How to Glue Down Sheet Linoleum on Concrete
Linoleum is a non-synthetic flooring material made of wood flour, linseed oil, lime and pigments. These materials are mixed together, spread into 2-centimeter to 2-1/2-centimeter sheets and heated. Once the linoleum cures, it is cut into 6-foot-7-inch rolls. Linoleum is glued with adhesive to wooded or concrete subfloors. Adhesion between linoleum and a subfloor requires sufficient cleaning of the concrete surface, the proper application technique and even compression of the linoleum and glue. Does this Spark an idea?
Things You'll Need
- Broom and dustpan
- Air compressor
- Dust mask
- Safety goggles
- Mop and bucket
- Linoleum adhesive (glue)
- Stir stick
- Paint pan
- 12-inch notched trowel
- Tape measure
- 100-pound floor roller
- Utility knife
- Carpenter's square (straight edge)
Instructions
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Sweep the concrete subfloor and remove all large debris. Open the windows and doors in the building or house. Spray the floor with an air compressor. Blow all the dust outside. Mop the concrete floor with water. Do not add solution to the water. Allow the floor to dry.
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2
Unroll the linoleum. Stack the sheets in a corner of the room. Measure the width of the sheets. Open the bucket of linoleum adhesive and stir it with a paint stir stick. Mix the adhesive until the color and texture is uniform. Pour 1 quart of adhesive into a paint pan and put the top back on the bucket.
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Swipe one edge of the trowel across the top of the wet linoleum adhesive. Start at a corner of the room. Spread the adhesive over the concrete. The notches in the trowel create rows of adhesive on the surface of the concrete. Cover an area on the concrete that is equal to the dimensions of a sheet of linoleum. Regardless of what you are working around, cover the floor with a constant layer of adhesive. Let the adhesive cure for three minutes.
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Lay a sheet of linoleum on the adhesive-covered concrete in the corner of the room. Butt one edge of the linoleum against one of the walls and butt a second edge, perpendicular to the first, up against the other wall that coincides with the corner, thus making a congruent fit. Wheel the floor roller over the linoleum. Make five passes over the linoleum with the roller.
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Cover another section of the concrete with linoleum adhesive. Butt the edge of the second sheet of linoleum against one of the open edges of the first. Sheets of linoleum are manufactured with a machine cut and fit plumb against one another. Align the premanufactured edges of the sheet so the patterns on the linoleum of one sheet matches the patterns on the next. If the walls are straight, as you butt edge against edge and edge against wall, alignment of the patterns occurs naturally. If the walls are not square, align the patterns even though the sheets of linoleum gradually move away from the wall as you lay them down. Fill the void between the sheets and the wall after you cover the middle of the room with linoleum.
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Remove sections of the linoleum with a utility knife and a straight edge once you reach the other side of the room and an entire sheet no longer fits. Measure from the edge of the last sheet to the wall. Place the carpenter's square on a new sheet, Measure out the size of sheet required and make the cut. Cutting a section for a corner require two cuts, one from the lengthwise edge and another from the widthwise edge. As a result, these sections also require two measurements, one from each wall that coincides with the corner.
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Use the same method to fit linoleum around cabinetry. A doorway sheet can require up to six cuts. For doorways, measure from the last sheet to the frame of the door. then measure the width of the door frame. Measure the width of the door frame. Cut two sections out of the sheet of linoleum, equal to the distance from the wall to the door frame and with an area equal to the width of the door frame, on two opposing edges. The distance between the two sections you remove must equal the width of the door frame.
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References
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