Luxury vinyl tile is a durable and comfortable alternative to traditional tile floors.
It’s easy to clean and it hides stains pretty well. Also, because it’s made from vinyl, it’s softer on your joints than rigid tile.
Installing it yourself is easy, and can be done in just a weekend. Here’s how to do it.
Before installing luxury vinyl tile, the surface it will cover must be clean and level. To make sure it’s smooth and flat, use a self-leveling underlayment, like Custom Building Products LevelQuik RS Self-Leveling Underlayment.
The tile we’re using has a built-in pad so there’s no need to install an underlayment. Start in a corner of the longest wall in the room, placing the tiles with the tongue side out.
The tongue on luxury vinyl tile is the small flat edge on one side of the tile that’s angled to lock into the bottom side of another tile (the groove side).
To ensure we have equal-sized cut pieces on either side of the room, we cut our first row of tiles down to 8 and 3/4 inches.
Space each piece about 3/8 of an inch from the wall so there’s room for expansion. For this luxury vinyl tile, we’re aligning them with the base molding because it’s a little wider than that measurement.
On the first row, you’ll only need to snap the end joints together. For the next row, align the end joint then tilt the tile down so the longer joint lines up.
Offset each new row by half from the previous one before tapping both joints in place with a rubber mallet.
When you need to cut the tile, simply align the tile and mark the edges at the obstacle, then connect the lines using a speed square. Cuts can be made with a saw or with a utility knife to score and snap the tiles.
Once all the tiles are in place, nail shoe molding to the baseboard to cover any gaps and secure the edges of the flooring.
