Flooring ·
Floating Floors Need Room to Move
Click-together vinyl and SPC floors expand and contract with the room. The gap at the walls, and what is fastened over it, help the floor stay flat.
A floor that is designed to float
Many click-together luxury vinyl and SPC (stone plastic composite) planks are installed as floating floors. The planks lock to each other, not to the subfloor. That makes them a practical choice for hotel rooms, restaurant back areas and homes, but it comes with a rule that is easy to overlook once the baseboards go on: the floor has to be able to move.
Installation guides are direct about it. Daltile’s ProSeries Rigid Click instructions say the floor should be allowed to expand and contract freely and must not be glued, nailed or fastened to the subfloor in any way. RESOLVE’s SPC guidelines explain that seasonal changes in temperature and humidity make the floor expand and contract in all directions, so larger floor areas need more room for that movement.
The gap at the walls is part of the floor
That room for movement is the expansion space left between the flooring and walls, columns, pipes and other fixed objects. It is later hidden by trim, so it is easy to treat as optional. It is not. Each manufacturer sets its own requirement, and they differ. Shaw’s instructions for one SPC product require a 1/4 inch perimeter gap for areas under 2,500 square feet and more for larger areas. Daltile’s Rigid Click guide calls for 3/8 inch. RESOLVE asks for 3/8 to 1/2 inch along each wall and requires additional expansion joints in larger rooms, in doorways and between adjoining rooms.
The takeaway is not to pick one number for every job. It is to read the instructions for the exact product being installed and lay out the room around them.
Trim, transitions and doorways
A floor can have the right gap and still be pinned in place by what goes on top of it. Shaw’s guide says not to fasten wall moldings or transition strips to the planks. RESOLVE tells installers to fasten wall trim into the wall, not the floor, and not to lock the flooring in place with transitions or wall base.
Door frames need attention too. Shaw and Daltile both call for undercutting door jambs so the planks can slide underneath, and Daltile adds that an expansion space is still needed around the undercut jambs and casings.
Cabinets, islands and wet areas
Heavy fixed items are another place where a floating floor can get trapped. Daltile’s guide says permanent cabinets, vanities and islands should be installed first, with the flooring installed around them, and that kitchen cabinets should not be set on top of the floating floor. Shaw’s guide describes a different approach for one product when cabinets or islands sit on the flooring, so again the product instructions decide.
In kitchens and bathrooms, Daltile specifies filling expansion spaces around potential wet areas only with a premium 100% silicone caulk, rather than leaving them open to water. It also notes that a waterproof plank does not seal an existing floor from moisture or prevent problems caused by flooding.
Questions worth asking before installation
- What expansion space does the selected product require for the size and shape of this area?
- Will the layout need expansion joints at doorways, between rooms or in large open spaces?
- How will baseboards, quarter round and transitions be fastened so they do not pin the floor?
- Will cabinets, islands or fixtures go in before the flooring, and what does the manufacturer say about them?
Conclusion
A floating floor stays flat when it is allowed to do what it was designed to do. Respecting the manufacturer’s expansion space, keeping trim and transitions off the planks, and planning around cabinets and doorways help a new floor perform as intended. For hotels, restaurants and homes alike, those details are worth confirming before the first plank is clicked into place.