Loose Lay Vinyl Flooring: Low-Maintenance Home Flooring That Creates High Impact

In a world where we pay so much attention to interior design and home decorations, it’s somewhat ironic that people oftentimes overlook the importance of good quality flooring. Oh, it’s time for a home makeover? Let’s completely ignore the foundation of the place by focusing on random details such as accent décor and colour scheme. Sounds like a plan, right? Yes, a very bad plan at that. You’re setting yourself up for failure straight from the start. There’s no point in doing any kind of renovations when you skip a very important step – upgrading your flooring solution.

With that said, many people immediately opt for laminate flooring due to its elegant design and sturdy, oftentimes without considering any other options. While there’s nothing wrong with going down that road, you’ll be missing out on another strong contender – durable loose lay vinyl flooring to truly transform the look of your home. Intrigued? Feeling like you want to know more? Good, we’ll gladly fill you in on all the details in just a sec.

What Is Loose Lay Vinyl Flooring?

You’ve probably already heard of vinyl flooring in general, which is basically a composite blend of a number of synthetic materials including PVC vinyl, fibreglass and plasticisers. This particular build contributes to a long-lasting, scratch and moisture resistant flooring option that’s bound to be of use for many years to come.

Well, the same goes for loose lay models since they’re basically a sub-category of the umbrella term of vinyl flooring. The only difference is in the application method – while most vinyl floors have some sort of adhesive or fastener at the back to glue them in, loose lay planks have a special rubber coating that relies on friction to keep them in place. Sure, you’ll still have to do some cutting and measuring to accommodate to your space but that’s the least of your worries.

This specific feature means that loose lay flooring is quite easy to install and maintain because you won’t have to use extra materials to set them up in your home. Plus, you can just as easily uninstall them if you want a change of scenery after a while. Sounds pretty convenient, don’t you think?

How Do You Install Loose Lay Vinyl Flooring?

Basically, it comes in thick rectangular planks that you’re supposed to evenly distribute across your home. Thanks to the rubber coating on the back, you can even install them on top of your existing floors so that you don’t have to take everything out. Just make sure that the surface is even, clean and dry in order to apply the planks properly.

Another thing you should pay close attention to is avoiding any loose ends or empty spaces between the planks themselves as well as the walls. If they’re not a tight fit, dust, liquids and other substances might slip through the cracks and cause permanent damage.

All things considered, you don’t have to hire a professional to lay down the vinyl planks for you because you can definitely pull it off by yourself. If you do this, you’ll be able to save up quite a bit of money that can be repurposed for any other renovations you might have planned.

Benefits of Having Loose Lay Vinyl Floors

Now that you’re familiar with all the basic aspects of loose vinyl flooring, let’s take a peek of all the ways you can benefit from installing it in your home. Apart from being easy to install and maintain, there are a few other features that will definitely take some of the weight off your shoulders.

No Expansion or Contraction

Perhaps the main letdown of vinyl floors is the fact that they expand and contract when they come into contact with moisture. Luckily, this isn’t the case with loose lay models because their width stays the same. This makes them perfect for use in high traffic areas of your home such as kitchens, dining rooms and even bathrooms where the floors can become damp with moisture.

Sound Absorbent

You know how many times you’ve tried to quietly get a snack at 3 in the morning just to have the floors creak under your feet? You’re out here trying not to wake everyone else up but you end up doing exactly that every single time. And all you ever wanted was some ice cream. Just your luck.

What if we told you there’s a way for you to tone it down? Yes, you read that right. All of this could be a thing of the past once you cover your floors in loose lay vinyl plank flooring. It’s completely sound absorbent which means you’ll notice significant noise reduction almost immediately.

Durable and Comfortable

Due to its multiple layers of padding, vinyl flooring is soft yet sturdy. It certainly won’t give in to the everyday wear and tear that easily, all while maintaining its somewhat squishy exterior. Additionally, its padded build is particularly useful during the cold winter months because it provides the necessary insulation by keeping your feet warm at all times.

Modern and Versatile

Do you think that vinyl floors are only available in one colour? Think again. In fact, it comes in a range of different shades and design patterns so you’ll have no trouble finding something you like. Our advice is to take your time to look through all the available options and don’t rush through your decision.