Cant use LVT!? Need "breathable" floors.

5 years ago

last modified: 5 years ago

I had my heart set on a light oak LVT throughout, however there are several issues around this.

The house generally sits at around 60 to 65% humidity at the moment... and more in other areas.

I have been advised that the floors need to be able to "breathe" and LVT will increase damp issues, the very last thing I need. I have also read that closing the floor with LVT and/or the action of sealing the floor would make the damp move to the exterior walls?

The floors are largely nearly an inch thick parquet, but it cannot be removed due to the interior solid walls being built ON TOP of it! Due to the patchiness of materials, concrete infills/floor leveller, OSB board... restoration in the main area is not going to happen. Would leveling atop hardwood (sandwiching it in) also exasperate damp issues?

Due to how the internal walls are built, ripping out the parquet and digging the immensely thick concrete to insert damp measures is a no go.

I looked at engineered wood, because I can find the finish I want and also read about both it's environmental and breath-ability assets, to discover that not only it is double the price, but I would also have to cover the entire area (mainly no original floor in the office) due to the minimum thickness being 14mm plus any kind of underlay making a hazardous step into the living/dining area. Carpet is the "safe" solution, but is entirely impractical for us altogether, especially with wanting a light shade.

I can't say I am worrying too much, because even the price of LVT is a lot of money over the area to end up with damp walls, or creeping/peeking/movement in the flooring itself. Do I go LVT, or the actually less preferred engineered wood that happens to be double cost to boot! Would engineered wood even work?!

Why I wanted LVT so much:

I have 2 cats, 1 husky, hair EVERYWHERE!, I vac EVERY day, and where there is carpet at the moment, it is virtually impossible to get rid of. It is a high traffic area overall having entrance to the kitchen, the office (with the same floor)/main entrance, and exit out to a small patio by the stairwell. The dining room has no windows, the kitchen is next to the tv but that has restricted light coming into it's smaller window too, so you may understand why I want practical floors. The sofas/tan chairs are indicative only - I have 2 silver/grey 2 seater settees and a "tv chair" in tan leather that are virtually brand new. There are currently no skirting boards fitted yet, so at least that isn't in the cost consideration yet.

Featured Answer

PRO

User

5 years ago

last modified: 5 years ago

You're not using the right tool for the job on the parquet near the wall. This cuts through joists / pipes......allsorts Erbauer Multi Tool . You can angle the blade any which way, and change the blades too. You can also get a spade attachment which will work on lifting the parquet too.

Erbauer Multi Tool Blades.............I've taken out beams in my roof with this.

Comments (17)

PRO
User
5 years ago
What exactly is causing the damp and how is it coming up through the floor?

I do think you can remove the parquet, because you can cut it at the wall and put a skirting board in front of it, then you won't see it. That would leave you with a concrete floor to lay whatever you want on.

Obviously you do have the damp issue, so I just wondered what was causing it?
Rose Williams
Original Author
5 years ago
The water table is really high in this part of Wales, and the land behind is higher. Mainly, the house is essentially a great big bomb proof bunker (literally, even down to once having the air raid siren on it and a suspected filled in raid shelter) with early 40's construction. The walls are immensely thick solid brick, slate damp course, and the floor an enormous deep concrete floating slab. I have to say it is the most difficult construction to work with that Ive come across.

Apart from resorting to some tanking measures, inserting dry rod damp course at the back, great measures to landscape and control exterior surface water, and paying particular attention to ventilation, damp is not causing issue any more... but this is also why I take particular heed in receiving advice that closing the floor with LVT could possibly "create" an issue :(
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Rose Williams
Original Author
5 years ago
last modified: 5 years ago
this is going to be the bathroom floor... I figured that the space the parquet releases will allow a bit more room for UFH. Cutting the parquet is easier said than done. The only way is to laboriously chisel it as saws cannot get close enough or burn up the wood, hit the concrete etc. The walls are also going to need to become supporting. This area is cleared to build a supporting pillar.
Rose Williams
Original Author
5 years ago
Thank you , another tool to add to the arsenal. The chisel did the job for the pillar area but I'll need that for the rest of the room.

So do you take stock in what the "flooring guy" said about LVT not allowing the floor to breathe enough?
PRO
User
5 years ago
I would agree, because it's glued down lino basically made from a non-breathable product unlike wood. Could you consider some sort of tanking product on the floor to keep the damp out? Not my specialty i'm afraid, but works in basements and wet rooms, so I can't think why it couldn't be applied in your case.
minipie
5 years ago
I presume the concern with tanking the floor is it will send the damp up the walls.

