What is vinyl thickness? How many vinyl plank flooring sizes are there? These are some of the questions you might be asking yourself when considering the best vinyl flooring for your home. Keep reading for a guide to vinyl thickness and flooring sizes.

The Main Types Of Vinyl Flooring

Before we discuss specifics about thickness and sizing, let’s look at the main types of vinyl flooring on the market:

Luxury Vinyl Tiles

More commonly referred to as LVT, these tiles are among the most popular types of vinyl flooring. Incredibly hard wearing, LVT is made from multiple layers, including an underlay, a rigid core, a high-quality upper layer – with the pattern or design – a strong wear layer and a UV layer to protect the colour from fading. LVT is available in a huge range of finishes, including wood, stone and tile effects.

Vinyl Planks

Mimicking the look of wood plank - better than many plastic laminate flooring does - vinyl planks are a popular, more cost-conscious option that is more resilient than real wood flooring. It’s usually flexible and made up with three or four layers.

Self-Adhesive Vinyl

This style is not as common, but is brilliantly easy to install. Instead of requiring glue to be applied carefully onto the floor, these tiles come with an adhesive layer included. Simply pull off the backing sheet and press down hard, and your floor is laid – no sticky mess, and no drying time.

Sheet Vinyl

Instead of individual tiles or planks, sheet vinyl is pretty much what it sounds like – a wide sheet of vinyl that is glued down to the subfloor. Vinyl flooring on the roll is ideal for bathrooms and other areas that might get wet, as there are fewer joins in the floor for moisture to creep into.

Vinyl Flooring Thickness

The thickness of your vinyl flooring will make an impact on how durable it is. Here are some considerations when choosing vinyl flooring:

Subfloor

This is your original floor and what your vinyl is installed on, so it’s important to keep this in mind when choosing the thickness. If you have cement subfloors, thinner vinyl will be adequate because it is sturdy and doesn’t require that extra support. If however you have hardwood, you’d be wise to get a thicker type of vinyl flooring.

A tip: ensure your subfloor is even, clean and dry before installing vinyl flooring to guarantee its durability.

Wear Layer

This layer provides the vinyl flooring’s durability, stain and scratch resistance. This is key to ensure it holds up over time. Vinyl with higher wear layers provides more resistance to damage like dents but can be more costly.

Backing Layers

Different types of flooring are made of various cores and bottom layers which all contribute to its quality. Stone Plastic Composite (SPC) is dense and water-resistant, making it less susceptible to different kinds of damage. Waterproof Core (WPC) is more expensive but able to retain more warmth. Recycled Materials are great for those looking for environmentally friendly options but doesn’t provide as much durability as SPC or WPC. Underlay also adds additional structural support, insulation and sound absorption.

Protective Coating

The protective coating is the floor’s final layer and is traditionally made from acrylic or wax. These older protective layers would need to be reapplied every few months but manufacturers have now found a way to provide vinyl flooring with a protective layer that lasts ten times longer. They are now usually made of a clear, urethane base coating to preserve the floor’s appearance. This material also provides more stain resistance and easier maintenance.

Foot Traffic

Last but not least, considering the rooms functionality and foot traffic is very important when deciding on the thickness of your vinyl flooring. Hallways, kitchens, mud rooms. They’re all areas where you’ll benefit from a vinyl flooring with thicker, high wear layers.

Does Thickness of Vinyl Matter?

There are no ‘best’ options when choosing the thickness of vinyl flooring. Thinking about the functionality and foot traffic of a room, as well as the subfloor is all you need to do when deciding on the thickness of vinyl for your home.

What Size Of Vinyl Flooring Should I get?

Just like the thickness, the size of your vinyl flooring planks really depends on its purpose. Vinyl planks vary in size which makes it great for different spaces in your home. For a more modern feel, you’ll probably want to go with a wider plank which is excellent for larger or wider rooms. Narrower planks are great for smaller spaces and traditional style homes. A few things to consider when deciding on the length and width of your vinyl planks:

The Front Door

Installing vinyl planks in your entryway? Think about the layout. If your front door opens to a large or long hall, installing your flooring perpendicular to the door allows for a better traffic flow.

The Light Source

Install your vinyl plank in the same direction as your main light source so that the light will emphasise the variations in size as well as highlighting any textural elements of your planks.

The Shape Of A Room

Narrow spaces like hallways and U-shapes or L-shaped kitchens should have flooring installed the length of the room – running parallel with the longest wall – to make them feel larger and wider.

Personal Preference

As always, it’s all about individual predilection. There are various things you can do to create a certain look with your vinyl flooring but don’t be afraid to go with your gut - the quality and longevity won’t be compromised if it’s installed correctly.

We hope this blog has provided you with everything you need when it comes to deciding on the best thickness and sizing for your vinyl flooring. Learn more about laying flooring with our How to lay parquet flooring guide. Buy Vinyl Flooring from Leader Online for the very best options for your home.