PVC floor tiles: the pros and cons

A popular flooring material today is PVC tile. It differs not only a wide range of colors and textures, durability and durability, but also ease of installation, as well as a low cost compared to other floor coverings.

The composition of the PVC tile or vinyl coating is similar to the usual for all linoleum. Her second name is linoleum tile. In appearance, this tile may not differ from parquet or, for example, marble. It all depends on the design features that the buyer prefers. The shape of the product, too, are different: square, rectangular, mosaic.

The use of vinyl elements opens up a lot of room for creativity in arranging the floor, since they not only differ in color and texture, but also cut very well. Therefore, it is not at all difficult to lay out any drawings under your feet.

The precast vinyl coating is based on high-quality plastic compound, which provides the future floor with durability and strength. In the production process, plastic granules are combined with special dyes. From the resulting raw material and make linoleum tile.

In stores you can find both single-layer (homogeneous) and multi-layered (heterogeneous) vinyl tiles. In a single-layer model, the pattern passes through the entire thickness of the floor element. This is good in that, no matter how much they walk on it, no matter how much it is washed and rubbed, the image created during production will not be erased and will not lose its shape. The downside is that, despite the large number of colors, there are very few options for images.

The multilayered tile includes the protective layer interfering mechanical damage of future floor. The decorative layer determines its appearance. Fiberglass, located in the structure of each element, is responsible for ensuring that the coating does not deform during operation.

You can find many names for modular floor tiles: polyvinyl chloride, plastic, linoleum, polyvinyl chloride, polyvinyl. All of these names are directly related to vinyl coating. It has the following mounting features:

• The self-adhesive tile on the back side is covered with an adhesive composition, thanks to which it can be quickly glued onto a properly prepared base without any unnecessary manipulations.
• Adhesive tile for installation requires the use of glue.
• With a locking connection, all elements of the future floor are equipped with spikes and grooves, ensuring their reliable adhesion to each other.

PVC tile is also different in thickness, length and width. A single-layer model can be as thick as one and a half, as well as two and a half millimeters, or have parameters in the gap between these dimensions.

The multi-layer tile is 5 mm thick, depending on the substrate it has. This bottom layer is made of cloth, jute, polyvinyl chloride foam. The foamed substrate alone can be between two and three and a half millimeters thick. A tile with such a base is used in wet rooms and there,where much contamination is possible.

The so-called warm substrate adds to the tile one and a half millimeters of "growth." The coating with such a base is used in dry places.

The linoleum tile of the greatest thickness will last much longer than thinner alternative models. Depending on the area of ​​the room where the floor is arranged, you can choose linoleum tile with dimensions of 30 to 30, 50 to 50, 65 to 65 centimeters. The tile of the small size will be suitable for small rooms, and large elements - for spacious.

If the room has a complex configuration, it is necessary to distinguish it into rectangular areas, calculate the area of ​​each and add up the resulting figures. Only after that you will be able to determine the required amount of material for finishing.

Given the many options for vinyl tiles in size, color and texture, undertaking repair, you can embody a variety of ideas for the device flooring.

Laying a rectangular tile in a certain way, it is easy to imitate a pattern characteristic of parquet - “herringbone”, “checkers”, “run-up”, “squares”, “braid”. With this material you can make a "green lawn" or "pebble" on the floor. To mount the noble white floor and the floor under the stone is also not a problem, as is the checkered design in the form of a chessboard. The main thing is the presence of inspiration and desire to take on extravagant design moves.

PVC tiles have a huge amount of positive qualities:

• Strength. Even if such a floor has a very high permeability, the structure of the vinyl coating will allow it to last for many years.
• Wear resistance. Linoleum tile is created in such a way that the pattern on it is not abraded. This is facilitated by special mineral components in the composition of the material.
• Water resistant. Since the material does not absorb water, it is used in bathrooms, swimming pools, as well as in certain places under the open sky.
• Immutability of sizes. During operation, such a tile does not increase or decrease, which meansthat the appearance and performance of the entire floor will not be affected.

• Shock resistance. Quality tile coating is resilient and resilient. Even if you drop something sharp or heavy on it, no trace will be left, and you will not have to change the tile.
• Low price. If you choose between different versions of modern flooring, it is PVC tile that will have an advantage in terms of material investment in floor renewal.
• Good sound insulation. Such coverage perfectly drowns out other sounds, and this is very important in apartment buildings and in public places.

• Environmental friendliness. Despite the fact that this material has nothing to do with nature, it does not contain substances harmful to humans. Even if it is heated, people nearby are not at risk of poisoning with formaldehyde.
• Convenience delivery. Since the tiles themselves are light and flat, it is convenient to transport and transport them from place to place.
• Suitability for repair. Even if there is a situation that one of the tiles will be damaged, this does not mean that you have to shift the entire floor. Such an element is easy to remove and put another in its place.This is done in just a few minutes.
• Tile is fire resistant, most household chemicals do not affect it, and such a coating does not accumulate static electricity.
• Soft to the touch and comfortable.

