Expert reveals how to keep floors looking as good as new

Whether you have carpets, or smooth floors such as wood, vinyl or laminate flooring in your Chester or North Wales home, in a busy household the floors are walked on every day. Unless floors are well maintained, they can look stained and dusty. A flooring expert has shared her top tips for keeping all types of flooring looking fresh.

Flooring brand director Johanna Constantinou says that before vacuuming the floor, first clean the vacuum. Dirty filters and full bags can decrease suction power by half. Bags need replacing when they are three-quarters full. Change filters every three months.

If deep pile carpets lose their bounce, refresh them with baking soda and vinegar. Sprinkle baking soda all over the carpet and brush it in so that it penetrates the pile. Leave it overnight then vacuum the carpet. After vacuuming, spray with a solution of equal parts of water and vinegar. Use a stiff brush to work the mixture into the fibres to eliminate odours and bacteria.

Johanna Constantinou warns against making a smooth floor too wet.

“There is no need to use multiple cleaners and finishing products as you don't want to risk soaking your floors with a wet mop because excess moisture can seep through the surface and can cause lifting and warping.”

Don’t use steam cleaners on wood or laminate floors as these can discolour the flooring. Most smooth flooring can be cleaned with a dry mop, or use a cleaning solution formulated for your smooth floor type.

What’s the difference between regular and luxury vinyl flooring?

Vinyl flooring is easily one of the most popular choices for homes and businesses. This is because it is a flooring type that can last for a very long time while also requiring fairly minimal levels of maintenance to keep it looking good.

People like vinyl because it is able to mimic the appearance of other flooring choices at a lower cost. It is possible to get vinyl floors that look like wood, stone and other surfaces, but that are much cheaper and easier to install than these materials would be.

There are two different versions of vinyl flooring though: regular and luxury vinyl. It is important to know the differences between them so that you can pick the best one for your home or commercial premises. That is what we will look at in this article.

The differences between regular and luxury vinyl

There are several basic differences between these two types of floor surface. They are the following:

• Manufacturing

• Thickness

• Installation

• Appearance

• Maintenance

We will look at each of them in turn.

Manufacturing

Although they are both made from PVC vinyl, regular and luxury vinyl floors are manufactured in very different ways. Regular vinyl is made by bonding a layer of vinyl to a backing layer that is usually made out of a materials such as fibreglass or felt. After that has been completed, the chosen design style is then imprinted onto it and a protective covering that is transparent is added as the final stage of the manufacture.

Luxury vinyl floors are available as both tiles and planks. They are made up of multiple layers of material rather than just two, usually anything between six and eight. These include two backing layers made from PVC and fibreglass that provide rigidity and strength; a foam layer of cushioning; the main vinyl layer with the chosen design printed on it; a layer over that to prevent damage; and a transparent layer to provide sheen.

Each plank or tile of a luxury vinyl floor is made separately in this way before they are fitted together during installation, whereas regular vinyl consists of a single sheet.

Thickness

Another difference between the two is how thick they typically are. Regular vinyl is a very thin floor surface that usually has a wear layer of between 10mm and 15mm. Despite this, it is a pretty durable and long-lasting surface, but the thinness does mean that it can be harsh underfoot if it is laid over a hard surface such as concrete.

As you might expect given the multi-layered manufacturing process, luxury vinyl is a much thicker floor surface. The wear layers alone will usually be anything between 2 mm and 8 mm in thickness, and there are several additional layers involved in creating it. That means it provides a comfortable surface to walk on whatever the floor underneath is made out of.

Installation

The installation process for regular vinyl flooring involves bonding it to the floor underlay with glue. In some cases it can be fitted with this glue bond only at the perimeter of the vinyl, so that it is attached to the underlay solely at the edges and seams. Glue bonding is always the fitting metho, however.

Luxury vinyl involves a more complicated installation. The tiles or planks are usually fitted to the floor using a system known as click-clock that interlocks them at their edges.

Appearance

One thing that regular and luxury vinyl floors have in common is that they can both be printed with designs that make them look like stone, wood, ceramic or porcelain tile floors. However, because regular vinyl is a single smooth piece of material, it does not replicate the look of individual tiles or planks of wood very closely.

As luxury vinyl is made up of separate planks or tiles to begin with, it achieves a wood or tile effect more convincingly. Nevertheless, it will only really be noticeable if you are paying close attention to the floor.

