BITUMEN-EPOXY
A waterproofing, self-leveling floor screed,
approximately 2-5mm thick, used as a damp resistant layer for old
floors. This will require a latex screed before the finishing layer
is applied.
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CUSHION FLOOR
A vinyl floor finish with integral foam.
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FELT UNDERLAY
Traditional Axminster and Wilton style carpets
do not tend to have a bonded foam underlay and the traditional way
to smooth out base floor irregularities was to use a felt. This has
largely been superceded by rubber foam although felt often has better
sound absorption qualities. Felt will need paper as a first layer.
Under layers are important and will prevent some wearing.
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GRANOLITHIC
See
screed. Generally a hard cement / sand layer but only measuring about
15-25mm. This is laid wetter than screed and with strength throughout
instead of just on the surface so that it can be used as a wearing
surface, particularly in garages.
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GRIPPER RODS
Plywood
battens around 25mm wide with small nails protruding 'hedgehog style'.
These are laid spike up around the perimeter of a room to grip the
edge of a carpet.
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LATEX SELF LEVELLING
A mixture of fine aggregate and liquid rubber
poured onto a floor to run and find its own level, thereby filling
any small holes or slightly off-level areas. Around 6mm is the maximum
workable depth.
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LINO
A
traditional mixture of cork dust or wood dust, flax, chalk and linseed
oil which is highly compressed between rollers onto a jute backing
and used as flooring. Lino is produced near Dundee in Scotland.
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OVER BOARDING
Floorboards are unsuitable for sheet flooring
materials, as the joints will show through. This is prevented by over
boarding with plywood or with pre-soaked or oiled hardboard. Pre-soaking
with water is important to prevent expansion 'bubbling up' the boarding.
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SCREED
A
coarse, washed sand, sometimes granite based and referred to as 'grano',
which is mixed with cement when slightly damp and spread over a floor
to about 65mm then steel trowelled smooth. The screed may be laid
over a concrete floor a day or so after setting and monolithically
bonded to the concrete by pouring liquid cement (grout) over as glue.
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TERRAZZO
A
mixture of white cement and marble chippings/powder, laid wet then
ground smooth. This is often seen in shop doorways but can also be
used for work surfaces and basins.
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THERMOPLASTIC
A finishing floor tile of hard vinyl plastic
that, in the past, was mixed with asbestos fibre. For this reason,
20-year-old marbled plastic tiles should be treated as suspect.
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