But this material has negative characteristics:

• The tile is not among the hypoallergenic materials, as it is created from artificial components.
• A significant part of the brands of vinyl coating can not be used to create warm floors because of the instability to high temperatures. To do this, use a special linoleum tile with appropriate technical properties.
• The material does not tolerate exposure to acetone and similar in composition substances.
• For the floor of such a tile, it is necessary to carefully prepare the base, ensuring that the surface is absolutely flat.

The controversial question is whether the average ten-year life is a advantage or disadvantage of a PVC tile. An individual assessment of this gives each owner of such a floor. Someone renews the interior of the apartment once every five years, and someone with the same floors will live as long as twenty years.Depending on this, linoleum tile is considered to be different people by both bad and good.

The scope of linoleum tile is extensive:

• They can finish the floor in any of the rooms of the apartment: in the kitchen, bathroom, in the rooms.
• For the garage and basement, such coverage is also suitable.
• You can use the material in warehouses and industrial hangars.

• The tile is installed as temporary floors during presentations and exhibitions.
• In public buildings with high traffic, for example, in shops and shopping centers, you can see PVC.
• The material is used on the streets, in summer cafes and other open areas.

Tile for "semi-commercial" use is designed for operation in rooms with an average level of permeability.This may be an office where the same people work all the time and where visitors do not go every day.

The material for commercial use in the trading halls and various institutions, where a huge number of visitors are drawn daily, has high wear resistance and durability.

In industrial areas, the so-called special vinyl tile is used - a fireproof, chemical resistant material that provides electrical safety. As a rule, these are materials with a high price and a limited choice in color.

There are many manufacturers of PVC floor tiles on the market. And it’s not at all easy to choose products that really will meet all the requirements of the buyer. There are products from Korea, China. In the shops you can find linoleum tile from Denmark, Germany, Czech Republic and other European countries.

For shopping centers and offices often purchase products Czech company Fatra. This tile is also in demand for arranging the floor in the apartment - in the hallways and in the kitchens.

Korean tile LG Dekotile differs in the greatest fire resistance and durability.It will serve for twenty years, but the design of products during this time can be quite boring.

Products from Tarkett international companyhaving a large production in our country. Linoleum tile has an excellent texture and a huge selection of drawings, which opens up great opportunities for the realization of a variety of design ideas when finishing the floor.

Hungarian concern Graboplast produces heterogeneous PVC tiles with a large number of layers. In total there can be from four to eight. This ensures reliability, functionality and long service life of the floor of such material.

Firm from Poland Lentex offers semi-commercial and commercial linoleum tile, characterized by originality of patterns.

French company Forbo-Sarlino offers on the market linoleum tile with high wear resistance. Because of this, she won the attention of buyers to their materials. The composition of the tile includes quartz sand and other components, due to which the coating does not fade and does not abrade.

Since there is a great demand for floor coverings on the market, in stores other than products from reputable manufacturers, there are many low-quality products.It is better not to go after cheap prices and choose a famous brand tile than to regret the wasted money spent in vain.

Most users of vinyl floor tiles are satisfied that they chose it. People agree that the floor with such a coating is very beautiful and looks presentable. Compared to regular linoleum floor tiles are more pleasant to the touch and warmer.

Housewives appreciate PVC tiles for simply caring for them. Resistance to moisture, all sorts of pollution and temperature changes in everyday life - a very significant plus for flooring. In the kitchen, in the bathroom and in the living room, it shows its best side.

The owners of garages, car services, cafes, exhibition venues and shops also prefer PVC tile. With its help, you can quickly and simply give the interior the desired look and at the same time do not face serious financial costs.

Of the negative qualities of this material, users note only that it is synthetic, and not natural. But this factor confuses not everyone.

The choice of a linoleum tile is influenced by many factors. If you plan to arrange the floor in the children's room, the buyer will certainly focus on the environmental friendliness of the material. If you have to deal with uneven floors, the prospects for the use of PVC tiles also need to be evaluated thoroughly. It also matters whether square or rectangular tiles are required for the realization of a particular design.

For floor vinyl tiles there are several classes of wear resistance. Special linoleum tile for industrial objects can have a numerical designation from 41 to 43. Commercial - 31-33, products for domestic needs - 21-23. The higher the class, the more the price of the goods.

Another important selection criterion is friability, information about which is “encrypted” in Latin letters on the package - M, P, T or F. The most reliable material in this sense is marked T. The material with the designation F is the least resistant to abrasion..

In addition, you need to pay attention to information about the number and purpose of the tile layers and the type of its base.

If you need material for the design of a warm or water floor, you should make sure that the product offered to you is really intended for such use. It is also better not to neglect the information about the service life of the tile, which is guaranteed by the manufacturer.

Hold the thing in your hands, appreciate whether it is flexible, whether it does not smell, whether you like it to the touch. In order not to experience disappointment in your choice, you should not be satisfied only with the appearance of the product. In one instance, it is difficult to estimate how a mounted coating may look in the interior. The store must have an appropriate catalog, photos from which will give an idea about it.

Cope with laying the floor of PVC tiles can not only real masters with an impressive experience in laying the floor, but also non-professionals, if they follow the instructions clearly.

For laying tile required:

• pencil;
• corner;
• roulette;
• assembly knife;
• wallpaper roller.

It is better to purchase the material for laying in such a time so that it gets into the room where the floor will be cleaned at least a day before the start of work. The temperature in the room should be no lower than twenty degrees. It cannot be damp and cold.

The floor should be prepared by that time - leveled, primed and dried. If it has plinths that can not be removed, you will have to close them with a special tape or tape.

If the floor is wooden, you need to make sure that there are no protrusions on it, including irregularities from the nail heads. If there are gaps between the boards, they should be sealed using a putty. Only after that the styling process itself begins:

• Getting started, using a tape measure and a pencil, you should calculate and mark the center of the floor by drawing two intersecting lines. As a result, the floor will be divided into four sections.
• Then you need to lay out a series of tiles from the center of the room to the walls.
• Between the extreme whole tile and the wall will remain a certain distance. If it is large enough, everything is in order; if it is less than half the size of a tile, it is better to shift the center line, ensuring that the floor is beautiful in the end.

• Focusing on the markup, set the first tile in the center of the floor, continue to paste the following from this place.
• In the course of work, glue is applied both on the product itself and on the part of the floor where it will be placed. You can use a special glue intended for laying this material, and just PVA. (For installation of tiles on the wooden floor is recommended to use double-sided adhesive tape).
• After gluing, the tile must be pressed tightly to the base, rolled with a roller or achieve full gluing to the floor with a rubber hammer.
• Then you need to remove excess glue, install the next tile next to the previous one.The gap between the elements of the coating should not be. If required, the linoleum tile is cut using a mounting knife or an industrial heat gun. Do it from the outside to see the drawing.

How to lay PVC tile by yourself is shown in the next video.

Preparing the floor for installing self-adhesive tiles should be more thorough than for working with adhesive varieties.

From the floor you need to remove the old coating, align it, removing even small drops, repairing cracks and gouges. When preparing the surface, it is advised to use sand-cement mortar or special mixtures to level such a surface. Then the floor must be thoroughly cleaned with a vacuum cleaner.

Further actions are not much different from installing tiles with glue. Here, too, it is necessary to determine the center of the room, from which the installation will begin. The first element is installed in any of the four corners that turned out around the center point, removing the protective film from the product. For reliable adhesion with the base, this linoleum tile, as well as adhesive, is pressed to the floor with a roller.

When trimming tiles near the wall, it is necessary to leave a gap of half a centimeter in size, which will later hide the plinth. When installing rectangular slats, you can start installation from the window to the door.. The first row is formed from whole tiles, the last part is trimmed. New row start with the cut off part. The result is a brickwork effect.

In contrast to the self-adhesive and adhesive construction, tiles with locking joints cannot be fastened to the floor tightly, since this coating is inherently “floating”.

There are several systems connecting its elements. More often than others you can find the option of "groove and crest". Although before laying it is necessary to carefully read the instructions on the packaging of the tile, so that later there will be no surprises. Installation in this case, you need to start from a corner and move in the process of working from left to right. In the first row of the protrusions of the grooves of the tiles, which run into the wall, should be cut off.

As the first line of tiles is laid, the ends of the elements snap into place. Most of the time, there is no space left for a whole plank. It is turned 180 degrees face up and mark the necessary place for trimming on the back side. Part of the tile is cut off.

The remaining piece can start a new series. Repeating these steps, fit the entire floor. In the last row, the tile will have to be cut so that it can fit between the mounted floor and the wall.

After the installation is complete, the debris must be removed from the room and the floor swept.It can be washed only a day after installation. It is necessary to make felt lining on the furniture and place it only after two days.

Using a tile of just two colors, you can create a graphic and vivid image that will liven up the space of the room.

PVC tiles under the tree creates a pleasant color coating of natural color that is difficult to distinguish from the natural.

Chess fans can use vinyl tiles to “lay out” a real chessboard on the floor. Such a design solution will not leave anyone indifferent.

It is possible to receive an original covering on a floor, using different types of a tile, for example, under a tree and under a stone.

With the help of unusual tiles in the kitchen creates the effect of a fabric path under your feet, which adds comfort to this room.

Some types of tiles have very intricate designs that allow to make compositions of smooth lines of different colors on the floor. Such coverage will make the room not boring.