LVP: what things to consider?

Question

Hi,

We have a townhome that had carpet in bad shape. We are thinking of doing LVP throughout (except bathrooms that have vinyl flooring and kitchen that has tile). I am totally lost into these questions

a) is LVP in the bedrooms a good idea?

b) doing LVP over stairs is too pricey (i am getting quote of $150 per step)

c) what thickness should we go for the LVP. Is 3.2mm with 6mil wear sufficient? Should we be using additional padding for LVP on the second floor?

Will Fraser · Answer

Hi @Prashant Jaiswal, welcome to the BP forums!

a) Yes, it can be.  The only gripes I tend to from people about vinyl (or any hard surface) in the bedroom is that they wish it was carpet.  Well, good news:  they can get a rug :)   This does not tend to be a hangup to finding an excellent tenant, but it does last longer and better overall.

b) Yeah man, the stairs get pricey!  The stair tread piece to match most vinyls is pagal expensive!

c) I'd recommend getting the thickest wear layer you can get for the budget.  I recently started using Procore LVP in my projects and have had great success with it.  I chose it primarily because the wear layer is about 4x the thickness of Home Depot's Lifeproof brand, which is the 2nd more workable vinyl flooring I've used.

On the 2nd floor, you don't have to at all (because the LVP you get is probably already going to have a backer), but if you wanted to super deaden the transferring sound you could put down an additional layer of stuff, ideally one meant for sound deadening.

Marcus Auerbach · Answer

LVP is great, but like everything stay away from the cheap stuff. You can use it in all rooms, including bedrooms, bathrooms and kitchen. Tenants love hard surface floors.

For stairs use a berber style polyester carpet, it is very tough and inexpensive and good in catching dirt before you get to the unit.

Correct install is critical. You can level subfloors and install floating or use glue down LVP on very uneven floors. Cheap LVP will not sound well when you walk on it, even worse if it does not lay flat on the subfloor; feels spongy.

Prashant Jaiswal · Answer

Thank you for your inputs. I am going all LVP with a professional installer. Hoping for the good results that most have suggested.

Kevin Quach · Answer

In my experience, many installers (south florida) don't know how to properly prep/level the subfloor prior to LVP install. It is also a mixed bag of results regarding using any underlay and moisture barrier.

I have had results where the installers were so poor (they used 6.5 mm Nucore w/ moisture barrier), we had to pull out and get a tiler to come in and redo in tile instead. The LVP was noisy and you could tell they didn't level low spots. I learned my lesson and had to hire the job twice. No more LVP for me. The home was B class home, maybe you could risk it with a D class home.

I would NOT recommend LVP to you for bedrooms. IF you decide to go through with LVP, get an installer who will check the floor level (DON'T SKIP THIS!!) and knows whether or not to use any underlay!! Good luck.

Will Fraser · Answer

Sorry mate, I misspoke.  I was thinking of NuCore, which I have used their rigid core click-lock flooring the most.  It has a 22 MIL wear layer and is buttery smooth to install.

Ken Musial · Answer

If the stair piece you are referring to is to cover the bull nose of the tread, be very careful with doing that.  Most home inspectors will flag it as a hazard if it were to ever give way and cause someone to fall, not to mention the liability risks.  I had this done with laminate once and I got rid of it after the first tenant moved out.  Fortunately, nothing happened, but I wasn't comfortable with it.

Calvin Ozanick · Answer

LVP is nice because people can always put an area rug over it if they do not like it. We place it in most of our units for the longevity alone. I highly recommend you do the same. I would stay away from LVP on the stairs and go towards a more commercial vinyl for the stairs. Also, any LVP you use, I recommend the click-in floating plank. The adhesive tends to wear out on most, and the floating plank is almost completely water proof. Best of luck! I also recommend using 1/4 inch plywood underlay with the floating plank. Helps level and keep the subfloor smooth.

Tracy Streich · Answer

Put it everywhere you can!   They can buy a rug for the bedroom for under $200.    They will spend $200 cleaning the carpet during their tenancy or at move out.   Carpet replacement is a big cost.

Prashant Jaiswal · Answer

Thank you @Will Fraser

Are you referring to ProCore Plus LVP (5mm, 12mil wear layer)? Is floating/interlocking installation preferred or glued for the life of the floor(I am going to hire installer)? I see Lowes has ProCore Pro that is 12 mil wear layer and $2 per sqft but needs to be glued.

LVP: what things to consider?

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