Clay tiles (unglazed) are breathable. Amore rustic look though. Perhaps natural linoleum, or cork? again would have to be unsealed, oiled may be ok though
minipie
5 years ago
Be aware that if you have moisture coming up through the floor, any flooring is likely to end up with a bit of uneven colouring and may get white “bloom” from salts. So something a bit more rustic may work better anyway

alternatively if you have lots of spare ceiling height you could consider a suspended floor with air ventilation under?
Rose Williams
Original Author
5 years ago
Yes minipie, that's precisely the concern, the walls are still drying out to this date in some areas. It is the intention to tank the bathroom, but this is a small area in a not so risky spot having only one short exterior wall. It will have both a radiator and towel radiator and extra vents whether it gets a warm floor to boot or not

.... but this isnt my concern, the other nearly 65 square meters of matching floor covering, and the sheer cost of it is!

I dont mind rustic, but the use of cork or lino concerns me in terms of being hard wearing enough, and clay tile sounds pricey but I shall have a look at that.

I looked at Hessian, sisal... but Ive never lived with those types of floor. I've seen some say theyre hard to get stains out and I'm concerned that it would latch onto husky hair.

This looks alright: http://www.corkfloor.co.uk/floor/GNVICELAND.aspx , nearly £4k (+++) without fitting or the accessories though. But it's "VinylCork" ... that's still coated and looks the same problem as LVT?!

http://www.corkfloor.co.uk/floor/GNCCLSWHITE.aspx at a start of just under 2.5K (+++), which would do the job. ... but this also poses the question regarding it's "weartop" coating which is the thing that makes it any use at all for the durability I am looking for...

I'm lost... I honestly cant live another 3 years with bare cold floors that look an absolute mess :( At this point, I'll whack £2.99 carpet in and sell the place
PRO
User
5 years ago
Have you got the depth to put floorboards down? I'm guessing yes as the parquet was 1" thick. Floorboards are a great cheap option, breathable, varnish them, easy to hoover, easy to mop, look great. I did this in a couple of my older properties where the floors were knackered, infact, I went straight over one floor with a new one to save time taking the old one up.

This was one of the old reclaimed floor straight over existing.

Here's another

I finished that one in Fiddes Hard Wax oil...........the tenant in there has a dog, and the floor copes well.
Rose Williams
Original Author
5 years ago
In the effor to not take up the parquet which includes digging up a mixture of screed, OSB, floor leveller, tile, even quarry tiles, trying to avoid any lips or steps, I'm wrapping my head around lino vs vinyl, and see that linoleum is available as a natural composition rather than such as LVT which has a plastic/vinyl top layer where the crucial problem is.

I think the "natural linoleum" may be the difference I need, however, this turns my attention to underlay and adhesives. I would like to avoid anything which is or contains dense fiberboard as this sounds like yet another moisture trap to me.
PRO
User
5 years ago
last modified: 5 years ago
I looked in to this and although Linoleum ( marmoleum ) is made from natural products I don't believe it's breathable - I found a link on forum where a chap had made enquiries in to bamboo and linoldeum and his thread said:- "From enquiring to a company about Linoleum (specifically Marmoleum) compatibility with a limecrete floor I received this response "Certain sub-floor requirements are needed to make the installation successful, but the product isn’t breathable that is why it is referred too as a resilient floorcovering" Seeming ruling out the use of linoleum."

Also, you can only lay them on flat, solid surfaces such as concrete or screed., so I'm not sure that it will suit your combi floor surfaces.
Rose Williams
Original Author
5 years ago
well, the upshot of all this is I'm going to lay the LVT. the particular one I want is now only £1500 including the underlay for the whole 65 square meters so at that cost I am going to risk it because that price is difficult to ignore. Even engineered wood is recommended to have a damp membrane/underlay beneath it, and any "hard" floor needs to be sealed to be any use to me.

Thank you for looking at this for me.
PRO
User
5 years ago
You go for it Rose, well done, glad you've got a solution. x
E P
3 years ago
Hi Rose,

Hoping you see this. My situation is almost identical to yours (high water table, not wanting to seal floors for risk of water tracking up walls etc). But trying to decide whether LVT is going to cause issues or not.

Please could you share if your project worked/any issues you came across?

Thank you

Elliott
HU-991269140
2 years ago
Hi! I also have the exact same dilemma. Can i ask how you got on with LVT? did it cause any further issues?

thanks…

Niki
Andrea Machen
2 years ago
Hi Nicki Also been making the decision on my floor in house 600 years old, I have decided on unsealed cork floors, finished with micro porous oil. Ty Mawr lime in wales has a good selection of products.

Cant use LVT!? Need "breathable" floors.

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