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If you’re mulling over choices of flooring for your home, the term “PVC” or “poly vinyl chloride” must’ve come up during your research. It is, afterall, one of the most en vogue modern house flooring options in Pakistan. The first thing you need to know about PVC is that it’s a synthetic plastic polymer known and used for its durability, which is why it’s widely used as a flooring material. In fact, vinyl floor tiles are commonly used in high-traffic areas because they can withstand high pressure. Also, PVC flooring is available in my types and stylessome are best for colder climates, due to their insulation properties, and some are ideal for hot and humid places owing to their resistance to moisture and drastic changes in temperature.Below is a guide for you so you can install vinyl flooring efficiently and decide on how to go about it.
PVC flooring in Pakistan is easily available and if you’re going for this option for your home then you’ve landed on the right page. From the tools you need to the final touches, this guide to installing vinyl flooring will help you, especially if you’re doing it on your own.
Laying PVC Flooring in Pakistan – An Easy Guide
You can easily do PVC flooring of your house yourself, however, it requires a certain level of precision to get it right. Below is a step-by-step guide to getting PVC flooring right.
Things You Need For Laying Vinyl Floor
First things first: Buy the material for laying PVC flooring. You need to buy your PVC coating roll and special vinyl glue. You would also need a pencil, rule, tape, paper cutter, a toothed rack, and a knife rub or a rolling roller.
1) Place your PVC floor on a clean surface
The surface that needs to be covered has to be clean. Unroll your PVC coating so as to completely cover the ground as well as the small part of the walls, about 5 centimeters. The remainder of the vinyl tiles can be added to the walls so it gives a proper finish to the room.
2) Stick your PVC
Clear the floor that needs to be covered with new flooring. It is best you start with one portion at a time. Using a trowel, cover the floor with the special adhesive in circular movements. Leave the product to dry for about 15 to 60 minutes (or as mentioned on the packaging). After the time is up, start laying the PVC tiles, planks, or sheet, whichever you are using. To avoid bubbles, flatten the freshly glued coating or rub your knife, starting from the center towards the ends. Repeat these steps for the other parts of the floor.
3) Finishing
After you have completed layering your floors, it is now time to cut the tiles or sheets for the walls to give a final finish. Do the same cleaning and coating procedure for the walls now and form a neat border with your flooring material. With your spatula, firmly press each of these pieces.
You now have to let your flooring dry for several hours (typically 48 hours) so the glue can dry. Don’t rearrange your room until you are absolutely sure your flooring is properly stuck to the ground.
If you are converting your carpeted floor to vinyl, check out this guide.
Now that we have given you a step-by-step guide on how to do PVC flooring, let’s address some concerns or misconceptions you might have about this flooring option.
Why Choose PVC Flooring?
Poly vinyl chloride flooring is known for its resemblance to wood but some of its designs look like granite as well. It is also resistant to water and stains, making it suitable for any room in residential and/or commercial spaces. It is also easy clean to maintain and adaptable to all weather conditions. Essentially it is plastic flooring, and so it helps insulate against weather extremes-hot and cold.
Wooden flooring has become especially popular in recent years, however, it is not easy to maintain and costs a lot of money. It also requires regular maintenance, and if you ever plan on selling your house, wooden flooring is too specific a taste for most people to acquire.
On the other hand, marble flooring is also a popular choice of flooring. However, a luxurious marble flooring will cost much more than PVC flooring. If you want to redo your house flooring on a budget, PVC is your best choice.
Which PVC Flooring To Pick?
PVC flooring can be broadly classified into two categories, i) homogenous and ii) heterogenous also known as PVC plank flooring.
Homogeneous PVC floors are relatively affordable and especially beneficial for high-traffic and industrial areas such as hospitals, schools, libraries, supermarkets, warehouses etc. However, it is not an aesthetic option as it is primarily of a single color without any patterns. Surface polyurethane coating prevents dirt from sticking onto the surface and makes the cleaning of the floor easier. But this kind of floor can be slippery and also not give that luxurious look you are looking for. Hence, most people opt for heterogeneous PVC flooring.
Heterogeneous PVC flooring is a multi-layer, thicker flooring and comes in a wide variety of colors, designs and patterns. Due to its thickness, and to ensure longevity of the flooring, people suggest it should be done using plank method.
PVC plank flooring is done similarly as mentioned above, however, it raises concerns about subflooring and how to treat moisture before getting the work done. Unlike laminate flooring, most vinyl floors are designed to lay directly on top of the subfloor.
You can use your old flooring as a subfloor, but there are some things you need to take into account. For example, it’s important that the template you’re working on is in a condition that’s good enough to be used as a subfloor, which means it shouldn’t be damaged. Ideally, it should be smooth and clean—free of dust. However, you need to be careful about one thing if you’re working with concrete: you need to use some sort of padding or underlayment to make the floor more comfortable to walk on. If you are planning on installing PVC flooring over wooden, tile, or linoleum, you can add a sub-flooring of the same material to avoid moisture and provide added cushion. However, levelling and cleaning out your old floor will also work just as fine.
The next step is to pick the right kind of vinyl flooring. There are many patterns and designs to choose from. This will solely depend on the overall theme of your home, or office and the specific area where you want to install vinyl flooring. After picking the design and color, you should decide on the thickness of your flooring. This is a crucial step.
What Thickness of Vinyl PVC Floor For Which Room?
Looking for PVC flooring in Pakistan. There are rolls of varying thickness easily available in local markets. That said, you have to be very specific about the thickness of flooring in each room of your house, as this helps determine the floor’s longevity. This can be a concern for many as each level of thickness is attached to its functionality. Typically, you can categorize each form as per its usage in different rooms of the house or commercial space.
- Occasional passage rooms (office, bedrooms): thickness between 0.12 and 0.15 millimeters.
- Frequently used rooms (living room, dining room, living room, staircase, etc.): thickness between 0.15 and 0.25 millimeters.
- High traffic rooms (kitchen, children’s room, hotel, and office lobbies and public waiting rooms in hospitals etc): thickness between 0.25 and 0.30 millimeters.
We hope that this guide to different types of PVC flooring in Pakistan will help you choose the right floor for your house.
We have a number of guides on flooring that you should definitely check out if you are thinking of remodeling your home, or constructing a new one:
- Cork Flooring
- Terrazzo Flooring
- Epoxy Flooring
- Best anti-bacterial floors for homes
- Pros and Cons of wooden flooring in kitchen
- Best flooring options for high-traffic areas
- Mosaic Glass Flooring in bathrooms
- Ways of removing rust stains from floors
If you have any queries, write to us at blog@zameen.com. Also, keep checking Pakistan’s largest property blog for all the latest updates on the country’s real estate sector.
