Vinyl Floors

Wood and tile were some of the first kitchen and bath floors, which gave way to easier-to-clean manmade vinyl floors. Linoleum, which could be found on early 1900s floors, became the generic term for all manmade vinyl floors thereafter. Years later, no-wax vinyl floors came out, and if you didn’t choose a premium grade, they soon became scratched and dull and needed wax. Eventually, many knockoff brands came out and vinyl looked and felt cheap and curled at the edges. Still yet, another attempt was made to solve the easy-to-clean dilemma with laminate. Pergo brand laminate came and went, and most of us found ourselves back to wood and tile. If you even mention vinyl today, people cringe and think of the old days of linoleum, so we’ve come full circle back to our roots with wood floors (or wood-looking tile floors) — but still hard-to-maintain, cold tile floors. That’s a brief history of floor types, which brings me to another new floor type that I love called Luxury Vinyl Plank, or LVP. (If in tile form, then Luxury Vinyl Tile, LVT.)

LVP solves a number of flooring requirements. The floor, about 3/8” thick, is floating, so it can go over the top of many types of floors without being glued down. It doesn’t require the underlayment and preparation that tile needs, although sometimes a new underlayment is required depending on the situation. Some LVP products come backed with cork (decoupling the floor from the subfloor) and are made of PVC materials, so the floor virtually reaches room temperature, eliminating the cold-floor problem. It’s soft and has good impact absorption, allowing comfort on joints and making for more enjoyable use during long periods of standing. In the bath or kitchen, it’s waterproof — it can be soaked in water — and is pet-proof as well. Enhanced printing and embossing techniques on LVP produce a finish that looks and feels more realistic than ever. LVP comes in numerous colors and sizes, and if a premium brand is selected, the floor delivers very good value.

Last month we installed a large section of LVP in our showroom and we love the look and the update it has brought to the space. Currently we are designing LVP and LVT into many of our bath and kitchen projects. We are excited to offer a luxury vinyl floor design that is cost-effective, looks great, is easy to clean, and is warm on the feet.