In detail: do-it-yourself linoleum seam repair from a real master for the site my.housecope.com.
P Despite the high reliability of the linoleum coating, sometimes, unfortunately, you still have to look for information on how to repair linoleum. This page will give you answers to most questions related to linoleum floor repair.
The most common type of damage is when (for example, moving furniture) a piece breaks out of the coating and the tear is in the form of an angle. At the same time, the torn triangle continues to connect with the main carpet on one side. Usually such damage is accompanied by more or less significant collapse of the coating.
If such an incident occurs, after completing the work that caused the damage, you should not postpone the repair of the torn floor. Immediately lay the torn off corner, if possible, in its original position, cover it with a flat board (or at least a book with a thick cardboard cover), and load something well on top.
While the crumples of linoleum are smoothed out due to its internal elasticity, in the nearest hardware store we will purchase a small tube of type “C” glue for sealing linoleum seams, the so-called “cold welding” for linoleum (not to be confused with “cold welding” for metal!). And a small can of PVA-based linoleum carpet glue (the most versatile type of glue).
Preliminarily, it is desirable to cut off the tattered edges of the torn-out piece with a clerical knife under the ruler, trying to cut as little as possible, that is, to remove exactly the uneven “bitten” pieces. Then, with a vacuum cleaner, we clean the dust and trimmings from the “wound” as best as possible.
Gently lubricate the floor with PVA-based glue, including under the main carpet as far as we can get it (a centimeter will be enough). It is not superfluous to lubricate the torn flap. After waiting about 10 minutes, we tightly press the torn corner, load it again for an hour and a half, until the PVA grabs. The amount of glue should be moderate, if pressing a piece you see that excess has come out of the seam, immediately remove it with a cloth swab, pressing it strongly against the seam.
We remove the load and fill the seam with “cold welding”. To do this, a thin tip is included with the tube. We place it in the seam and squeeze out the glue while moving it, so that the glue bead protrudes a little from the outside. After the glue polymerizes, cut off the protruding excess glue with a mounting knife. If everything is done carefully, the gap will hardly be noticeable.
Video (click to play).
Now let's look at how to repair linoleum with cuts and, most importantly, what to do if part of the coating is missing or irreversibly damaged (torn out, burned, melted with acid, etc.).
Repairing a linoleum floor, if cut through with a sharp object, is not difficult. The seam is filled with glue "C" type, as in the case described above. But if you have to completely change the damaged area, you have to tinker.
To replace the site, it is necessary, first of all, to take care of a piece of linoleum with a size slightly larger than the damaged one. It’s good if quite large trimmings have been preserved from the work on laying the floor from linoleum, but if not, you will have to make a visit to the hardware store, where you can choose the same linoleum, or as similar as possible in tone and pattern. The main thing is that the purchased linoleum is of the same thickness as the previously laid one.
We cut out a “patch” from the new piece, exceeding the replaced piece by two to three centimeters in size around the entire perimeter. At the same time, we combine the pattern of the main carpet and the patch. Now it's the turn of the most important operation.
We press the metal ruler from the side of the piece to be cut, and draw it with the blade of the mounting knife, slightly tilting it outward. We make such an incision on all four sides. The knife should cut through both the new “patch” and the old coating, while trying not to cut too much along the length. The cuts should not intersect, but converge at one point (Fig. 1).
We remove the cut piece and replace it with a new one, making sure that the replacement fits well, glue the patch in the same way as we glued the torn corner (lubricate with glue, load, fill the seam).
That's all. We told how to repair linoleum. It remains to be added that if a large area is damaged, its replacement should be carefully considered from the point of view of the expediency of this work. Perhaps it would be better not to repair the linoleum floor in the damaged area, but to prepare and change the coating immediately over the entire area.
And, of course, we are always happy to answer your questions! Send them by mail or post them in the comments!
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Linoleum is one of the most popular floor coverings, which is used both in residential premises and in public places.
One of its disadvantages is that it does not have sufficient resistance to damage. Defects can occur due to improper preparation of the surface for laying the coating, with improper care or mechanical stress.
If a gap, swelling or hole has formed on the linoleum, there is no need to rush to change the flooring to a new one. You can easily repair linoleum with your own hands, following the recommendations described in this article.
Not everyone attaches importance to the preparation of the base for laying linoleum. If the flooring is laid on a base with a difference in the height of the slab of more than 2 mm, and there are also irregularities, this will lead to the formation of cracks during operation.
Many are in a hurry to finish the repair, lay the flooring on an incompletely dried screed. In this case, mold formation cannot be avoided.