Maintenance

Sweeping, vacuuming or wiping with a damp cloth are the standard methods of maintaining both of the surfaces on a day-to-day basis. They are equally easy to keep clean. It is only when it comes to longer term maintenance that clear differences between them emerge.

Regular vinyl is quite thin and soft, which can leave it prone to rips or scratches – especially if you have children or pets. The greater thickness and hardness of luxury vinyl means that kind of damage is a lot less likely to occur. Thus, it is the floor choice that will last for longer in most circumstances.

Both of these flooring choices have their advantages and which you pick could depend on whether longevity or cost is your prime consideration. Speak to an expert for information about pricing.

Significant increase in laminate flooring sales forecast

A report by Data Bridge Market Research forecasts significant growth in the laminate flooring market. The current worldwide laminate flooring market was worth 28.91 billion US dollars in 2021, and is forecast to grow to $44.36 billion by 2029, a compound annual growth rate of 5.5%.

Laminate flooring is multi-layer synthetic flooring with laminated or glued-together layers that make the flooring planks strong and durable.

Home and business owners choose laminate flooring in their Chester properties as it is easy to install and is cost effective compared to hardwood or engineered wood flooring. The most popular types of laminate flooring resemble natural wood or stone, but bespoke prints are also available.

Modern printing technology has made laminate flooring more visually attractive. Home or business owners that desire this type of flooring can get their hands on it by calling on a reliable provider of laminate flooring, and can even get long-term home or commercial use warranties for their products.

Data Bridge Market Research says that the demand for modern housing for the world’s growing population, as well as improvements in living standards, have contributed to the increased sales of laminate flooring. This type of flooring is also used in commercial buildings by organisations that want good-looking and easy-to-maintain durable flooring, as an alternative to hardwood or stone flooring that doesn’t always tick these particular boxes. Advances in technology make laminate flooring chemical resistant and have increased the efficiency of locking mechanisms that join planks, making them more secure and easy to fit.

Are bathroom carpets making a comeback?

Recent photographs of celebrity couple David Harbour and Lily Allen’s home have caused a bit of a stir, as they featured a bathroom with a vibrant coloured carpet. They are not the first celebrities to show off their bathroom carpet, however. In 2020, Demi Moore shared a photo of a carpeted bathroom in her home. With these trendsetters in mind, does this mean that carpeted bathrooms are making an emphatic comeback?

Carpets in bathrooms became unfashionable after the 70s and 80s. The main reason for this was practicality. There is a risk of health-damaging mould appearing on carpets in the humid conditions of the bathroom. This can be prevented by installing a new subfloor and a highly efficient extractor fan. If a sink, bath or toilet overflows, a carpet can be ruined. Many who love carpets in their North Wales living rooms would not dream of having a carpet in the bathroom. However, as Lily Allen demonstrates, there are no hard and fast rules against having wall-to-wall carpets in all rooms.

Darren Jett, a New York-based designer, is a supporter of bathroom carpets. He says:

“If there is a clawfoot tub on a raised plinth or dais, or if the tub is inset into a tiled niche, then a carpeted floor outside of that is the ultimate luxury.”

Carpets in bathrooms are not going to be a trend that has a mass following. Provided they are used with care, carpets can be laid in bathrooms, but perhaps should not be installed next to sinks or baths.

Does LVT increase a home’s value?

A luxury vinyl tile (LVT) Chester floor is often seen as durable, good looking and is easy to clean, but does it add value to a property?

A luxury vinyl tile floor may not add significant financial value to a home, but it does improve the appearance of rooms, making the home more attractive to potential buyers. The value of installing luxury vinyl tiles is to make the home easier to sell.

The Karndean LVT brand provides a long guarantee which can be transferred to the new homeowner, who has the same guaranteed rights as the person who bought and installed the floor.

There are many ways that vinyl flooring adds value to a home. LVT flooring is suitable for both contemporary and traditional décor styles. The tiles are made to last a long time and the flooring comes with a long guarantee. LVT is water resistant, making this flooring type ideal for wet areas like kitchens and bathrooms. LVT is easy to clean, simply requiring regular mopping and sweeping. Quality vinyl tiles are comfortable and soft, with acoustic-insulating properties that reduce noise.

LVT is available in a wide range of colours and patterns. Tiles that look like natural stone or wood are extremely popular, but more unusual styles and patterns are worth considering.

Installing luxury vinyl tiles requires a high level of skill. A flooring company in the Chester area will supply the tiles and arrange for them to be fitted by flooring experts.