How To Staple Sheet Vinyl Flooring

Two of the biggest issues with installing sheet vinyl are cutting it precisely to fit around obstructions and adhering it to the floor with glue. The first issue can be surmounted by constructing precisely cut templates from contractors’ paper and tape. As for the gluing, there is a way of installing sheet vinyl without glue and it is called perimeter-install. With this method, the vinyl is laid on the floor, much like any other floating floor. Once situated, only the edges are attached to the subfloor.

Pros and Cons

Pros

Gluing down vinyl flooring is a sticky, smelly activity. Gluing down sheet vinyl is best practice, however it can be more difficult than stapling for a DIYer. Stapling the flooring is, instead, a completely dry process. Because no glue is involved, you have the ability to take up any part of the vinyl floor and staple it again. With glue, you do have a workable period but it’s not as long as with stapling. Stapling is predictable. The attachment points you see upon installation remain, at least for a while. Shifting may eventually occur, but you can mitigate this by strategically placing double-sided tape under the vinyl.

Cons

There is still some slippage if the sheet is not installed correctly. The middle can stretch or slip independently of its anchored edges. Even if you decide not to use glue, it sometimes helps to add a little bit of glue in the center to anchor the sheet as a whole. Perimeter installation involves stretching the sheet slightly. Stretched vinyl is more susceptible to tears and punctures. Exposed edges (those that cannot be covered with baseboards or quarter-round trim) still do need glue. So, even a stapled sheet vinyl floor still has some gluing. You must be precise about stapling within a small band along the edges. Deviating from that area means having staples that show, even after the baseboards are installed. The work of stapling the vinyl flooring every 2 inches can get tedious, especially across a large floor.