When using low quality glue or non-compliance with the technology of its application, peeling of the coating is possible.
When linoleum is laid on a soft substrate, then furniture is placed on it without using foot pads, or walking on heels, which leads to the formation of dents and holes.
With improper care or cleaning with abrasive detergents, the top layer is gradually destroyed.
When eliminating defects, it is impossible to use methods and means that will lead to the destruction of the polyurethane protective layer.
For each type of damage, there are several ways to eliminate:
For each specific type of defect, it is necessary to select the most suitable recovery option. At the same time, we use tools adapted to work with a specific type of coating.
There are many products used for the care and repair of linoleum:
universal detergents and cleaners for everyday cleaning and stain removal;
polymer-based suspensions and mastics contribute to the renewal of the top layer of linoleum and prevent slipping;
glossy and matte polish - protects the flooring from abrasion;
to restore the upper protective layer, restoring emulsions made on the basis of modified polyurethane are used;
special concentrated formulations are used to remove stains.
To restore the appearance of the coating, it is not recommended to use gasoline, acetone and substances containing chlorine.
Consider how to repair linoleum with your own hands, if it has minor mechanical damage and abrasions.
Compositions for the repair of minor defects are discussed in the table:
Before proceeding with the repair, the coating must be cleaned of dust and degreased.
You can easily and quickly repair a small gap with cold welding adhesive.
We clean the place of the gap, very carefully clean it with sandpaper. Be careful not to touch the undamaged area.
We glue the edges of the cut to the floor with double-sided tape.
We distribute the glue along the length of the gap, we connect the edges together. Remove excess adhesive immediately. We protect the day from mechanical stress and moisture.
After the glue has hardened, we rub it with mastic, matched to the tone.
Stages of sealing linoleum by cold welding
To protect the coating from contamination, before applying the adhesive, we glue masking tape on a horizontal plane to the repair site.
The ease of eliminating the defect depends on the depth of damage to the linoleum.
A small spark destroys 1 or 2 top layers: protective and decorative.
Less commonly, the polyvinyl chloride base is destroyed or it burns through.
We select a piece of linoleum with the same pattern as in the place of the hole. We put it on top of the damaged area, cut out two layers at once a little wider than the defect.
We clean the edge, degrease, remove dust with a vacuum cleaner from under the coating.
We raise the flooring, glue the edge of the damaged area to the base.
We smear the patch with glue cold welding from the bottom and along the edges. We insert into the hole, press down. We install a heavy object at the place of repair of linoleum.
We also repair large ragged holes. If the gap has a smooth edge, we glue it according to the method of joining the joints. If the edge is torn, we select a patch from the remnants of linoleum with the same structure and pattern. For information on how to close a hole in the coating, see this video:
After repair, do not throw away the remnants of building materials, they can be useful for restoring damaged areas.
We eliminate puncture sites as soon as possible. Otherwise, when cleaning, water will get under the flooring, which can lead to the formation of mold or swelling of the flooring.
You will need: 5 parts of alcohol, 4 parts of castor oil, 20 parts of rosin, a pigment that matches the color. We mix the components.
You will need: 1 part rosin, 1 part thick turpentine, pigment. We mix.
You can restore linoleum immediately after preparing the composition.
You can glue the joints with your own hands in a "hot" and "cold" way.
Cold welding is carried out using a special adhesive composition. Thanks to its active ingredients, the surface dissolves a little at the edges, and then sticks firmly together. In this case, the material layers penetrate each other by 1–5 mm.
Step-by-step instructions for performing cold welding:
We combine two adjacent strips with an overlap of 3-6 mm.
We draw a straight line in the middle of the overlap.
Cut with a sharp knife along the marked border for the entire length of both strips. We put a metal bar under them to make it convenient to cut under a long metal ruler.
Throw away the cuttings. We glue masking tape along the entire length of the joint, cut it through the place of joining. The adhesive tape will protect the material from contamination with glue.
Using a thin tip or a glue gun, fill the joint with glue. Remove the tape after 15-30 minutes.
Hot welding requires a special tool
We perform hot welding using a polymer cord heated with a building hair dryer with a special nozzle.
We expand the joint to 5 mm.
We warm up the polymer cord, it becomes very plastic.
Quickly, so that it does not have time to cool, we put it inside the seam. Bonding of surfaces is carried out by vulcanization of the edges of the material, while the strips are soldered into one.
The hot method is more reliable than the cold method, but requires experience with a hair dryer and the presence of a tool.
The surface swells if the material is laid on an improperly prepared base or the installation technology is violated. For information on why the material swells and what to do about it, see this video: