How to lay flooring?
By Audrey Rose
This important task demands taking into account a group of elements among which we could mention: the place where it will be, the dimension of the tiles, and their color, surface and design.
To cover outdoor spaces it is crucial to make sure that the surface to cover is always above the level up to which the water gets when it rains, and to get a slope that facilitates the draining of the water spilled on the floor outside or in the direction of the shutoff valves. In indoor rooms it is recommended to avoid, as much as possible, the differences in floor levels.
Large tiles, over 30 x 30 centimeters, must be used only in spacious locals. In enclosed spaces with surfaces of less than 16 square meters it is advisable to use tiles of 25 x 25 centimeters or smaller ones. Large mosaics in small areas produce an unpleasant visual effect, because there seems to be less room than there actually is.
How to lay tile floors?
Tile floors are laid, as a rule, on a concrete plinth or on an already existing tile floor. The use of tiles on earth substrata is not recommended, because they are not very resistant to deformations of the base where they are laid.
The main instruments required are: the spirit level, a shovel or a trowel to mix the mortar, a serrated steel trowel to distribute it, a tile cutter, a rubber hammer, and the dividers.
The ideal mortar or glue for this activity is the Portland cement that is commercialized in sacks at the specialized stores.
The simplest procedure to lay tiles is the one we will describe with the following steps:
1) Draw the guidelines (one or several) that allow you to start laying complete tiles parallel to one of the walls of the room, leaving the possible tile cut for the opposite wall. The guideline can be kept by fixing a thin or colored thread on it.
2) Prepare the Portland cement. We will use a container with room for about 20 liters where we will pour the water and add, little by little, the powder of the Portland cement while we mix. When we get a doughy and consistent mix similar to peanut butter, your adhesive material will be ready to be used.
3) Distribute the mix uniformly using the serrated trowel. We will only cover the area that must be occupied by three or four tiles, parallel to the guideline and avoiding covering it.
4) Place the tiles over the mix following the guideline until we complete the whole line. In order to obtain an identical separation among the tiles we will use plastic dividers. We proceed the same way with the following line and with the rest of them until we finish the collocation of the complete tiles. On the opposing walls, we will measure the thickness of the spaces between the last line of tiles and the wall, also considering the amount of millimeters that are required to place the baseboards. Then cut the tiles according to that measure and fill the remaining spaces.
5) After no less than 24 hours, seal the floor by filling the unions between the tiles with white cement or any other special material at your disposal. We pour a small portion of this material, which must be liquid and creamy, on the floor and with a flat rubber utensil we will rub it to make sure that we uniformly cover all the unions. It is not advisable to spread too much of this mix because we take the risk of having it hardened during our work.
6) Remove the remaining material after 15 minutes using a wet sponge. We must make sure that we clean up rubbing the tiles diagonally and never parallel to the lines, because the sealing might be removed from the divisions too. After 24 to 48 hours have passed your floor will be ready and you will be able to clean it with the traditional methods.
How to lay laminated flooring?
The main requirements we must observe are:
1) Guarantee that the laminated floor rests for about 48 hours within its own packaging before it is laid. During that time and all the time its laying may take, the room temperature must be above the 18°C.
2) Lay the laminated floor floating, without sticking or hammering it directly to an existing floor or the base surface.
3) Leave a gap for expansion of about one centimeter around the area of the room where it is installed.
4) After the laminated floor is installed, lay the baseboards attaching them to the wall, not to the floor.
5) If there is any unexpected problem, you must stop the laying and consult a vendor specializing in this kind of floor.
Home & Garden — How to lay flooring
