LVT

Suitable Substrates

All substrates listed below must be properly prepared and meet certain requirements. There may be other exceptions and special conditions for these substrates to be suitable for installation.

●Concrete (on all grade levels) 

●Approved suspended wood underlayments 

●Single-layer, fully adhered, existing resilient floors 

●Ceramic tile, terrazzo, marble 

●Polymeric poured (seamless) floors 

Do not install over:

●Particleboard, waferboard, OSB or single-layer STURD-I-FLOOR panels 

●Existing resilient tile floors that are below grade 

●Existing cushioned vinyl flooring 

●Carpet 

●Hardwood flooring that has been installed directly over concrete 

Job Conditions/Preparation

●Substrates must be sound, dry, clean, smooth, and free from excessive moisture or alkali. Remove dirt, paint, varnish, wax, oils, solvents and other foreign matter that would interfere with a good bond such as curing agents and sealers. 

●In renovation or remodel work, remove any existing adhesive residue so that no ridges or puddles are evident and what remains is a thin, smooth film. 

●Fill all cracks and holes with a suitable patch/underlayment/ embossing leveler per manufacturer’s instructions.

●This product can be fit directly to existing baseboard and trim moldings, however removing the baseboard molding and replacing it after the flooring is in place will make the perimeter fitting much easier. 

●Undercut doorframes (optional) to allow the product to slip underneath and make fitting planks around doorframes easier. 

●The area to receive resilient flooring and the flooring materials and adhesives should be maintained between 65℉ (18℃) to 81℉ (27℃) for 48 hours before installation, during installation and 48 hours after completion. Maintain a minimum temperature of 55℉(13℃)  and a maximum temperature of 81℉(27℃)  thereafter. 

●Verification must be made that subfloor moisture levels do not exceed acceptable limits when installing flooring over concrete subfloors. Conduct a Calcium Chloride Test to measure subfloor vapor transmission levels prior to installation. Jinka offers as a guideline, a maximum acceptance moisture emission level of 5 lbs./1000 sq.ft./24 hrs. for this product. If subfloor moisture vapor transmission levels exceed the recommended limit, the concrete must be allowed to dry out prior to installing the floor. 

NOTE: Installation possible if the substrate temperature does not exceed 27℃ at all points and with reversible floors. Turn the underfloor heating off 24 hours prior to installation. Restart the heating gradually after installation.

Instructions

Layout:

Whenever possible, plan the layout so that the joints in the planks do not fall on top of joints or seams in the existing substrate. The end joints of the planks should be staggered a minimum of 6″ apart. Do not install over expansion joints.

Determine which direction the planks will run. Find the center of each of the end walls (the walls perpendicular to the long dimension of the planks) and place a pencil mark on the floor. Connect these points by striking a chalk line down the center of the room. Do a dry layout of planks from the center line to the wall running parallel to the long direction of the

planks to determine the width of the last row of planks.

Fig.1 Dry layout to determine width of border

Avoid having border pieces less than 1/2 the width of planks. If you find the border planks will be less than 1/2 the width of the plank, the center starting line should be shifted a distance equal to 1/2 the plank width. This will “balance” the room and provide for a larger cut piece at the wall.

Make sure you leave an expansion joint of minimum 4-5 mm on all sides of the floor, around pipes, thresholds, under doors and around any fixed/stationary objects (floor vents, kitchen islands, etc). If a room is smaller than 25㎡ this expansion gap can be reduced to 2-3 mm.

Procedure:

Apply the adhesive with a notching per manufacturer’s instructions.

Normally, you will apply adhesive to 1/2 of the room area at a time so that you can start the installation along the center starting line. Apply adhesive and allow the adhesive to set until dry-to-the-touch, as per the recommended open time on the adhesive label. This takes 30 minutes or more depending on the temperature, humidity and air flow in the room. The adhesive should be tacky to the touch without transfer to fingers when ready for bonding.

