friday, booked electricians for the Monday and Tuesday to do major works, decorators on Tues/Weds, and floors/carpets were fitted on the Thurs morning...).

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MiracletoCome · 21/08/2016 21:54

I would probably go to carpetright or any othercarpet shop and look at the rolls and see what you can afford. We bought some mid range vinyl off the roll and DH fitted it

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wowfudge · 22/08/2016 07:55

Vinyl should be fitted on top of a smooth, flat surface so marine ply is perfect in a bathroom. This also means you don't get the impression of floorboards coming through over time with use. The vinyl doesn't need, and shouldn't have, any kind of underlay as it needs to cling to the surface under it.

Ime texture is fine. Whether you can hoover it before mopping would be a question. I would ask. Some vinyls are damaged by vacuuming.

Tbh, if you envisage getting a maximum three years out of the flooring, just put down a cheap one you like the look of. You can overthink these things.

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PoorPatrol · 22/08/2016 07:59

Thanks so much for the tips. Much appreciated.

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