The intricacies of the process of laying quartz vinyl tiles

The quartz vinyl tile is a multi-layer floor covering. Its name is due to the presence of filler in it, which is quartz sand. This filler, the content of which is very high, serves to impart increased resistance to mechanical stress on the tile. The top layer of this tile performs a protective function, giving it the necessary durability.

The tile has other advantages inherent in elastic floor coverings with PVC backing. Such coatings are unpretentious in care and are water resistant as well as easy to install.

The composition of the quartzin tile combines two different components - quartz sand and PVC, in a ratio of 70% to 30%.

The unusual composition determines the specific properties of this material, which is similar in strength to ceramics, and to plasticity - to linoleum. The structure of quartz vinyl tile flooring is also quite peculiar. It consists of several layers joined together in the process of thermal pressing.

The front part consists of polyurethane. This material is resistant to abrasion and does not slip. Under the polyurethane is a layer of decorative textured film. This is followed by a composite of quartz and PVC, reinforced with fiberglass. The lower part is a substrate of PVC, it is needed to create a reliable contact between the tile and the base of the floor.

Advantages:

• Tiled quartz vinyl composite differs from linoleum in greater strength and resistance to wear, and in comparison with always cold ceramic granite, quartz vinyl tile to the touch is more pleasant and warm.
• Quartzvinyl is environmentally friendly, even with very strong heating up to +60 degrees Celsius, it does not emit harmful volatile substances. Therefore, tiles from it can be recommended as a coating for a warm water or electric floor.

• On the other hand, this material is frost-resistant and non-slip.Water is not absorbed into it, therefore quartzvinyl can be used both for flooring in baths, kitchens, hallways and bathrooms, and for installing it on the porch, balcony or garden paths.
• Quartzvinyl composite material has high, about 19 dB, sound-absorbing characteristics, and its chemical inertness and incombustibility makes it possible to use quartz-vinyl floors in garages and industrial premises. In addition, the service life of this material can reach up to 30 years, significantly exceeding this figure for roll coatings.

There are quartz vinyl tiles and small drawbacks, which, however, can be said about almost any finishing building material:

• Its installation requires a very high quality base preparation. Its surface should be smooth, with permissible differences in height of no more than 2 mm per 1 m / n. Otherwise, the tiled floor will have a wavy appearance.
• From the heavy furniture on the surface of quartzvinyl are dents.
• Tiles made by lesser-known manufacturers are of low quality.

The presence of a certain technology of laying is typical for each type of flooring. Regardless of whether it is a conventional flooring, laminate or linoleum, there are always a number of nuances that, if ignored, lead to completely unacceptable errors, or even complete nullification of the repair results. Technology of laying quartz vinyl tiles not very complex and consists of a series of successive operations, which will be discussed later.

The start of work consists in preparing the foundation, the main requirements for which are smooth surface and the required mechanical strength. To ensure them, you will need to either pour a concrete screed or use self-leveling polymer floors.

Alignment of the base is carried out at the expense of a plywood sheet, chipboard with moisture-resistant characteristics, or OSB plates, after which the base is primed.

The ready basis is checked for humidity which indicator should not be higher than 5%.If it is exceeded, dewatering of the coating will be required, since otherwise there will not be a strong adhesion of the tile to the base.

Marking the floor is the next step, it begins with the definition of the center of the room. The easiest way to do this is to connect the opposite corners of the room along the diagonal lines and get their intersection point. This will be the center sought. Then, parallel to the walls, perpendicular lines are drawn; as a result, 4 equal-to-square sections are formed. They should be glued tiles.

The meaning of finding the central point of the room is that it is from it that the installation of quartz vinyl tile begins, and then the corners are gradually filled. The central area of ​​the room should be beautifully decorated with one-piece tiled elements, while areas near the walls can be covered in pieces, setting them on glue or connecting them with a lock. The choice of method depends on the type of material used.

For quartz vinyl tiles with locking connection is applied laying just on the corner. This method of laying is used when laying the substrate of laminate.This is a peculiar type of floating floor, the dies of which should be installed from any angle remote from the entrance door. Further laying moves along the walls with the subsequent filling of the base.

A similar finish option appeared relatively recently, so professionals prefer gluing tiles to the floor. The price of the keyless floor elements is much lower, so this material is more in demand.

First you need to say a few words about the glue. In this work, a special type of adhesive used for quartzvinyl tiles is used. Glue is most often free to buy in hardware stores, but in case of its absence, you should use a replacement - dispersion adhesive. According to the instructions on the package, the adhesive composition is applied to the surface with a notched trowel. It is recommended to use a spatula having inserts A1-A2.

The consumption of glue on which to lay tiles should not exceed 350 grams. on 1 square. m After applying the composition, do not immediately press quartz-vinyl tile elements to the adhesive layer. To achieve the required adhesion, it takes about 10 minutes of time, after which it is possible to begin laying such a tile.

If you want to lay the tiles along the walls of the room, you should use strips, not squares. In this case, the gaps between the tiled fragments will not be so noticeable in direct sunlight. The ideal option is to install the material along the longest wall.

But the location of the squares across the room looks much more aesthetic. You must also leave tracks so that you can navigate them from one rectangle to another in the process. It is necessary to start laying the fragments from the areas located closer to the window opening. The form of laying depends on the design decision and the customer's imagination and can be any, that is, it can be performed diagonally across the room, along or across its surface.

In order to avoid unnecessary problems when laying quartz-vinyl tile, it is necessary to lay it tightly, without gaps, leaving no gaps in the walls. When planting tiles on glue, it must be thoroughly pressed. In this case, rolling is also needed, going from the center of the surface to its edge. Rolling is performed to squeeze out air residues from the surface and remove excess adhesive. This action also improves the grip between the tile and the floor.

Excess adhesive composition should be removed with a cloth previously moistened with alcohol. You should not buy an adhesive compound that leaves streaks on the surface of the tile, you also need to immediately remove the glue stains, otherwise it will grab, it will be almost impossible to remove it.

After the completion of quartz vinyl tile laying, the drying of the floor surface occurs rather quickly. You can walk on it almost immediately, but Install heavy furniture and other furnishings is best in about a day.

Before starting the laying, the material should be left to rest for at least 24 hours. The tile at the same time should be located horizontally, it is necessary to observe a warm temperature and not to do any serious loads on the surface of the material.

In general, quartz vinyl tile flooring is resilient, well-cut and comfortable in laying material.

For how to lay quartz tiles, see the next video.