With the old staircase removed, the new stairs design was constructed even before the old flooring was fully removed.
From the upper tier (prior to the nosing install), the new flooring on the stairs and lower level seem to blend in together.
During a recent kitchen expansion and remodel, my clients also wanted to replace the existing flooring on the majority of their main floor. Other than the tiled bathroom, this included the new kitchen area, sunken dining room, front foyer, and hallway adjacent to the dining room, which also leads to a pair of bedrooms.
Because the plan required seamless floors careful planning was required to ensure all areas were square. And with a kitchen involved, the flooring choice also had to meet moisture protection standards.
After a two-week hunt, my clients finally decided upon a Lifeproof luxury vinyl plank flooring from Home Depot, in a light grey-tone distressed woodgrain. This vinyl product has a pre-attached underlayment, which minimizes sound and enhances warmth and comfort. This plank flooring features a drop-and-lock system that makes it fast and easy for installation. For about 1,100 square-feet of total flooring, five dozen boxes were ordered and delivered to the jobsite.
The old flooring in all rooms would be removed systematically. When installing new flooring on an entire level, furniture and room functionality must be taken into account. As such, I started in the kitchen area to be ready for the cupboards delivery. And once the lower cabinets were installed, and while waiting for the countertop installation to occur, I could then continue the new flooring throughout the rest of the house. The hallway and into both bedrooms is a continuation of the kitchen.
Before starting the sunken living room area, the two-stair staircase leading down to the living room area were completely removed and rebuilt to meet the new design. The new stairs-layout allow better access from the front entrance foyer area. The couches and other furniture were moved to the far end of the room. The new flooring was installed as far as possible before all the furniture was then temporarily repositioned onto the newly installed vinyl. The remaining area was completed and the furniture was reset into its original positions. The front foyer was the smallest of all areas, but required the temporary removal and replacement of the set of bifold doors for the closet, which also occurred in each of the bedrooms.
Finally, new vinyl was cut to fit the tops of all stairs. To ensure the plank would not shift atop the stairs, a high-grade construction adhesive was used to secure the vinyl plank to each of the stair tops. The adhesive was then allowed to set for four hours.
This Lifeproof luxury vinyl’s drop and lock installation systems is one of the easiest I’ve come across. The product is very install-friendly. Although priced slightly higher than other similar-looking plank flooring, this product is well worth the added expense — along with the ease of laying it down, the resulting aesthetics are self-explanatory. It did however take a while to locate PVC nosing that would fully cover the rise of each stair top, built with three-quarter inch plywood at an inch overhang. Luckily, FISC Winnipeg on Burrows offered what I needed in the perfect color. And most importantly, they had it in stock. The nosing was installed on all stairs, and at the top edge of the split level using the high-grade construction adhesive. After about a week, the flooring was completed in time to reset my focus on the kitchen, just in time for the countertops installation.
We all need to stay safe, and staying home is the best way to do this. Online shopping has never been more beneficial than it is right now. If a flooring project is on your horizon, and you’d like to tackle it yourself, everything you need can be ordered from the comforts of home. It can all be delivered with current physical distancing practices. A home project is not only a way to stem the minutia, it will give you a sense of accomplishment during these times of uncertainty.
Stay home, stay safe and flatten the curve.
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