New flooring needed

[Ex Brummie]

On the boat we have heavy vinyl, but at home in the bathroom we have 'click fit' vinyl planking which looks like Karndean but is more reasonably priced. It also is totally waterproof and hardwearing/damage resistant. check your local B&Q or Wickes

[Guest]

28 minutes ago, pearley said:

You don't have to have a screed although it's recommended but a screed finds its own level and a boat tends to sit nose high. Ours was laid on LVT underlay which is about 5mm thick to cope with irregularities. 

 

Indeed, self levelling screed was used in our kitchen where we have Karndean at home but I am 99% sure on the boat it was simply stuck direct to the wooden floor. I think you are correct screed just wouldn't have worked on the boat in the same way it did at home.

[Richard T]

7 hours ago, Peugeot 106 said:

Flotex flooring is the bees knees for floors. It’s wet scrubbable incredibly hard wearing and warm to the feet. It looks and feels like carpet but wears and cleans like vinyl.  It’s also VERY expensive and the designs can be a bit naff. We got a grey stripe (which looks good) roll end off eBay and its brilliant. You can get rolls or tiles . Suggest you google it and see if you can find any roll ends. It may mean ringing round a few specialist suppliers

But if you get urine or similar on it you can never get rid of the smell!!

[Peugeot 106]

22 minutes ago, Richard T said:

But if you get urine or similar on it you can never get rid of the smell!!

I guess l’d better make sure I make it to the toilet then and not put Flotex in the wardrobe. It’s a good job we’ve got a short boat.......

 

[cuthound]

18 hours ago, Ianws said:

Carpet tiles can be basic or high quality. Basic are cheap. Easy to fit and you can keep spares to replace areas that get trashed more quickly. 

 

Both of our shareboats had Flotex carpet tiles. Not cheap but extremely hard wearing, and easy to clean, simply wet them, scrub them, rinse off and leave to dry.

[LadyG]

I bought the existing vinyl from Ebay, and it's been OK for two+ years, but it's the kind found in commercial bathrooms, not the nice shiny domestic stuff, and I find it needs washing every day, but never looks super, I think the surface is now rather gritty grimy, and near the fire it is damaged by embers.

I'm checking out Flotex, which is hard wearing, but the colourways look weird on the net.

[cuthound]

Rhino Flooring do a very hard wearing vinyl that is similar to Karndean but cheaper. You can supposedly pull a washing machine over it without damaging it but I haven't tried that as ours is in the main bathroom.

 

https://home.tarkett.co.uk/en_GB/category-uk_R01020-rhinofloor-cushioned-flooring

[MrsM]

We had flotex in a room in a house many years ago and found that pet hair stuck to it like velcro and was quite tricky to remove. If your cat sheds a lot I would think twice about it. We certainly wouldn't get it again.

[blackrose]

41 minutes ago, MrsM said:

We had flotex in a room in a house many years ago and found that pet hair stuck to it like velcro and was quite tricky to remove. If your cat sheds a lot I would think twice about it. We certainly wouldn't get it again.

 

LadyG could always test the Flotex sample she has with some cat hairs. It could be that they've changed the tile specs since your experience.

Edited November 30, 2023 by blackrose

[LadyG]

4 hours ago, blackrose said:

 

LadyG could always test the Flotex sample she has with some cat hairs. It could be that they've changed the tile specs since your experience.

The former cat did shed, and a stiff damp brush was needed, but current cat is short-haired, no problem.

[Peugeot 106]

8 hours ago, MrsM said:

We had flotex in a room in a house many years ago and found that pet hair stuck to it like velcro and was quite tricky to remove. If your cat sheds a lot I would think twice about it. We certainly wouldn't get it again.

I’m not much good at road testing Flotex as unlike some I haven’t peed on it and we don’t have a cat! Quarry tiles may be be best for some! Let us know how you get on sourcing a decent colour in  Flotex 

If you search on eBay “Flotex” “completed items” a company Ravane sold a load of Flotex roll ends. Ideal. It could be worth making contact to see if they have any more or know where you can get it. Their address (Yorkshire) is on there. 

 

When i fitted mine I made a template out of sticky tape and card and paper to cover the floor. It can be messy you just want the shape. I carried it out carefully and laid it on the Flotex and cut it out with a Stanley knife. It fitted perfectly and I glued it down. 

 

When you lay it if it is in more than one piece you want all the arrows on the back facing the same way as otherwise the light catches it differently. Don’t ask me how I know this.......no big deal it looks fine. Only carpet layers would notice

[truckcab79]

On 29/11/2023 at 01:17, LadyG said:

Well, fitter has pre ordered the worktops and sink, he wants me to pay him the money first, but in to a private account, this is not the way I like to do business, I'll be honest. I've already paid him money, which I assumed was to cover these expenses. 

