Vinyl Flooring

• Acclimatise your vinyl flooring by unrolling it in the room for at least 24 hours.
• Ensure the subfloor is clean, dry, and level.
• Lay the vinyl loosely and allow it to settle, trimming around the edges and obstacles with a sharp knife. For smaller rooms, loose laying is often enough, but for larger areas or to secure the vinyl better, you can use adhesive spray for vinyl or double-sided tape.
• Always refer to the vinyl's fitting instructions.

Our vinyl flooring doesn't require an underlay. Our vinyl floor rolls are made to be fitted directly onto your subfloor, and they come with either a foam or felt backing for better absorption from footfall. Because of these dense backings, you won't need underlay. On the contrary, installing underlay could actually decrease resistance and puncture your flooring.

You can easily cut a vinyl flooring roll using a sharp utility knife and a straight edge. First, you need to measure and mark the vinyl carefully. Leave 5-7 cm of extra vinyl at the edges and make vertical cuts at each corner. Press the lino firmly into the skirting with a blunt tool, then use a sharp knife angled at 45 degrees to trim carefully, leaving about 5 mm extra to avoid cutting too short. Remember to always use a fresh blade for clean results.

You can read our full vinyl fitting guide for a step-by-step walkthrough. Alternatively, you can contact one of our experts who will gladly provide you with advice and answer any questions you may have.

Sweep or vacuum regularly to stay on top of dust and debris. For a deeper clean, use a damp mop and a mild detergent. Avoid using too much water or cleaning products with harsh chemicals, which can damage the surface.

Once your vinyl has been fitted, lift the edges and apply adhesive spray for vinyl to the subfloor, or use double-sided tape. Larger areas, typically those over 10m², need a full stick installation, so check the fitting instructions for your vinyl. Areas with heavy traffic or regular movement of furniture must be fully stuck down, not partially stuck or loosely laid.

Vinyl flooring is often splash-proof (water-resistant), but not waterproof unless otherwise stated. This means you can pick a style you love and install it in any room in your home (even bathrooms and kitchens) without worrying about any water damage from the odd splash. Plus, because these are water-prone areas, our vinyl floor sheets are R10 slip-resistant, making them ideal for the busy home.

Here at Online Carpets, we do not install or fit vinyl flooring. Our customers often save a huge amount by buying from us and arranging their own fitting

To find a vinyl flooring fitter, you can use one of the following two websites:

• Yell - Search for a flooring fitter.

• NICF - The National Institute of Carpet & Floorlayers

Both of these websites allow you to search for lino fitters in your local area.

Sheet vinyl flooring comes in a single roll, making it a seamless and highly water-resistant flooring solution, ideal for bathrooms and kitchens. Luxury Vinyl Tiles (LVT), on the other hand, are individual planks or tiles, offering a more realistic wood or stone look with greater design flexibility. While both are durable and easy to clean, LVT is generally thicker and considered to be more rigid than sheet vinyl.

In everyday use, ‘lino flooring’ and ‘vinyl flooring’ are often used to mean the same thing – a rolled, sheet flooring product that's water resistant and easy to clean. That being said, true linoleum is made from natural materials, while a vinyl floor is made from PVC layers. Almost all sheet flooring sold today as ‘lino’ is actually vinyl. Our entire range is vinyl, which means it's more durable, more water-resistant, and available in a far wider range of realistic designs than traditional linoleum.

With normal domestic use, you can expect good-quality vinyl flooring to typically last between 10 and 20 years, with the main determining factors being the thickness of the wear layer and how well the floor is maintained over time. For vinyl floors, the rule of thumb is the thicker the wear layer, the more foot traffic it can handle before showing signs of wear. In addition to this, avoiding harsh cleaning chemicals, mopping up spills promptly, and using felt pads under heavy furniture can all help extend its lifespan considerably. 

For most, yes. "Lino" is the everyday name in the vinyl flooring industry, so lino tiles usually means vinyl in tile form rather than a roll. Our vinyl flooring rolls give you the classic lino look in sheet form, and if you'd prefer individual PVC tiles or planks, our Luxury Vinyl Tiles (LVT) range is the closest match, with wood, stone and tile-effect designs. Browse our LVT range if a tiled floor is what you're after.