7 Residential Flooring Installation Mistakes and How to Avoid Them

Are you getting your home renovated? One of the common problems people have with renovation is installing new flooring.

Installing new flooring requires a lot of technical knowledge. You can save a lot on doing it yourself, but making flooring installation mistakes can cost you. One error can cause your floors to bubble up and pop up.

When installing new flooring in your home, you should know what to do and what not to do. Here are seven common residential flooring installation mistakes and how to avoid them.

1. Tiling Straight on Concrete

Many people think tiling is straightforward; all you have to do is slab it on the concrete. But this is actually one of the most common residential flooring installation mistakes.

Putting your tiles on a concrete floor can cause cracking. This type of cracking is also known as reflective cracking and happens when you tile on concrete.

Always install a crack isolation membrane between your concrete floor and tiles. Having a crack isolation membrane allows your new flooring to have a buffer.

The crack isolation membrane does not replace other steps. You should still include expansion joints with crack isolation membranes. This is to ensure that your flooring lasts you a lifetime.

2. Rushing Curing Time

When doing a renovation project, patience is key. Some people ignore the curing time when setting tiles or new flooring for faster results. Things such as sealants for tiles, grout, and even caulk have required curing times.

On average, tile curing can take at least 24 hours. Different products need different curing times or times to set. That is why you should always read the manual or instructions that come with your product.

If a product says to wait at least 24 hours, then wait 24 hours. Do not let it cure overnight, and then continue with your installation. Likewise, don’t continue the installation if it seems dry before 24 hours. It is best to follow the required curing time to get the best results.

The only time curing can take longer is due to weather conditions. It is best to increase curing time if it is raining or even humid.

3. Wood Flooring in the Wrong Spot

If it’s your first time installing wood flooring, you may not know where to begin. A common mistake is starting at the longest and straightest wall. When installing wood flooring, one should always start at the room’s focal point.

To find your room’s focal point, look for a door jamb or a stair nosing. The floor focal point depends on the design of your room, so it may vary. A floor register is also a good focal point for starting your wood floor installation.

Starting in an easy spot can help you alter your wood floor row position and where your wood floor joints will fall.

As the easy spots are usually open spaces, they are also the most visible. Starting off in these areas and having perfect rows create the most beautiful floors. The hard areas like corners or tough spots are usually smaller and less noticeable.

4. Using the Door Jamb as a Cut Guide

Transitioning between floors can mean installing types of flooring. One of the challenges you can face is not knowing how to create a proper transition between doorways. A common mistake people make when installing new flooring is using their door jab as the cutting guide.

Many people fail to undercut their jamb and only cut around it. This can leave a visible gap or space that caulking will not cover. When cutting between rooms, always trim your wood flows at the end of the door jamb.

Cutting around the door jamb takes more time and effort than trimming it. To make things easier, use a scrap board to help mark the flooring’s top on your jamb. This helps create a simpler and straighter cut that can slide underneath the board.

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5. Not Gluing

Many people think it’s okay to skip glue when installing wood floors. However, wood floors should always have rows near the walls to have glue. Gluing the rows near the walls or the outermost wood flooring rows is crucial if you want to secure them.

This is because the rows near the walls are the ones that often have movement.

6. Not Preparing Your Laminate Layout

All types of flooring need careful preparation. As mentioned, most people choose the longest wall and not the focal point of the floors. This is due to a lack of preparation.

Doing so would make your flooring not aligned with the rest of your home. A great way to avoid this is by taking your time to prepare your laminates and measuring each room. Find the straightest floor you can find; a subfloor is perfect for this as they are usually straight.

Find where the longest floor area of your home that you are able to snap a line in.

7. Trimming Your Floating Floors Using Only a Baseboard

If you have a floating floor, you should always have a gap between the walls. This gives room for expansion and contraction that floors go through. Experts recommend a gap of about 1/4 in or up to 3/8 in.

If your floor board can not survive these usual contractions, they will start popping off. This will make you have to go through harder regular flooring maintenance.

Avoid Residential Flooring Installation Mistakes Starting Today

Here are seven common residential flooring installation mistakes you should avoid. Use this as your guide to installing new flooring for your DIY home renovation project.

Floor installation can get messy, and that’s why you should learn more about flooring. If you want to know more about the flooring installation process, you’re in luck! Check out our other blog posts to learn more.