Floor Installation By Cambridge Handyman
Flooring options available today are very user friendly. It used to be, after removing carpet and carefully choosing the tile that would best compliment the room and flooring space, then came a lengthy process of cementing and careful placement of the tile. For the meticulously-minded, first a path was laid so that tile on top of dried cement could provide family members safe places to step as the rest of the floor was laid done. This process was further complicated by the danger of a ceramic tile cracking during the flooring process. Laying wood was just as tedious, where each individual plank must be nailed correctly to the previous, with a good, aesthetic, design in mind. These days, floor installation is much less of a hassle. New laminate options offer hardwood and tile choices that provide a sleek, new look to any room. Each tile has a lip on one side that easily attaches into the groove on the opposite side of a second tile. But don't let these “easily attachable” tiles fool you.
|
|
These new materials are deceptively tricky, popping a corner out of joint as you attempt to hammer them together, or becoming damaged from the misjudged blow of the wrong hammer. Even keeping a design becomes a hassle, but is important so that the finished project looks natural. Tiles and wood alike need to be staggered when laid down, otherwise if laid in a uniform way so that all edges match up, the aesthetic of the room suffers. Of course, these materials will also need to be cut to shape, in order to build the edges of the floor correctly where the flooring material reaches the walls or baseboards. An additional good rule of thumb is to remove the baseboards to install the floor, then build up the baseboards again (and if the baseboards are off for right now, why not take this opportunity to give them a good coat of paint?). Clicking these materials into place at this last step can be especially tricky, but very rewarding.
If fiddling with the clicking mechanism of tile and wood flooring options isn’t for you, there is an easier way yet. Peel and stick tiles have come a long way in the last few years. These flooring materials have a great tile-like look to them and are very easy to install with enough patience. Caution should be taken to prepare the floor. Drawing a plan with chalk is the best bet, to make sure tiles are placed in the best order starting at the center of the project and spiraling out. The major pitfalls are the edges around the room, where the tile must be cut correctly (easy enough with an exacto knife) to fit the available space. Some care is additionally needed to place these correctly so that in changing temperatures, the tiles don’t shift, leaving gaps that reveal the subfloor.
Subfloor, the material beneath a floor is just as important as the floor material itself. Whatever material you ultimately decide on for the floor, it must be installed on top of something. A good subfloor adds sturdiness, insulation, and should never show signs of rot. What should you use for the subfloor? Sometimes a new floor can be built on top of an old floor. Do you need new material for a subfloor at all? We know the answer to these questions.
Avoid mistakes that are costly in materials and time. You supply the flooring, and we meet your specifications.
Materials we can help with:
If fiddling with the clicking mechanism of tile and wood flooring options isn’t for you, there is an easier way yet. Peel and stick tiles have come a long way in the last few years. These flooring materials have a great tile-like look to them and are very easy to install with enough patience. Caution should be taken to prepare the floor. Drawing a plan with chalk is the best bet, to make sure tiles are placed in the best order starting at the center of the project and spiraling out. The major pitfalls are the edges around the room, where the tile must be cut correctly (easy enough with an exacto knife) to fit the available space. Some care is additionally needed to place these correctly so that in changing temperatures, the tiles don’t shift, leaving gaps that reveal the subfloor.
Subfloor, the material beneath a floor is just as important as the floor material itself. Whatever material you ultimately decide on for the floor, it must be installed on top of something. A good subfloor adds sturdiness, insulation, and should never show signs of rot. What should you use for the subfloor? Sometimes a new floor can be built on top of an old floor. Do you need new material for a subfloor at all? We know the answer to these questions.
Avoid mistakes that are costly in materials and time. You supply the flooring, and we meet your specifications.
Materials we can help with:
- Plywood subfloor
- Insulated subfloor
- Vinyl flooring click tile
- Laminate wood flooring click tile
- Peel and stick tiles
- And more!
-
CALL: 226-780-8789
