Laminate floors are a popular option for people who want hard flooring that looks amazing without breaking the budget. They're also a good fit for households with children and pets due to the ease of cleaning them. To help your laminate floors look their best for as long as possible, follow these tips to make them more water-resistant.
1. Use Water-Resistant Flooring Glue in the Joints of Your Floor
One way to boost the water-resistance of your floors is to adhere them to your subflooring with water-resistant flooring glue. Sometimes, moisture issues arise due to dampness in your subflooring. This moisture can penetrate your laminate planks from below and cause the floor gluing to deteriorate. A water-resistant adhesive prevents this from happening.
Note that some types of laminate floors do not require any gluing; they are known as "floating" laminate floors. These floors boast laminate blanks that interlock and support themselves without connecting to the subflooring. It is possible to use water-resistant glue to lend an additional layer of protection to the planks.
Instead of using the glue to attach the planks to the floor, you'll apply the adhesive at the seams to keep moisture from seeping between the planks.
2. Stick with Waterproof Flooring
When shopping for laminate flooring, you'll see many laminates are labeled as "waterproof" or "water-resistant." There is a difference between laminates with these labels. Nearly every type of laminate is water-resistant. This means that if you spill something on your floors, the liquid won't immediately soak through your floors. You have a little time before a spill or drip damages your floors.
Waterproof laminate floors don't allow any type of liquid or moisture to penetrate through the planks. This makes waterproof laminate more durable to spills and pet accidents. It also keeps moisture out of your subflooring.
Though water-resistant laminate is usually cheaper, waterproof laminate has better longevity, and it is a better choice if you want your floors to be as water-resistant as possible.
3. Seal Your Floors Around the Edges and the Joints
Once your laminate floors are in place, you should consider applying a water-resistant sealant around the edges of the floor and the joints (where two planks connect). Stick with a silicone or polyurethane sealant; both of these options will protect your floors from moisture.
When applying the sealant to the perimeter of your floor, you'll need to remove the baseboards. This ensures that you fill in any gaps that can compromise the integrity of your flooring.
For more information about water-resistant flooring glue, contact a flooring company near you.
Share6 March 2020
Do you like your existing flooring? It isn't always easy to find floors that you love, which is why so many manufacturers create such an incredible variety of different products. However, if you know what you are looking for, choosing the right flooring doesn't have to feel like an impossible feat. I wanted to create a blog all about finding the right flooring to make things easier for homeowners across the world. Check out this blog to learn more about different products, manufacturers, installation methods, and styles. After all, you never know when you will need to find a new floor for your place.
