Installing Vinyl Tile Flooring

Vinyl tile flooring is a less expensive and easier to install option to sheet vinyl. Tile flooring is great for small rooms like bathroom and laundry rooms and much easier to install. It typically comes in 12" X 12" squares with a self adhesive backing so you just peel and stick!

When shopping for vinyl tile flooring, try to buy the highest quality that your budget can afford. Cheap tiles are thinner and will wear much faster than the more expensive ones. Measure the square footage of the area you want to cover and buy that many tiles plus some extras in case you make a mistake! A 10 X 8 room will need about 80 tiles so purchasing 85 might be a good bet.

The most important aspect in having your vinyl tile flooring look great and wear well is to start with a clean flat surface. You cannot have anything sticking up and all holes must be filled. It’s a good idea to install a plywood subfloor to insure you have a good surface to work with. Remove all moldings and, if you are doing a bathroom, remove the toilet if possible.

Installing the vinyl tile flooring itself is fairly simple. Divide the room into even quarters - snap a chalk line so that there is a cross in the middle of the foor with the lines meeting at the exact center. Lay your first tile so that it's corner is right at the corner of the cross and continue laying tiles in that section working from the center of the room out to the edge. Repeat for each section - simply peel the paper backing off the tile to expose the adhesive and press the tile down on the floor. The edge tiles will be the hardest where you will have to cut the tile to match any jogs around the edge of the room.

Once you are done, use a roller to roll the entire length of the vinyl tile flooring to ensure it is securely pressed down. Replace the moldings around the edge and the toilet. Don't wash the floor for about 7 days.

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