I'm going to ask him to start using  proper business paperwork.

Not how I do business but in fairness as a sole trader it makes no odds. As far as HMRC are concerned you are the business and it makes no odds what accounts you put it in. A business only account makes it cleaner though. 
 

Likewise money up front is quite normal but make sure you’re not paying more than you have to in case he drops dead or disappears.  I do the opposite. I don’t take a penny up front. Great for client trust. Less so for explaining to my accountant why I do it.  😂
 

If you’ve paid 50% or more I’d tell him you need to see some of the installation on your boat first.  
 

Post some pics.  There’s not nearly enough work-in-progress posts on this forum.   👍

[LadyG]

On 30/11/2023 at 09:03, Peugeot 106 said:

I’m not much good at road testing Flotex as unlike some I haven’t peed on it and we don’t have a cat! Quarry tiles may be be best for some! Let us know how you get on sourcing a decent colour in  Flotex 

If you search on eBay “Flotex” “completed items” a company Ravane sold a load of Flotex roll ends. Ideal. It could be worth making contact to see if they have any more or know where you can get it. Their address (Yorkshire) is on there. 

 

When i fitted mine I made a template out of sticky tape and card and paper to cover the floor. It can be messy you just want the shape. I carried it out carefully and laid it on the Flotex and cut it out with a Stanley knife. It fitted perfectly and I glued it down. 

 

When you lay it if it is in more than one piece you want all the arrows on the back facing the same way as otherwise the light catches it differently. Don’t ask me how I know this.......no big deal it looks fine. Only carpet layers would notice

Yes , my vinyl has arrows and the fitter put one piece wrong way, it is noticeable....

I cut it all roughly, but my fitter told me she knew what she was doing, so now it's being replaced because it was not laid properly, and it's not really very nice, I think Flotex will be better.

 

Edited December 3, 2023 by LadyG

[Tracy D'arth]

On 29/11/2023 at 12:55, magnetman said:

I put reclaimed teak finger parquet down. Small pieces. Lots of it on eBay where people take it out of their houses. 

It usually still has some adhesive on it but I found by using Lecol latex floor adhesive its been fine. This is onto a plywood substrate. 

 

Not everyone's cup of tea but I wouldn't choose anything else.

 

The fingers are about 3/8" thick / 9mm ish. 

 

 

I've just copied all your keys, now where are you moored?

[Tony1]

On 29/11/2023 at 16:11, Ex Brummie said:

On the boat we have heavy vinyl, but at home in the bathroom we have 'click fit' vinyl planking which looks like Karndean but is more reasonably priced. It also is totally waterproof and hardwearing/damage resistant. check your local B&Q or Wickes

 

I installed LVT planking over 2 years ago, mainly because it doesnt get damaged by water and its very easy to cut.

To be fair most of it still looks fine, but in the high-use kitchen area the vinyl surface layer has stripped away in a few spots.

Thankfully I made sure to buy half a dozen extra planks, so I'll be able to replace the damaged ones.  

I would use LVT again, but I would be sure to buy a gloss finish LVT next time.

The one I used was more of a matt effect, and I didnt like it when it was down, and so I had to go over it with a gloss coating. 

I did my installation during a July heatwave in 2021, and trying to organise the placement of planks along a narrow 50ft space was (for a flooring novice) a very character-building experience. 

 

[Cheshire cat]

Flotex was great on our shared boat. One year I numbered all the pieces and brought them home and power washed them. It came up a treat. some of the other owners did have dogs but never noticed the dog hairs.

[blackrose]

On 04/12/2023 at 04:18, Cheshire cat said:

Flotex was great on our shared boat. One year I numbered all the pieces and brought them home and power washed them. It came up a treat. some of the other owners did have dogs but never noticed the dog hairs.

 

A big thing for me is how warm the floor is underfoot, which is why I originally chose carpet tiles. I even went as far as laying the tiles over foam underlay to insulate the cold floor, not realising that was a bodge. You're not supposed to use underlay in conjunction with carpet tiles as anywhere the tile and underlay is compressed (eg. heavy furniture) it will lift the edge of the tile. I've used the odd tack to hold down edges of tiles but if you look closely it's a bit of a bodgola.

 

If/when I lay new Flotex I'll obviously lay it straight onto the subfloor to avoid a similar mistake, but how warm is Flotex laid direct onto a wooden subfloor in a boat?

[LadyG]

On 29/11/2023 at 00:07, M_JG said:

Karndean.

 

But it needs to be laid on a well prepared very smooth and flat surface.

 

Very hard wearing, stain resistant and ideal on a boat. We had it on ours and now have it at home too.

