Sheet Vinyl Floor

[OhGranny]

Hi
Anyone know of a good insulation to put under Sheet Vinyl that is not too thick and is it better to lay the sheet vinyl before and then build the kitchen on top - much less cutting, or build the kitchen and cut the sheet vinyl around it?
I've never fitted it before and wonder if it is difficult to cut etc....

Thanks
Granny

 

[frank_spencer]

Are you talking about a stick down vinyl or a loose lay cushion floor type of vinyl

 

[OhGranny]

Hi Frank
Loose lay cushion floor vinyl but it's going down on an uninsulated concrete floor and I was hoping I could get something as an underlay / insulation that was not too thick.

Granny

 

[frank_spencer]

If it's a decent cushion floor then it should be thick enough not to need anything under it.

 

[OhGranny]

Hi Frank
It's a 1930's house I doubt there is insulation in the concrete floor slab - very cold in a room that hardly sees the sun!!
It had thin vinyl tiles on before - vinyl cushion floor would be a bit warmer but I would prefer insulation if I could.

Thanks

Granny

 

[frank_spencer]

You can't really put anything under cushion flooring that is in anyway like an underlay, however if it's purely for the purpose of reducing heat loss I would suggest using either hardboard or plywood as a base to fit it on top of. This would greatly reduce the amount of heat conducted away from the flooring.

 

[OhGranny]

Hi Thanks
No easy solution good idea plywood. I have the skirts off so I could lay plywood and leave and expansion gap but with a risk of damp from the concrete I would have to get WBP I think to be safe.
I have seen some insulation for laminate flooring foil backed with a really dense foam face about 4mm thick.
I thought I might get away with it - I can't see anything slipping on this rubber and if I "double bonded" it i.e. stick down the underlay - stick the vinyl to it.
The cabinets are going on top - total area is roughly 3.5m x 4.7 once all the cabinets and appliances are in would it still move?

Granny

 

[frank_spencer]

You would only get a tiny amount of lateral movement, but the problem you'd have is that cushion floor is not very structurally strong so if it is laid onto a soft base it will puncture quite easily.

 

[OhGranny]

Thanks
Got it now - I suppose if the base isn't firm enough it could stretch and puncture with the weight of traffic as it is pushed down into the soft undersurface.

Granny

 

[OhGranny]

The saga continues !
Here is what I I'm thinking of doing.
My kitchen is 3.5 x 4.7 mtrs.
U / J sort of shape with an under staircase and a long thin cutout through for the supporting wall .
I've never done this before so........
I've got brown paper floor underlay 20 sq mtrs. I'm going to make a template of the floor.
Get a builders sheet 5 x 4 - lay the sheet vinyl on it - mark round the template, unfortunately because all the other rooms are full of what came out of the kitchen - I'll have to do it in the garden!! - neighbours will love it.
Will it work?
What's a safe margin to make it easiest to fit - allowing for stretching etc?

Thanks
Granny

 

[frank_spencer]

You will have to be precise with your template. If you choose to go this route and do it on a sheet of something then you will have find some way to fix the template to the cushion floor. If your template is good then it may be worthwhile sticking it to the reverse of the cushion floor with something like wallpaper paste as this will ensure it doesn't move as you shift the flooring to cut it. It will also give you a little more thermal insulation once the floor is laid