Note: 

We recommend you purchase a few extra cartons of flooring. This will be useful to you if you have some damaged pieces, miscalculate the size of the room or miss cut some pieces. This also will help you if your floor needs a repair but your product is no longer manufactured. 

Check all planks in daylight before and during installation. Defective planks must never be used. 

When using planks from two or more cartons, check to be sure all pattern and lot numbers are the same to ensure proper color match. 

On larger installations, open several cartons and mix them as they are installed to help blend any slight shade differences from one carton to the next. 

Products with directional arrows on the back should be installed with the arrows all pointing in the same direction unless you are installing custom layouts. 

Begin laying planks along the center starting line and install row by row including the cut pieces at the perimeter until 1/2 of the installation is complete. Measure the length of the room at left wall and divide by the length of a plank. If the remainder is less than 12’’ (30.5cm), then you need to cut the first plank down to make the remainder 12’’ (30.5cm) or longer. Put spacers along the walls to maintain 4-5 mm expansion zone between the wall and the planks. Spacers should be approximately 20’’ (50.8cm) apart. Stagger the end joints by at least 6” (15.2cm). Apply adhesive to the remaining portion of the room, allow to dry-to-touch and complete the installation of planks in similar fashion.

After the product is installed, immediately roll the entire floor with a roller. Use a hand roller in confined areas where the large floor roller will not reach, such as under toe kicks.

Note: Apply a permanently flexible caulking material along the perimeter of the wet areas such as bathrooms and kitchens etc. to ensure a perfect watertight seal.

The planks may be walked on immediately; however, the floor should not be exposed to heavy rolling load traffic for 72 hours after the installation. Use pieces of hardboard or underlayment panels to protect the floor when moving heavy furniture and appliances back into the room.

Precautions

●Protect furniture and chair legs with proper felt or rubber caps. Furniture on casters/wheels must be easily swiveling, wide-spaced, non-staining hard rubber wheels that are suitable for a vinyl floor and/or use a suitable protective mat.

●Protect your floor against burns. Burns from the glowing end of a cigarette, matches, or other extremely hot items can damage the floors.

●Avoid bringing dirt, water and sand indoors by providing a suitable non-staining backed floor mat at the door.

●Avoid exposure to direct sunlight for prolonged periods. During peak sunlight hours, the use of the drapes or blinds is recommended.

●Do not allow pets with unclipped nails to walk on the vinyl floor. It could cause severe scratching to the surface.

●When moving appliances or heavy furniture it is always wise to lay a plywood panel on your floor and “walk” the item across it. This protects your floor from scuffing and tears.

Maintenance

●We recommend waiting 48 to 72 hours before washing the new floor coverings. This is to allow the tiles to conform to the substrates.

●Do not pour pails of water on your floor to clean. Excessive water can cause damage to your subfloor and your floor will only be as good as the subfloor.

●The volume of traffic on your floor will determine the frequency of maintenance needed.

●The type of floor, and even the color, will have some bearing on how much care may be necessary.

●All spills should be wiped up immediately. 

●For dry maintenance, we recommend a dust mop or vacuum cleaner with a soft bristle brush only.

●For wet maintenance, use a damp mopping procedure with a diluted neutral detergent or with a regular vinyl cleaner. Avoid harsh cleaning products that may damage the floor and make sure to dry completely. We do not recommend powdered cleaners, oil soaps, dish washing detergents and other alkali cleaning products.

●Shoe marks and scuffs can be removed by using a spot application of multipurpose cleaner and a non-abrasive scrubbing pad.

●It is not recommended to use wax on vinyl planks as this can cause a slip hazard.

●Vinyl tiles are completely waterproof, but they do not prevent the transmittance of moisture. Care should be taken to keep moisture from collecting on either side of vinyl floor to prevent the growth of mold and mildew. If your floor has been exposed to excessive water, for example by accident or flooding, remove the water as soon as possible by moping and ventilate the room. A dehumidifier should be promptly turned on in the room to reduce the moisture level to normal. Do not dry the room below the normal moisture level that existed previously.