How to Replace Carpet With Linoleum in a Mobile Home

Mobile homes are an ideal home choice for many people. Like any home, you can renovate and improve a mobile home. One popular conversion is to remove carpet and install linoleum. The subfloor of mobile homes is generally plywood, particle board or some type of oriented strand board. You should cover this subfloor with an underlayment that is recommended by the manufacturer of the particular type of linoleum that you're installing.

Things You'll Need

• Screw driver
• Utility knife
• Pry bar
• Needle-nose pliers
• Small hammer
• Broom and dustpan
• Shop vac (optional)
• Garbage can
• Underlayment
• Underlayment fasteners
• Circular saw
• Floor leveler
• Trowel
• Linoleum
• Heavy duty shears
• Hook blade for utility knife
• Protective gloves
• Linoleum adhesive
• Floor roller

Instructions

1. Unscrew any doorway threshold between carpet and other flooring and remove the strip. These are often a thin metal with carpet-grabbing teeth on one side.

2. Cut the carpet in three-foot strips using the utility knife. Wiggle the carpet end to dislodge the carpet if it has been attached using a tack strip. Some mobile homes will have carpet stapled to the subfloor with the carpet running under the wall. If your home is like this, you may need to cut the carpet as close to the wall as possible. You'll likely find a foam backing as well, which is similarly stapled. Roll the carpet and foam strips into small rolls and take them out to the trash.

3. Sweep and vacuum the floor. Most carpeted floors leave a layer of fine, sand-like grit on the subfloor.

4. Remove staples using a screw driver, a pry bar, needle-nose pliers and a hammer. Since staples are installed with a staple gun, you will often find hundreds or even thousands of staples across a large floor. Removing these is a tedious process. You may want to keep a garbage can handy, along with a hand broom and dustpan, so that you can clean the floor as you remove the staples.

5. Install underlayment. Underlayment is a material (often a wood product like class-four, 0.215-inch, service-grade hardboard or type-one lauan plywood) that is used under flooring to act as a moisture barrier and to provide a smooth and even surface. Recess the fasteners below the surface level of the underlayment so that the linoleum, once it is applied, will not have a bump. Each linoleum manufacturer has a specific type of underlayment that works with their product, so request specific information prior to installing your floor.

6. Apply a floor-leveling compound between the cracks in the underlayment and in the dimpled screw holes. Trowel the floor-leveling compound smooth and allow the mixture to dry completely. Drying time is typically 12 to 24 hours, depending on humidity levels.

7. Pre-fit the linoleum floor. You pre-fit by laying the linoleum in the area without glue. This will allow you to trim corners and cut the floor exactly. Use heavy objects to hold the linoleum in place while you trim. Use a hook blade in your utility knife for ease in cutting.

8. Spread the linoeum adhesive made for your floor type starting at the point farthest from the doorway. Use a trowel and apply the adhesive horizontally across the room, about two feet away from the starting point. Wear protective gloves when using the adhesive.

9. Position the linoleum exactly in place so that your pre-cuts match the contours of the room. Press the linoleum into position and then use a floor roller to remove any gaps or bubbles between the floor and the adhesive. Work the roller from the center toward the walls. Spread the next section of adhesive and continue the installation.

Tips & Warnings

• Many mobile homes do not have baseboards in rooms with carpet. You may need to install new baseboards and quarter-round to finish trimming out the new floor. Prepaint the trim before installation and caulk afterward for best finished appearance.

References

• Install Linoleum