How To Repair Linoleum Flooring

<p>A snagged chair leg floor ripped open this section of canvass-vinyl flooring. The remedy is to install a replacement patch.</p> — A snagged chair leg floor ripped open this section of sheet-vinyl flooring. The remedy is to install a replacement patch.

Introduction

If y'all own a home in America, odds are there's vinyl floor in at least i of its rooms. That likelihood is jump to proceed: According to the Resilient Floor Covering Institute, an industry trade group, well-nigh 85 meg square yards of the stuff were laid in new homes in 1994 - enough to nearly embrace the island of Manhattan. And that doesn't include the vinyl floors added during remodeling. Vinyl, or resilient, flooring is so popular because it's affordable and durable. In fact, its pattern ordinarily goes out of way long before its surface wears out. Vinyl flooring isn't indestructible, however. Sliding dorsum a chair tin snag and rip it (photo ane), while a dropped can and other sharp objects tin can hands gouge the material. And high heels are notorious for puncturing the toughest flooring if there'south even the slightest void in the subfloor beneath information technology. Fortunately, repairing vinyl floor is easy, and requires little more than than a utility pocketknife. Nosotros'll cover the techniques for replacing sheet vinyl and vinyl tile - the two major varieties of vinyl flooring. Hither's where you begin.

Assessing the harm

How you repair vinyl flooring depends on what kind you lot have and how it'due south damaged. With vinyl tile, the all-time arroyo simply is to replace marred tiles . With sheet vinyl, eliminating damage requires fusing the surface or patching in new textile. Pocket-sized cuts and scratches tin be permanently fused with liquid seam sealer, a clear compound that's bachelor wherever vinyl flooring is sold. Clean the area with a soft fabric that's dipped in lacquer thinner, and then squeeze in a thin bead of sealer. After the sealer has stale, the repair volition be virtually invisible. For tears or burns, yous'll have to cutting out the damaged surface area and glue in a replacement patch; this type of work requires an actress piece of identical flooring and a technique called double cutting (which is covered in the next department. Installers often leave a few scrap pieces backside for simply such an emergency. If there aren't any leftover pieces - and if the flooring isn't too old - you might find an identical slice at a flooring dealer. You tin also lift a piece for your patch from inside a closet, nether the fridge or in another inconspicuous location.

<p>Secure the replacement patch over the damaged surface area with two-in.-wide masking tape. Exist certain the pattern lines match.</p> — Secure the replacement patch over the damaged area with 2-in.-broad masking record. Be sure the pattern lines match.

Patching Sheet Vinyl

To repair flooring using the double-cut technique, start by taping the replacement patch over the damaged area (photograph ii). Exist certain to position the patch then that its pattern aligns exactly with the pattern on the flooring. Place a straightedge (a steel dominion or framing square works well) on top of the patch. Line it upwardly right in the center of one of the design lines. And then apply a utility pocketknife to cutting along the straightedge through both the patch and the flooring (photo 3). For all-time results, use a make-new blade and concur the knife in a perfectly vertical position. Make the remaining cuts effectually the patch the same way, cutting along the flooring's pattern lines. Next, remove the patch and peel up the damaged section. If your flooring is perimeter-bonded, the piece volition come up easily because it isn't glued down. If it'due south fully adhered, scrape upwards the slice with a putty knife or scraper. Proceed by spreading mastic onto the plywood subfloor with a notched trowel. On perimeter-bonded floors, also lift up the floor around the cutout and spread mastic nether the edges (photo 4). So press the patch into place (photograph 5), cover it with wax newspaper and counterbalance it down with a few heavy books. Wait at least 24 hours for the mastic to dry. Then employ liquid seam sealer to all the joints around the patch (photo 6). The upshot will be nearly undetectable.

Today's Homeowner, 1994 — Use a straightedge and utility knife to cut through the patch and the flooring below. For a neater repair, cut along pattern lines.

Replacing Vinyl Tile

The technique for replacing a damaged vinyl tile is even easier than double-cutting canvass vinyl. Begin by using an electric rut gun to warm the damaged tile and soften the adhesive underneath. Next, pry out pieces of the tile with a potent-blade putty knife or dull wood chisel (photo A). Be conscientious non to damage whatsoever of the surrounding tiles Once y'all've removed the unabridged tile, scrape the subfloor clean of any remainder adhesive or bits of cleaved tile (photo B). And so peel off the protective newspaper from the back of the replacement tile if it's a new adhesive-back tile (photo C), or utilise mastic to the subfloor if you're using a tile you lifted from somewhere else. Finish by pressing the replacement tile into place (photograph D). If you used mastic, cover the tile with wax paper and weigh it down. Exist sure to wait 24 hours before traversing the newly repaired floor.