I tried those glued vinyl planks which were all the rage four years ago, but they moved slightly,, so dirty lines on light flooring, i assume Karndean would be the same.

I have found a good remnant on Remland carpets, it's 2m wide commercial grade, sort of blue black colour.

I'm finding it very difficult to find a remnant of wool twist, and also decide on the carpet colour from the screen. For some reason the boat fitter seems unwilling to do the job.

[blackrose]

8 minutes ago, LadyG said:

I tried those glued vinyl planks which were all the rage four years ago, but they moved slightly,, so dirty lines on light flooring, i assume Karndean would be the same.

 

I think there are 2 different karndean systems. One is glued down and the other is unglued/floating. But if they're laid properly I don't think either should shift. 

[LadyG]

5 minutes ago, blackrose said:

 

I think there are 2 different karndean systems. One is glued down and the other is unglued/floating. But if they're laid properly I don't think either should shift. 

I don't think I'm going to manage that, carpet can be fitted under skirting, so does not need perfect cutting. The glued on vinyl planks were fitted OK, but the floor of a boat moves , unlike concrete.

I don't have any tools, a d the fitter is not willing to oblige. 

Edited December 10, 2023 by LadyG

[Tonka]

40 minutes ago, blackrose said:

 

I think there are 2 different karndean systems. One is glued down and the other is unglued/floating. But if they're laid properly I don't think either should shift. 

We used Karndean Looselay which is not glued down. I would use it again 

[haggis]

55 minutes ago, LadyG said:

I tried those glued vinyl planks which were all the rage four years ago, but they moved slightly,, so dirty lines on light flooring, i assume Karndean would be the same.

I have found a good remnant on Remland carpets, it's 2m wide commercial grade, sort of blue black colour.

I'm finding it very difficult to find a remnant of wool twist, and also decide on the carpet colour from the screen. For some reason the boat fitter seems unwilling to do the job.

I would advise against floor covering in a boat which will show every spec of dust or animal hair. Dark blue black might just do that 🙂 

[Jon57]

59 minutes ago, LadyG said:

I tried those glued vinyl planks which were all the rage four years ago, but they moved slightly,, so dirty lines on light flooring, i assume Karndean would be the same.

I have found a good remnant on Remland carpets, it's 2m wide commercial grade, sort of blue black colour.

I'm finding it very difficult to find a remnant of wool twist, and also decide on the carpet colour from the screen. For some reason the boat fitter seems unwilling to do the job.

New vinyl tiles can be fitted which has the click system similar to laminate. Carpet in a kitchen is not what I would want. But if I was being paid I would have polished 1 pence coins put down on the floor covered in an clear epoxy. Day rate is a good earner. The change might make you feel a little short of cash but it's only money 

[Peugeot 106]

6 hours ago, blackrose said:

 

A big thing for me is how warm the floor is underfoot, which is why I originally chose carpet tiles. I even went as far as laying the tiles over foam underlay to insulate the cold floor, not realising that was a bodge. You're not supposed to use underlay in conjunction with carpet tiles as anywhere the tile and underlay is compressed (eg. heavy furniture) it will lift the edge of the tile. I've used the odd tack to hold down edges of tiles but if you look closely it's a bit of a bodgola.

 

If/when I lay new Flotex I'll obviously lay it straight onto the subfloor to avoid a similar mistake, but how warm is Flotex laid direct onto a wooden subfloor in a boat?

I don’t live on my boat so can’t comment on cold in midwinter but would say that for comfort underfoot Flotex having a very short nap is in between normal carpet and hard flooring. It’s the short dense nap that makes it so washable but that means you don’t sink in like you do with a shaggy carpet.

 

 It would be fairly easy to cover the floor with a thin sheet of ply over thin floor insulation which would make it warmer if you needed to. You can get various floor insulating sheets from places like Screwfix. The floor would be raised less than 10mm. You could use the same card template for carpet insulation and insulation. I suggest you get a sample.

The problem I had was  aesthetics. A lot of the Flotex looks really naff and pale colours  I don’t know what their design department are smoking.  But I did find quite a decent design in the end and being a roll end it was at a good price. I mentioned a eBay company in an earlier post it could be worth giving them a shout

[blackrose]

1 hour ago, LadyG said:

I don't think I'm going to manage that, carpet can be fitted under skirting, so does not need perfect cutting. The glued on vinyl planks were fitted OK, but the floor of a boat moves , unlike concrete.

I don't have any tools, a d the fitter is not willing to oblige. 

 

Any hard flooring requires expansion gaps around the perimeter which are usually covered. 

 

If you're not doing it yourself and your fitter isn't willing to do the job then I guess the job's not getting done so I'm not quite sure what advice you're asking for?