After looking at all the options The Home Depot had to offer, we were blown away by all that the LifeProof Luxury Vinyl Plank (LVP) flooring. Scratch proof, water proof, so many colors to choose from — all with the look of real wood flooring, we were sold. We decided on the LifeProof Walton Oak Multi-Width because we loved all of the color variations and the rustic farmhouse appeal, and it comes in varying widths which really adds character and dimension to the flooring.
Getting Started
We started out by moving all the furniture out of our bedroom, pulling up the carpet pad and removing the tacking strips. We checked out the sub floor for any damage and removed any extra debris on the floor, which is important for proper installation.
To determine how much flooring we would need, we measured the widest and longest parts of the room and added 10%. I cannot stress how important it is to remember to add the 10% because even though the flooring was super easy to install, some cuts were tricky or some user errors were made. Things happen, but it’s better to be prepared ahead of time. Once you have the measurements, the back of the box provides a grid to tell you how many boxes of product you’ll need. Talk about handy!
What You’ll Need
There are a few tools you’ll need for this project: utility knife, measuring tape, carpenter square, tapping block,, pull bar, mallet, and knee pads. If you have any tricky cuts around corners, you can use a jigsaw with a blade for laminate to cut the material as needed.
Our dry wall was a little too high to use normal spacers for the first row of flooring. The spacers are there to provide a 1/4” gap to allow for expansion and contraction. The flooring itself is 1/4” inches, so we used painters tape and taped a few pieces to the wall to help keep things evenly spaced.
Lifeproof LVP Flooring Advantage
The perk about Lifeproof Luxury Vinyl Plank flooring is that the pad is already attached to each piece; meaning there is no other barrier that you need to put down on the floor prior to installation. Another perk of this flooring is that it doesn’t need to acclimate like wood flooring does before you can install it. First check to see that the boxes of flooring are from the same dye lot, then open up a few boxes at a time to mix up the colors in each of the widths to allow for a more random and less uniform color pattern.
Installation That’s Easy
Starting in the furthest left hand corner of the room, we laid down the boards and attached them to one another using the locking mechanism. We staggered the pattern and checked that no seam was less than 8 inches from the seam in the row above. The flooring is super easy to cut with a utility knife. Once we determined what needed cut, we scored the line a couple of times and pulled up on the longest end away from the cut and held down next to the cut. The flooring easily snapped a clean edge.
We used our jigsaw to get around a corner that lead to our hallway. Other than that, we used the utility knife for the majority of the project. The very last row we even opted to use the jigsaw to cut the width of the board, but you can also use a table saw with the laminate cutting blade if you have one.
While the flooring does snap together, you’ll use the tapping block and mallet to ensure tight seams. It’s very important to pay attention to where you are placing the block. Because you don’t want to damage the tongue of the board or the next board will not snap properly. The pull bar comes into play especially when you get the the last row to pull the flooring towards you when the taping block no longer fits in the space. We continued along the floor, alternating the different widths of and the order of the widths from one row to another. After all the flooring was laid, we added shoe molding to the baseboards to give a more finished look.
The Finished Product
I cannot fully express how happy we are with the LifeProof Walton Oak Multi-Width Luxury Vinyl Plank Flooring from The Home Depot. Not only was it super easy to install, this flooring is a lot easier to keep clean. The dogs have yet to scratch it, and it gives our room the rustic charm it needed. Even friends who have come over have a hard time believing that it’s not real wood flooring that is available for a fraction of the cost!
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