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Installing basement flooring
- Easy do-it-yourself project
- Single trip worth of materials (with a pickup truck)
- I’ve installed click flooring before
- Certainly cheaper than having it installed by a pro
Would I do it again? Absolutely. I might shop around and do some more research on vinyl click flooring. This stuff is indestructible, but I’ve read some articles that suggest vinyl may reduce the quality of air in the house.
This one didn’t take too long, a few weekends with a couple weeknights thrown in.
Installation is pretty straightforward although it took a couple rows until I had a system. Which edge to line up first and whether to snap in the short or long side first made a difference. I found by lining up the next piece on the long edge, wiggling it on an angle before laying it flat, the long edge really just needed a couple whacks with the mallet to set it in place. Then a few more whacks along the short edge seated the piece completely.
These are the thicker planks with an pre-attached underlayment (squishy stuff). The installation instructions say it’s a score and snap. I did use the score and snap method, but found that the snapped edges were fairly rough and didn’t provide a clean butt joint. This is only important if your edge will remain visible. For cutting around poles and doorways I used an oscillating tool. Worked well enough but required edge clean-up with a knife. I think the speed of the cutting head was probably melting the plastic a little as it was cutting. A slower cutting tool, maybe a jigsaw might leave a cleaner edge.
To finish off the project, I wrapped the poles. Eventually I’ll finish off the ceiling and the basement bathroom.
Checked off the list…..NEXT!!!
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