Questions regarding vinyl flooring

For a floating installation, we recommend the use of vinyl flooring with an HDF core board, vinyl flooring with an SPC core board (in conservatoires with 8mm all around expansion joint) for these kind of rooms and areas. Due to the respective product structure, these coverings react less strongly to temperature fluctuations than vinyl flooring made of solid material. If, however, the installation of vinyl flooring made of solid material is desired or necessary due to its suitability for use in wet rooms, you should glue it or have it glued over the whole area. The light fastness of our resilient flooring has been tested according to test standard EN ISO 105-B02 and achieves at least level 6 (or higher) on the blue wool scale. We still cannot exclude slight colour changes in case of continuously high solar radiation. The strong solar radiation can cause small joints to appear at the plank transitions, but this is neither a problem nor a defect. By means of suitable shading you can keep the temperatures in the room and on the surface of the flooring within a range that is no problem at all for our floors. If you decide not to follow our recommendations and provisions, any guarantee or warranty claims on the part of Parador are excluded.

Yes, all our Parador products with core boards, HDF vinyl and SPC vinyl are all suitable for floating installation on hot water underfloor heating. Solid vinyl flooring must be fully adhered when used over underfloor heating and in areas with strong sunlight and floor-to-ceiling windows. Our vinyl flooring for gluing can also be used on underfloor heating systems. The underfloor heating must be turned off during installation. As a matter of principle, all new mineral substrates must always be heated before installing resilient floor coverings so that damaging moisture can no longer escape ("heat ready for installation"). The need to heat the substrate applies in all seasons, in winter and summer. The new screed must dry out for at least 21 days before heating is started. We recommend that heating be carried out according to our "heating protocol" template or that it be carried out by a specialist company. Please observe additional information given by your screed layer and heating engineer.

Different rules apply for installation on electric underfloor heating systems, as these systems operate with higher surface temperatures. Please note the following:

• only install your floor covering on systems that have a temperature sensor and controller
• DO NOT install your floor covering on older electric floor heating systems
  (installation before 2000)
• DO NOT install your floor covering on night storage heaters
• the maximum surface temperature of 29 °C must not be exceeded
• a very fast heating process must be avoided

Also when installing resilient floor coverings, we recommend using an underlay (footfall sound insulation), as this compensates for slight bumps in the substrate and has a positive effect on the flooring's acoustics. Our vinyl flooring with an HDF core board already have footfall sound insulation integrated at the factory due to the cork layer on the back and vinyl flooring with SPC core board due to the acoustic backing. In these cases you can save yourself the trouble of installing another underlay. Please note that the Parador PE film is used even in cases in which the use of a PE film is not necessary for structural reasons or also appears unreasonable. The floor coverings can glide unhindered on this and a crack and tension-free "working" of the surface is guaranteed (not neccessary for SPC floors).

The most important thing when it comes to value retention is to avoid damage from the outset. You can do this by fitting soft felt glides under chair and table legs as well as under furniture legs, for example, which are available in many shapes and colours from any DIY store. The castors on office chairs, file trolleys and roller containers should be fitted with soft treads/rollers (type W, EN 12529). In heavily used areas, you can additionally protect the flooring with protective mats from an office supply store. Avoid using tyres or protective caps made of black rubber, as these cause discolouration.

The following tips are important for retaining the value of your resilient floor covering:

• keep the relative humidity in the rooms between 35 and 60 %. This is not only optimal for the floor coverings themselves, but also for your well-being and health.
• prevent sand and dirt from entering, as both act like sandpaper. So-called cleaning zones or dirt-trapping mats in the entrance area help. Make sure that such mats have a non-dyeing rubber or latex backing.
• Always absorb liquids standing on the floor immediately.
• when cleaning the floor covering, wring out the mop well and wipe only damp.
• scouring agents, floor waxes, hot steam cleaners, polishes or mircofibre wipers are taboo for cleaning resilient floor coverings, as they can severely impair the appearance of the floor.
• Avoid direct and too intensive sunlight on the surface of the floor covering. A suitable form of light protection such as shutters or pleated blinds will help you to do this.
• when it comes to cleaning agents, you are on the safe side with the care and maintenance products from the Parador range.

For regular maintenance care, an ordinary basic or universal cleaner is completely sufficient.

Yes, potentially. Two parameters are decisive for the occurrence (and permanent retention) of pressure points: pressure and exposure time. Very heavy furniture with a very small contact area, which is left in place for a long period, will leave pressure points behind on resilient floor coverings just as much as on other soft floor coverings.  However, making the contact area larger with suitable underlayers (plastic or metal plate) can very effectively prevent this effect.

Yes, you can, but you should bear a few rules in mind. Heavy objects weighing more than 350 kg such as kitchen units and wardrobes require twice as big a gap to the wall on the opposite side because the floor can only expand to one side. Since such a large expansion joint is not always practical, we recommend that heavy objects and built-in furniture be assembled BEFORE installation and that the flooring only be installed up to under the base of the furniture. In this way, you can again maintain the usual expansion joint widths, and the flooring can be easily taken back up at any time. If necessary, it may be useful to take the position of heavy objects into account when planning the installation. Tip: gluing the end edges of the plank in the load areas prevents joints from opening up.

No, our floor coverings are very durable but not scratch-resistant. The scratch resistance of hard floor coverings is generally low, and there are no values or classifications for it. This is different for durability, where you can orientate yourself by the wear classes. However, a durable floor covering is quite capable of withstanding the abrasion caused by sand or dirt particles.

Yes, that is possible without any problems. However, the castors on office chairs, file trolleys and roller containers should be equipped with soft treads (type W, EN 12529). In heavily used areas, you can additionally protect the flooring with protective mats from an office supply store. Avoid using tyres or protective caps made of black rubber, as these cause discolouration.